By Brian HaackOriginal Source: grammy.com

 The prolific Nashville-based songwriter goes deep on how MusiCares has helped him on his search for sobriety, the importance of journal writing and his new album, 'First Cigarette'

Now seven years clean and sober, his path to recovery wandered a broken line that included four trips to in-patient rehab, not to mention a lifetime of hard lessons learned.A professional musician since his teenage years, Meadows found religion in his early 20s and spent almost two decades traveling as a missionary, preacher, and active songwriter in the Christian music industry. At age 39, faced with growing disillusionment, he cut ties with the Christian music scene and relocated to Nashville to work as a traditional songwriter and performing musician, where he concurrently suffered a multiyear spiral into addiction and alcoholism.The support network and partner services offered through MusiCares, which is designed as a safety net of critical assistance for music people in times of need, had a part to play in Meadow's effort to regain control of his life and find a sustainable path to recovery. Following the release of his third album, First Cigarette, the singer/songwriter sat down with us to discuss his ties to the organization, writing songs for his new project and artists such as Dierks Bentley, and his thoughts on personal writing and strategies for self-growth.How did you first encounter MusiCares and at what point did their support enter the picture?Well, it was in the very beginning. Sadly, I did not even know that MusiCares existed. I lived in a bubble — my drinkin' bubble. And when I came to the point when I said...click here to continue reading