Over the past few years, I reckon one of the artists who has inspired me and impacted me immensely, is CCM artist Matthew West. Known for his singles “The Motions”, “More”, “You Are Everything”, “My Own Little World”, “History”, “Only Grace”, “The God Who Stays”, “Forgiveness”, “What If”, “Truth Be Told”, “Hello My Name Is”, “Day One”, “All In” and “Broken Things” to name a few; Matthew has also won and been nominated for Grammy Awards and Dove Awards. He’s also the host of The Matthew West Podcast; and he’s been reminding us all, time and time again over the years, about the power of a story. Since 2010, Matthew has been writing songs about his listeners and the stories they’ve been going through. The result has been a career that has been improving exponentially by the album. I’ve blogged about Matthew here, while Jon has also reviewed Matthew’s 2020 album Brand New. We’ve also voiced our opinions about Matthew’s latest singles “What If” (with Lathan Warlick) and “Truth Be Told” (with Carly Pearce). Matthew has also released his Christmas album We Need Christmas in 2021; while Matthew released brand new singles in 2022 that we’ve reviewed: “Me On Your Mind”, “Wonderful Life”, “Before You Ask Her”, “How Good Of God”, a new rendition of “Me On Your Mind”- this time a collaboration with CCM/country rising star Anne Wilson, as well as “My Story Your Glory”. He was definitely building up to a new album, wasn’t he? And build up to a new album has Matthew indeed! Early this year, the double disc 22-track pop/CCM/worship project My Story Your Glory released to stores and to digital outlets- and as far as albums go, this collection of heartfelt, worshipful, impacting, inspiring and honest songs comprise of one of the most thought-provoking and standout albums of the year, behind Dolly Parton’s Rockstar. My Story Your Glorythe album, is a powerful, comforting, inspiring, and encouraging selection of life-changing and hopeful tracks about our lives being the stories that God uses to draw others closer to Him; and I firmly believe that this album may be Matthew’s best of his entire career! And while you can read my review of the groundbreaking 2-disc worship album here, and also our thoughts on Matthew’s expanded edition version of the same album (as well as our review of Matthew’s brand new single “Don’t Stop Praying”); let’s dive deep into Matthew’s personal and heartfelt new song “18 Summers”, shall we?
I think I’ll just let this ‘review’ end right here- in fact, I reckon Matthew did a great job explaining the heart behind “18 Summers”, and the fact that it’s about the passage of time seeming to quicken as the years progress, and to always not let a moment slip you by it’s a song that encourages us to slow down and to always live in the present- and actually be present in the present. “18 Summers” highlights the fragility of life and as we reorganise our lives and reorder our priorities, let us remember that we need to make time for the people who truly matter the most. God, our family, our friends, our pets, the experiences that make up a life… rather than stuff and material possessions. It’s all going to fade away someday, so let’s live life to the fullest, and ensure we pack a lot in so that we’re proud of everything we’ve done at the end of the day.
Like he has countless times before, Matthew West has proven on this song to still be a force to be reckoned with in CCM and in music generally and overall. Matthew West remains to be one of today’s most inspiring and relatable artists. And his timeless songs are proof of this impact and influence; while this unique song about graduation and holding onto the moments that are special to us, is a timely, powerful, and joyous melody about God’s faithfulness and His immense love present in our lives. Well done, Matthew, I can’t wait to hear what God has in store for you next! Are you all a fan of Matthew West yet? No? Well then listen to this ambitious and hard-hitting new piano driven melody, and the rest of his discography! I guarantee it you’ll be a fan by then!