Owensboro native Madison McCreary Stuart used her free time during the pandemic to produce her first album, “Time + Tide.” The album features a combination of mandolin, banjo, and more to create a folk sound with hints of bluegrass — and there are several other Owensboro connections on the project.
Stuart spends her days teaching English in Hawaii, which she enjoys. Virtual instruction during the pandemic allowed her to return home, so she joined forces with other Owensboro natives to produce the album.
“The genre is hard to pin down,” Stuart said. “It’s definitely singer-songwriter and folk with some bluegrass. I played the piano and ukelele before moving to Hawaii, and since I couldn’t bring my piano with me, I’m improving my ukelele skills.”
Stuart attended Owensboro High School and was very active with the Kentucky Youth Chorale, where she met two close friends – Emily Wills and Hadley Rouse, both from Owensboro. They played a pivotal role on the album, along with Emily’s brother Matthew and business partner Claron Hayden, who orchestrated the recording and production.
“This is a very Owensboro-centric project,” she said. “Emily, Hadley, Matthew, and Claron helped a ton. Emily played nearly every instrument under the sun on the album. Chris Joslin at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum was also nice enough to play some banjo and mandolin on several songs.”
While the album’s first raw recording was in 2020, Stuart wrote some songs more than a decade ago. As an English teacher and writer, she said the album is very lyric-driven, with each song written for or about a close person in her life.
“The songs move through the months of the year with the first song in January and the last song in December,” she said. “Sometimes the months and seasons are obvious, and other times they’re hidden in the lyrics. It’s named ‘Time + Tide’ because it moves through the different phases of my life.”
Stuart has called Hawaii home for the last 6 years but loves that she was able to produce the album at home near her family farm, from which she drew much inspiration.
“I was born and raised in Owensboro,” she said. “Our farm has been in the family for many generations, over 200 years. We have deep roots in the community.”
The album is available on all streaming platforms. Click here to listen to the album on Spotify. To stay up-to-date with Stuart’s career, follow her on Instagram here.
