I was just listening to “Dreams Inside” my favorite song from a new CD by Nat Sharratt called “Walkin’ In Paradise.” Something about this song really touches my heart. I enjoy the entire album, but often there is one song that calls to me to play it over and over again. For you it may be a different song, but I can almost guarantee that there will be at least one song off this new album that grabs you and won’t let you go. Pop it into your CD player and read this interview with Nat.
– NDH reporter, Peter Leighton

NDH: Nat, where did you come up with the title for the CD?

NS: Well, it came from the song, Walkin’ in Paradise, which is the first song on the CD. I wrote the song while we were on a trip in Hawaii, so it has a Hawaiian feeling. And it’s actually a song that… it ended up being one of those vacations that wasn’t so sweet. (Laughs) So, I started the little tune at the beginning and then by the end, it was pretty much the whole song and it really helped me stay happy during the few rough points on the trip. We were in a paradisiacal area, physically.

NDH: Which island were you on?

NS: We were on Kauai. And so it was very beautiful. So it was walking in paradise, and it helped me to walk in a more paradisiacal place inside to match the outer surroundings.

NDH: What inspired you to create the CD?

NS: I’ve always loved music and I did a lot of voice work growing up, a lot of musical theater and I trained operatically with a vocal instructor. And I had a lot of people over the years tell me that I should do something with my voice. And I definitely heard it from J-R that he enjoyed hearing me sing. So, it was a process of me beginning to write my own music. A lot of the music, it’s… the way I would describe it, is it’s a lot of my experience of living, working towards the Light with J-R. And then, a lot of it’s based on J-R’s teachings. So a lot of it is my experience mixed with J-R’s teachings and living those experiences.

I’m into writing the music and I really got into it for my PTS Master’s Year Three class project. So, I recorded the song, Spiritual Warrior for my project. It was different from the one that’s on the disk now, but it has a lot of similar parts. It has evolved over the years. I did it on my own. That kind of gave me the “bug.” So, I’d say, the Master’s Year Three gave me the inspiration. Then, I wanted to do more as a ministry with my voice, with singing and creating the music. So, I’ve had a lot of support. J-R’s really been there for me in the creation of this and assisting me with it. And MSIA, the church, has really backed me up and it’s been really wonderful. A lot of the inspiration was J-R.

NDH: You mentioned that you see it as part of your ministry. How do you see that expanding?

NS: The CD is for people in MSIA, but it is not just for people in the physical organization. It’s for people who are interested in that movement of spiritual inner awareness that’s inside. They can be in many places. At the current time, I am playing a lot for MSIA events and that’s really my base. This album was especially dedicated to J-R. I see it expanding; I see it becoming a source of upliftment for people in many areas of life and not just the organization. People who are interested in having a little more joy and having that in their music… because a lot of the music today isn’t necessarily focused on the inner experience of having more joy and just having some fun and being uplifting. To me, it’s just one more positive voice out there, and a ministry of the Traveler. In Spiritual Warrior, I have a sample of J-R speaking, from the seminar, The Majesty of the Inner Master. So, I took that and I put it in (with permission, of course) the Spiritual Warrior song. To me, it’s another place for people to get into contact with the energy of the Traveler; hearing the voice of the Traveler and all that goes along with that.

NDH: Where did Dreams Inside come from? I just love that song.

NS: Some songs have stories behind them and some just come to me. That’s one of the songs that just came to me. Sometimes, they even come to me in dreams. Dreams Inside was a little melody that came into my mind. To me, the words… I created the words to reflect the music and to bring forward that loving. A lot of it is about the one I found inside, so it’s about the Traveler inside, J-R inside. There is also a section that said, “I met a man who had found it…” Obviously, that was J-R. So, it’s not only J-R outside, but it’s J-R inside me — the Traveler Consciousness. So, it’s kind of a sweet little love song from me to that.

NDH: That’s great! It comes across that way, too.

NS: Yeah.

NDH: How did you hook up with Brad Pie?

NS: I believe it was at Living in Grace. A number of years ago we did The Entity Blues, (Laughs) and that was a fun song that didn’t quite make it to album.

NDH: Perhaps on the next one…

NS: (Laughs) It was a lot of fun, and we had a lot of fun together. Brad’s a great guy and an awesome guitarist. We have the love for the Traveler and J-R in common and the Spirit of service. It seemed like a natural progression… starting out at Living in Grace and then the next year, I had a couple of songs that I had written. Brad helped me out. He, with his talent, really takes the music to another level. He has this great talent and guitar and musical ability as well as experience. He helped me develope the songs. We actually ended up writing a song together at Grace (that’s the song Free). It actually came from a J-R excerpt where J-R is saying something like… where are you with this, where are you with that, with God, with your life, etc… And so I just took J-R’s words and expanded on some of that. Like “where are you with your God, where are you with your job,” and kind of made a lot of “where are you’s.” It shifted a bit in the development to make it musically work. Brad helped come up with the music for that song. So, we did that at Grace. Then, after Grace, we just got together and started playing. I brought my little M-box. It’s a little recording-type device that interfaces into the computer over at his house (and my laptop) and we started recording. It became its own thing. It was a natural progression based on service.

NDH: So, is this the MSIA version of a garage band?

NS: (Laughs) I’d say so! Yeah. This album is. But I must say… to me, we did a very good job with what we had to work with and it really has the Spirit, at least when I listen to it. So, I think it worked in a garage band way.

NDH: (Laughs)

NS: …and maybe in the future, it will be a little more elaborate. (Laughs)

NDH: Your musical background… are you self-taught or did you have lessons?

NS: I grew up involved in a lot of school and community productions of musical theatre. Junior college-type productions when I was, I think, thirteen and I was involved in some of the repertory at the junior college where I was growing up. I had various voice teachers, piano teachers, some guitar lessons. I trained in opera for the voice for a while. And then, for many years I just taught myself quite a bit. I’ve had a few touch-up lessons with some great teachers, recently, and that’s really helped me. But a lot of it I’d say I worked on, on my own, with advice (some coaching). Then just playing at MSIA stuff. I did, a number of times, a lot of the old Love Songs to the Traveler at different events. And then some other cover tunes we did. Jsu Garcia and I did some stuff together. He helped me out at the beginning. Then I started doing more stuff with others and on my own. And now we have the CD, which is… not only me… I definitely consider God is my partner in the creation.

NDH: How would you categorize the type of music on your CD?

NS: That was one of the most difficult things I’ve had to do because there really is so much variety of styles on the CD and I have to say, part of it is that I have been exposed to, and loved, music from classical — Bach and Mozart, operas — to… I grew up on the Beach Boys and James Taylor and guys like that. For me, they were considered “the oldies” (Laughs). So, I grew up on the oldies… I was into blues for a while… I’ve been into a lot of musical theater.

NDH: That’s what I’d like to hear (on the next CD), some blues!

NS: Yeah, some of the 30’s and 40’s and 50’s music. Even 70’s. Of course, but I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s, so I had a lot of the modern influences as well. And, even today, I still have my favorite artists and bands. So, I have such a wide variety that I’ve listened to and that has influenced me, that I would have to say, that my music is really a mix of all of those.

NDH: Would you say that there was one type of music that influenced you more than others?

NS: I really can’t say. But the music that I like doing, a lot of it is from the fifties and sixties. I’ve always loved the Beach Boys, I love The Beatles. There’s so many to mention. I love Ray Charles.

The album I would categorize as rock, but more acoustic and oldies style. Songs like Ordinary People are straight-out rock and roll, like Before the Dawn. But Living in Love has more of a country western feel, almost, and Free is one of those songs, that’s, to me, it has the best of the fifties mixed with some acoustic rock. And then, Walkin’ In Paradise has a island feel. I think because we travel so much it can influence the music, especially from working on it in these other places. So, the way I’ve categorized it… the way I’ve described it , it’s a mix between James Taylor, Cat Stevens, and Don McLean with influences of the Beach Boys and… there’s one other I can’t remember right now. It also has elements of folk-rock, acoustic-rock… it’s a long-winded answer.

NDH: It covers a lot of territory.

NS: Yeah, it’s been the most difficult thing, to try and categorize the music.

NDH: Some of the most beautiful music I remember was sung by early 50’s black groups, a lot of it a cappella. They produced some of the most beautiful love songs.

NS: I agree. Having Brad with me in the music has been nice because he played with a lot of those guys. He worked with people like R.B. Greives, Johnny Otis, Chuck Rio, and he’s played on the same venues with huge acts like Ray Charles, Little Richard, B.B. King. So, he’s really been in that world. So, he can really help me when I’m developing things that have that feel. When we came up with Free, it has elements of those oldies. Earlier, I said how I would describe it, here it is: “James Taylor, Cat Stevens, and Don McLean mixed with Jimmy Buffet and the Beach Boys.” That’s how I would describe what the music sounds like. One thing that’s neat right now on www.cdbaby.com/cd/natsharratt, my CD is selling, you go to www.natsharratt.com, there’s a link to “cdbaby.”

NDH: Wow! Fabulous!

NS: To me, it’s another way of us ministering to people out in the world, especially right now. So, right now you can go to my website and listen to all the tracks for free, and even download the song Free for free.

NDH: Where did you get the idea for the cover, the cover art?

NS: A lot of people come up to me and say something about the cover. Some people just think it’s hilarious, Some people ask me how I got the cheetah to sit still for so long. There’s a lot of different comments. The cover was one of those moments of pure creativity. One of my favorite trips was when I was traveling with J-R on safari in Africa. It was a life-changing or perception-altering experience. I really just loved looking at the wildlife and being in that environment. I found great beauty there. Because it was so dear to my heart, (and I did work on some of the music while I was there) I thought, “I would like to have that as part of my album.” So, I got some pictures out that I had taken and worked on them with David Sand. To me, it’s about the joy of that experience. Maybe that translates to other people even though it might not directly reflect the music. To me, it just captures the fun. I love the back cover with Brad and the baby elephant. I love the little babies. One of the greatest things is to have little children listen to the music and enjoy it.

NDH: Well, each one of our “little kids” has a favorite. People should listen to the album to find out which is their favorite.

NS: Yeah, it’s funny because it seems that most people come up and… everyone has there own favorite.

NDH: Which one is your favorite?

NS: You know, it really depends on where I’m at. The most fun I’ve had performing one has been at the Q&A for the volunteers at Prana. That was where Brad & I played Walkin’ in Paradise with the song, All of Me. That was so much fun to perform, sing, get out into the audience, and just have fun. That was the most fun, so far, but I haven’t performed them all yet, so that remains to be seen.

NDH: Any more songs in the works for album #2?

NS: Yes…

NDH: OK. (Laughs)

NS: Plenty of songs.

NDH: How do you see this getting out more into the public?

NS: I think it can happen a number of ways. I leave it up to the Spirit to decide how it works. I am definitely looking at playing out in public venues. To me, that’s probably the best way to get it out there. Other than that, it’s through the web. To me, the web is a great opportunity for musicians and artistic people in general because it really adds a world-wide audience. So it’s a just matter of finding the people, or making it available for the people to find you who match the vibration. That’s one of the things that I’m working on right now. I have one website right now www.natsharratt.com. It’s also available through www.towerrecords.com, www.cdbaby.com, www.msia.org and I am working on having it available through a number of sources. I just found out that the album is now selling through Apple iTunes. If you’ve got iTunes on your computer, you can go to the store and search my name (Nat Sharratt) or the album name (Walkin’ in Paradise) and then you can download the song or the entire album…or you can just click here. Then, it’s just about getting the word out there so that people who are interested in this kind of music — uplifting music focused on awareness, Spirit, loving — can be aware of it and listen to it. Word of mouth also — it’s generally the best way.

NDH: If you had your choice, in getting the music out there, who would you like to perform with?

NS: Gosh. I don’t know. I really haven’t thought of that one, yet. Uh, hmm. I just haven’t thought of that. Honestly. There are a lot of people I love. There are places that I love, like the Hollywood Bowl. To me, that’s a great place. No, honestly, I don’t know who I would want to play with. It’s open for a lot of people. Anyone from Brian Wilson to U2, to… whoever.

NDH: Which of the songs has the most meaning for you? Which touches you the most?

NS: That’s a really hard one. I would definitely say the song Claire touches me the most emotionally and Free is the most joyful one for me to listen to. Free was created at Living in Grace so it really has a special meaning for me because of that. Claire has a special meaning for me because it is about letting go. It’s about a mixture of things — watching people grow up, letting go of the child, and welcoming the new expressions. To me, that has an emotional significance.

NDH: What would you like people to experience when they listen to your CD?

NS: That’s one thing I’m going to leave up to Spirit. Personally, I would just love them to be moved in some way, to experience more love, more joy by being more connected. Seeing things from a little different perspective. Seeing from a more loving, accepting place. Also being more in tune with Spirit Within and the Traveler. Yet, that’s really up to Spirit to do.

NDH: How did J-R participate in the making of this CD?

NS: On different songs, in different ways. For Free, it was his quote — I took his words and expanded on them. Some songs he worked with me more closely, like the Claire song. Some songs, it is more of a working with me inside. Each song was a little different, but he was definitely guiding me. One song we completely scrapped and redid a different way with his feedback and direction. So he was, I’d say, greatly on the inner and also participating outwardly in the song and album creation.

NDH: Were you inspired by any of the old MSIA songs?

NS: I have listened to those songs a lot. I was inspired that those who came before me did it. Musically, they were another influence among the other influences. I am not trying to do what they did. For me, it’s a different process, but I love those songs and I’m glad that there’s new MSIA music. A lot of it is very different.

NDH: What, would you say, is the difference?

NS: Musically speaking, on Ordinary People, there is full-scale electric guitar, drums, the whole rock feeling, which I didn’t hear much on the older stuff which was more of a folk feeling. Although, The Way is Love and Dreams Inside have a very similar feel as the older ones. I would say it’s just one more building block in the house of the Traveler. I love what they did. I still listen to it and enjoy it. I’m glad they did it before me. It was an inspiration.

NDH: How much of your ministry is your music?

NS: I work with J-R, and that, to me, is my main ministry. Then I do other things such as facilitate PTS Master’s classes. Music is my ministry to more people. It’s more of my giving of all I have learned and all I have received, including the gift of my voice. It’s just sharing all of that, all the blessings, whoever cares to share in them. It’s my ministry to a greater audience. So, it’s a different aspect of my ministry.

NDH: Is there anything further you would like to say?

NS: The Spirit in which this album was made was one of service and loving and being aware of the Spirit. It was made for J-R and with God. At first, I wasn’t sure how that would translate, but there are a lot of people who come up to me and say that its helped them through a lot of difficulties. One person said that they were experiencing a downer day and they listened to the album and all of a sudden it changed their perspective and they got more upbeat. There are those who listened to it in the hospital and had great experiences with it there. So, I would say, at least for those people, something was translated across. Maybe it’s just the Spirit using any means it can to reach people and I’m grateful to be any part of that.

You can purchase Walkin’ In Paradise in MSIA’s online store by clicking here.