Matchbox Twenty is in Nashville this week doing preproduction on its third album –- the follow-up to 2000's Mad Season -- at Ocean Way Studio.
The group was also in town on Sunday (April 14) for the taping of Willie Nelson & Friends (see related news in Miss Truth) at the Ryman Auditorium. The group performed "Maria" and "Mommas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" with Nelson and decided to stick around town to get some studio work in.
Despite all of lead singer Rob Thomas' collaborations with other artists lately, don't look for any outside help on these songs. "I've been working with everybody from Willie Nelson to Wyclef Jean, so when you come back to [songwriting], it broadens your perspective," Thomas told allstar.
Willie Nelson & Friends will air on A&E on May 6.
-- Priscilla Eacker