Being a songwriter is like having a special license to explore the world and take your audience along on the journey. Some writers prefer to look no further than their own experiences, plumbing the depths of their souls for songs. Some intently observe the parade of life swirling around them and capture stories from other people’s lives. Singer/songwriter Mark Schultz is equally skilled at both approaches. It’s a gift he demonstrates yet again on his latest Word Records collection “Broken and Beautiful.”

“I feel I know what I’m supposed to do in life—write songs, perform and communicate,” says Schultz, who in just six years has become one of the industry’s most successful songwriters, penning such poignant hits as “He’s My Son,” “Remember Me” and “Letters from War,” which was selected as the centerpiece of the U.S. Army’s 2004 “Be Safe—Make It Home” campaign. Schultz’ hit, “Back in His Arms Again” was named BMI’s Christian Song of the Year in 2003. “I Am the Way” was cited as the Christian Song of the Year by American Songwriter magazine in 2001.

He’s earned numerous accolades and become one of the Christian format’s core artists with seven chart-topping hits to his credit. He’s also found success on mainstream radio, scoring an AC hit with “He’s My Son.” His last project, “Live. . .A Night of Stories and Songs,” won the 2006 Gospel Music Association Dove Award for longform music video of the year. He recently earned the No. 1 spot on Billboard magazine’s Hot Christian Adult Contemporary Songwriters list.

“Broken and Beautiful” finds Schultz forging a new creative partnership with producer Mark Bright, well known for his work with Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts, Sara Evans and other major country artists. “We had kind of a dream meeting before we started the record,” he says of the search for a new producer. “I’ve done a lot of story songs clear back when I was a youth director at Nashville’s First Presbyterian Church. I realized how powerful stories were, so I’ve been doing stories on my records and Mark Bright deals with stories all the time. So we thought that would be a great idea.”

Music publishing veteran Jody Williams, a friend of Schultz from church, gave Bright some CDs and he was immediately impressed. “We got a call from Mark one day and he said, ‘I just can’t stop listening to these CDs.’ I went to meet with him one day and I thought it would be like a 10 minute meeting and we met for two and a half hours,” says Schultz. “He’s a strong Christian guy and just wanted to know about the Christian music industry and my songs. He said, ‘What ever you want me to do, I’ll do.’ He’s so giving and so humble and such a great guy. I really had an unbelievable experience. I was honored that he would do some of my songs.”

Schultz also worked for the first time with producer Shaun Shankel. “It was neat because Shaun and I have been neighbors for three years and we never worked together,” says Schultz. “One day we said ‘We ought to do something together because I’d just have to get up in the morning and walk across the grass and grab a cup of coffee and do vocals and walk back home.’ It turned out to be a great thing. He’s a wonderful young producer. He’s certainly different than Mark Bright in style because he’s a pop guy, but it was just so fun. This is kind of a dream album for me to be able to work with Mark Bright and Shaun as well--two great producers.”

“Broken and Beautiful” features the insightful songwriting that has marked Schultz’ three previous studio albums, and the vocal performances take the listener further than ever into the artist’s world. Schultz credits Bright with pairing him with a microphone that made working in the studio a new experience. “I stepped behind the microphone and I just felt so comfortable. It just felt like a little bit like singing in the shower,” says Schultz. “Ever since I started recording songs, the studio has been the hardest part for me. I love writing songs and love to perform them live. Recording songs in the studio is my least favorite part because I just have to sing them over and over and over again. But for some reason, he matched the right microphone up to my voice and as soon as I got behind the microphone, my voice just flew out of there. On previous albums, it would sometimes take me two or three days to just do one vocal for one song and I was walking out of there in two hours with a vocal finished. It was so fun.”

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