Rod Stewart - Time

Rod Stewart’s been on a commercial roll singing pop standards of the American Songbook series. When it came to writing his own songs, his well had run dry. But now the floodgates have opened, which Stewart attributes to his recent autobiography. “Something about that process of reviewing my life for the book reconnected me,” says the music legend. “Suddenly ideas for lyrics were piling up in my head.”

Time, a collection of 11 original songs and one cover, marks his creative renaissance. The album kicks off with the joyous “She Makes Me Happy,” a nod to Stewart’s romantic revival with his third wife, Penny Lancaster. There are ballads about divorce (“It’s Over”) and affection for his children (“Pure Love”). Deeply personal, the album also includes “Life the Life,” a father’s song of advice to his son that musically echoes his early mandolin-laced hit “Maggie May.” As revealing as his best-selling memoir, this is Stewart at his confessional best.