Brett Wilson

Peregrin Road~ Who We Are ~In the Fall of 2005, as Matt Schofield and Brett Wilson were backing up singer/songwriter, Jim Winder in concert, acoustic magic happened!“It was as if someone had charged the air with millions of tiny particles of acoustic energy!” exclaims Brett. “You could feel the intensity in the silences between the notes and Matt and I just looked at each other and knew that something special was about to take place!”From that moment they knew they would one day form a group and continue to make pure musical magic.“It was the first time the three of us had ever played together,” says Matt, “and when Jim announced this fact towards the end of the evening, you could hear an audible gasp from the audience. They thought we had been a group for years! Several came up and were asking for autographs and buying Jim’s albums. It was just crazy!...”Matt, a veteran bass player/guitarist, grew up in Northern Illinois, first playing Cello at age 9, switching to Saxophone at 12. A year later he began studying the guitar and exposing himself to a diverse spectrum of styles ranging from jazz to rock to country to gospel and contemporary Christian.At 18 he joined a rock band called Joe Hawkins, performing music by artists like ZZ Top, Billy Idol and Rush as well as originals. They played the Chicago circuit for 3 years, gaining a large local following, frequenting venues that had not long before seen the likes of Styx and Cheap Trick.In an effort to gain label interest, they moved to Southern California, where, for the next six years, the band built a significant fan base throughout the Los Angeles and Phoenix area.After an earthquake destroyed their home and nearly took their lives in the January of 1994 Matt and his wife Linda decided move to a saner pace in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.It was here they began to attend Grace Place, a non-denominational church with over 1,000 members, where Brett led the music and served as Worship Pastor of 50+ musicians & singers.Brett, the son of a Biology teacher, grew up in the beautiful horse country of Maryland, while influenced by the 60’s & 70’s culture of the Washington D.C. area. Yet it was here that his father would take him camping, caving and hiking up and down the mountains of Appalachian Trail where he learned a deep appreciation for creation and all things natural.“I grew up with all sorts of animals around the house,” offers Brett, “including horses, a raccoon, flying squirrel, iguanas, boas, rattlesnakes and even a great-horned owl named ‘Cedric’ that we ended up giving to the National Zoo!”“While I was definitely in love with nature, I also became deeply interested in music,” recalls Brett. “My parents had quite a collection of records and I remember listening over and over to these singer/songwriters like John Denver, Neil Diamond, Simon & Garfunkel and Glen Campbell. There was something in the ‘acousticity’ that drew me in. Their voices matched the emotion of the songs and their authenticity connected with my soul. Besides,” smiles Wilson, “I wasn’t allowed to listen to Rock and Roll…”He picked up the guitar at age 15 and a year later helped form his first band, an acoustic folk-rock act, Travelers Crossroads, who wrote and recorded their originals, traveling up and down the East Coast performing for coffee houses, colleges, churches, youth groups and basically anyone who would listen.In 1992, along with his business partner, Brett and his wife moved their family to Nashville where he managed a recording studio and headed up a small artist-driven Christian record label until 1995. When their distribution company bankrupted on them, leaving them a quarter of a million dollars in the hole, he left the music industry, broken, disillusioned and seeking God’s direction for his life.“We gave away or sold everything,” states Wilson, “down to my last guitar, which, for some reason, I couldn’t quite seem to let go of. I remember at one point shaking my fist at God, saying, ‘How could you let this happen? We were doing this for You?’ But somewhere along the way, I made peace with Him and saw incredible acts of provision and protection that gave us the strength and courage to strike out in a new direction.”For the next year and a half, he took his family, including three small children, and traveled the country, using his masonry and carpentry skills, playing music and sharing their love for Jesus. It was during this time Brett accepted a call to help start a church in Berthoud, Colorado, and the wild beauty of the West took root in his veins.“While I listen to Rock and Roll, and tons of other styles these days,” shares Brett, “I’m discovering a deep appreciation for bluegrass, country and Celtic music. I guess you could call me a ‘Celtic Cowboy’!”Some of Wilson’s later influences have included – Dan Fogelberg, Rich Mullins, Phil Keaggy, Lowen & Navarro, David Wilcox, Rascal Flatts, Keith Urban & Nickel Creek. He also enjoys reading Thoureau’s “Walden” annually.Where did the name Peregrin Road come from?“Glad you asked!” winks Brett. “I remember reading a book of Celtic Prayers and I came across this section that was describing monks who would go on journeys for the love of God. It was called ‘Peregrination’. I thought, ‘What a cool idea!’ If we all lived that simply, what a different world this would be…”~ * ~