Rob Thomas on 'All Night Days' (Listening Party)

Summary

Podcast Summary: Rob Thomas on 'All Night Days' (Listening Party) – All Of It (WNYC)

Date: September 11, 2025
Host: Alison Stewart
Guest: Rob Thomas

---

Episode Overview

In this engaging "Listening Party" episode, Rob Thomas sits down with host Alison Stewart to discuss his latest solo album, All Night Days. Marking 30 years since Thomas co-founded Matchbox 20 and two decades since his solo debut, the conversation explores his enduring career, the making of the new album, the evolution of his songwriting, and moments both personal and universal. Listeners are treated to live performances of new tracks and insight into Thomas's creative philosophy, nostalgia, and his ongoing quest to find joy—both in music and life.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Reflections on Longevity and Nostalgia

• 30 Years of Matchbox 20:
  Attributing success to "longevity," Rob expresses gratitude for the chance to become "someone's nostalgia":

  "You might one day be around long enough to be someone's nostalgia, which is a very, very cool aspect of the job." —Rob Thomas (01:51)

2. Evolution of 'All Night Days' Album

• Origins and Process:
  Thomas began some solo tracks before the 2023 Matchbox 20 reunion and found that the projects overlapped:

  "Some of my songs wound up on that last Matchbox record. Some of the stuff I was working on for Matchbox wound up on this record. So... I had plenty of time to curate this record." —Rob Thomas (02:40)

• Song Selection Philosophy:

  "I don’t want to ever die with good songs in my pocket. So if I have a chance to make a record, I want to put the best songs that I’ve written on that record." —Rob Thomas (03:16)

3. Songwriting Habits and Artistic Drive

• Constant Creativity:
  Songwriting is both an obsession and an outlet:

  "There's a compulsion. I do this because I write all the time. It's my only hobby... it's almost like a release valve in my head." —Rob Thomas (03:41)

• Music as a Life Calling:

  "If you didn't do this for a living... I would just do this less successfully because I'm really not that good in anything else." —Rob Thomas (04:09)
  (Channeling “Coming to America” for comedic effect with genuine humility.)

4. A New, Joyful Perspective in Midlife

• Shifting from Angsty to Joyful:

  "I tend to have a lot less things that I focus on that upset me... I try and find more of the joy and I focus on the joy a lot more. Whereas, you know, if you came up in the 90s... there was a currency in that kind of angst." —Rob Thomas (07:14)

  • Humorous commentary on old band promo photos adds levity to the discussion (07:51–08:05).

• Meaning Behind 'All Night Days':
  The title is about recapturing youthful spirit without losing maturity:

  "Every person my age and every person older is really just a young person that's inside of that body. They're still right there... The saddest thing in the world is that that maybe one day somebody told you you need to grow up. And then you listen." —Rob Thomas (09:00)

5. The Craft of Songwriting as Rob Ages

• Inspiration vs. Craft:

  "A song is usually like 10% inspiration and then 90% craft... The whole job of a writer is to not see me in the song. You're supposed to see yourself in a song, and I think those are the best ones." —Rob Thomas (12:04, 12:42)

6. Rediscovery by New Generations

• Streaming and Cultural Longevity:
  New fans discover old hits through movies like Barbie, social media, and streaming platforms:

  "There are fans in their early 20s that only started to know me through solo... and then they're just putting together, like, oh, he's the guy from this band Matchbox 20." —Rob Thomas (13:21)

7. Writing for Other Artists

• Collaboration Approach:

  "If someone wants to work with me, they probably want my point of view... I try not to be a chameleon... Because then I feel like I'll lose myself." —Rob Thomas (14:37)

  • Recounts writing sessions with Mick Jagger and Willie Nelson:

  “With Jagger, just having him in the room... I went somewhere that I never would have gone.” (14:37)

• On Fame vs. Celebrity:

  “Carlos [Santana] taught me the difference between being a successful musician and being a celebrity... celebrity is almost a dirty word. I work for a living. I'm a songwriter. That's what I do.” —Rob Thomas (16:19)

8. Family and Tour Life

• Touring with His Son:

  “My son played guitar on a bunch of it. First full tour with me, which has been nice. Every day is about family and love and jokes and just, you know, we're all there just to have that two hours a night…” —Rob Thomas (20:10–21:16)

9. Sidewalk Angels Foundation

• Advocacy for Animal Rescue:

  “25 years... 30 different organizations we help support. We help with critically needed funding... My wife does most of the heavy lift, I am the mouthpiece and the engine.” —Rob Thomas (24:05)

  • Strictly lean, volunteer operation to maximize direct funding.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Spirit of All Night Days:

  "Whatever happened to the all night days? I'm bringing them back again." —Rob Thomas, All Night Days (10:03)

• On Generational Shifts:

  “Right now, if you're fortunate enough to live another 20 years, you're in the good old days right now.” —Rob Thomas (21:00)

• On Losing his Mind (with a wink):

  "I'm losing my mind but it doesn't show... but I couldn't say if I ever had it anyway and tomorrow is another day until that time I will be fine losing my mind..." —Rob Thomas, Losing My Mind (17:14)

---

Featured Songs and Timestamps

• Hard to Be Happy (Opening Performance) [00:11]
• I Believe It (Performance + Discussion) [05:01, 05:46]
• All Night Days (Title Track Performance) [10:03]
• Losing My Mind (Performance) [17:14]
• Picture Perfect (Performance, featuring son Mason Thomas) [22:53]
• Machine (Final Performance) [26:48]

---

Segment Timestamps

• Early Reflections & Album Backstory: [00:57–04:41]
• Songwriting Philosophy and Joy: [04:41–07:51]
• Origin of 'All Night Days' Concept: [08:09–09:45]
• Changes in Approach with Age: [11:51–13:11]
• Writing for Others & Fame: [13:11–17:00]
• Touring with Family & Band Dynamics: [19:12–21:42]
• Charity Work with Sidewalk Angels: [23:52–25:54]
• Outro & Final Song: [26:16–27:34]

---

Tone & Language

Rob Thomas remains candid, humorous, and deeply reflective throughout, seamlessly blending anecdotes about success, creative drive, family, and staying true to one’s roots. Alison Stewart guides the conversation with warmth, curiosity, and respect for Thomas's legacy and current work.

---

Conclusion

This “Listening Party” episode offers a rich and intimate look at Rob Thomas’s artistry and personal evolution. With performances of new tracks, thoughtful reflections on music and life, and heartwarming stories about family and charity, Rob Thomas’s journey is as much about appreciating where you are as it is about where you’ve been—and sharing the joy along the way.

Transcript

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

It's a beautiful day People around me move and sway Birds in the palm trees call my name All I can feel is down, down, down if I go somewhere drink til I grow wings Find someone to help me forget Things that brand new ain't gonna help me now, now, now and if I feel like crying it's just a temper very low don't try to comfort me Let it go, let it go, let it go. Cause I don't know why some tears can hold me. Sometimes it's hard to just be happy. I could try.

[Interviewer/Host]

That's called hard to be happy.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

But.

[Interviewer/Host]

But despite the title, the song and the album it comes from sound pretty upbeat. Rob Thomas is back with a new album and he has a lot to celebrate. It has been. I have to read this to make sure I'm saying the right thing. It has been 30 years since Rob Thomas co founded the chart topping band Matchbox 20 and 20 years since he released his debut solo album. He has released a lot of hit singles in that time like smooth 3am push with which became a hit all over again thanks to the Barbie movie. His new album is All Night Days. Tonight he's performing at Rough Trade below at Rockefeller center and he is here with us in the studio for an all of it listening party. Rob Thomas.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Hey man, I think you covered it. You don't need me, I'm good. I'll talk to you later.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, it's great to have you and really though, 30 years, do I have that right?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

30 years since you watched Matchwood. It's pretty insane. I think, you know, when you're young and you think about, you know, the almost impossible idea of having success in the music industry, you don't realize that when you come with it, if you're lucky enough to have it, that it comes with longevity. And then, you know, you might one day be around long enough to be someone's nostalgia, which is a very, very cool. It's a very, very cool aspect of the job.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, you started writing this new album before your 2023 Matchbox 20 album, where the Light Goes, Right.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

How did that happen, that the Matchbox 20 ended up coming out first?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, so in 2020, right before everything just kind of went away for a minute, we were always planning on going on a Matchbox 20 tour because it was Matchbox 20, 2020. It all just seemed perfect.

[Interviewer/Host]

It had to do it.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, it was a good poster anyway. And then when that got canceled, I started making a solo record and we figured in a couple months we'll revisit. And then we didn't go back out until 2023. And so by then, we felt like we wanted, too. So I kind of put some of my songs in the back burner. Some of those wound up on that last Matchbox record. Some of the stuff that I was working on for Matchbox wound up on this record. So it, it was, you know, I had plenty of time to curate this record instead of, you know, just throwing everything that I had at it.

[Interviewer/Host]

So is this version of All Night Days very different from the album that you started back?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It is. I mean, you know, there's some songs that were on the last Matchbox record, the single from that record, don't get Me Wrong, and a song called Queen of New York City that were going to be, I thought, you know, flagship songs on this album. But I also realized that I don't, I don't want to ever die with good songs in my pocket. So if I have a chance to make a record, I want to put the best songs that I've written on that record.

[Interviewer/Host]

Do you feel that motivation? Like, I've got this material. I, I, I got to get it down. I got to get it out.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. There's a compulsion. Because it, I, I do this because I write all the time. Like, it's, it's my only hobby. I'm just constantly writing. And so whenever, if I get a chance to make a record or work with someone, it's almost like a release valve in my head because I feel like if I can clear out those songs, get them down, let people hear them, then I can have room for other songs in my head.

[Interviewer/Host]

There's amazing.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

There's a whole OCD that's going on all the time.

[Interviewer/Host]

But it's amazing that your hobby completely lines up exactly with your career.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, it is. People ask all the time. I think one of the most common questions is, what would you do if you didn't do this for a living? And my answer is usually that I would just do this less successfully because I'm really not that good good in anything else. Like, I'm like, you know, you know how Eddie Murphy was when he was in his hometown, in his home country and coming to America, he was so cool and suave, and then anywhere else, he was not like. And when I'm playing music, I'm. I'm Eddie Murphy in his home country. And then when I, when I'm doing anything else, I'm. I'm him at McDonald's or McDowell's.

[Interviewer/Host]

Sorry, McDowell's. Of course. Well, let's. Let's listen to some music. This is a song called I Believe It.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

I got a feeling and I cannot stop it I got a rhythm running through my blood it's pounding in my head Beating like a drum Pray for milk and honey because it just might come Standing in the shadow of the promised land Tell me where to find and I'll never let it go again hey, it's all right because it feels bad now, but it's only getting better I believe it Hey, I believe it Hey, I believe it Hey, I believe.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

I want to go back to the show.

[Interviewer/Host]

Rob Thomas and a little bit of I Believe it, man. This is what I need to hear today.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Right on. Thanks.

[Interviewer/Host]

Tell us about this one. At one point during the breakdown, you sang, I want to tear it down and start all over. I want to try to forget everything. I know everybody feels like that.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Right?

[Interviewer/Host]

Statement of purpose as you're. As you're launching a new album project.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. I mean, I think every. Like, I think in every way. When you're writing, I think one of the hardest things to do is to stay tapped into whatever that thing was, that blank canvas when you were younger and you didn't really think too much about, like, it was all visceral. I think when you write something, you. You want to be tapped into that visceral part of you that's creating stuff and not thinking ahead of time of what it is you want to do, want the outcome to be. And I think there's, you know, there's a sense of that. And I believe it. I think the funny thing about I Believe it was I started that song. I wrote it with two guys in Matchbox in 2012, I think, and never finished it. And then it came back around for the Matchbox record. We recorded it. And most of my recording is featuring the matchbox 20 guys. But Paul, who's my best friend in Matchbox, hated the song and wouldn't let it be on the record. And I was like, low key. I was like, oh, okay. Cause I wanted it to be on my solo record.

[Interviewer/Host]

So his loss is your gain.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It is. And now I just finished my first leg of the North American tour, a Saturday, and when I hear that, we open up the show, we open up the tour with that song. So as soon as I hear it, all of a sudden my brain goes into show mode. Okay, it's time.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, it sounds amazingly fun. Was it amazingly fun?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It is. And I think there's a lot of. A lot of this Record has a, a lot more joy in it and a lot less somber moments. I, I think I find that's, it's indicative of me as I, you know, and as I'm moving into my mid-50s, I have, I, I, I, I tend to have a lot less things that I focus on that upset me. And I think I try and find more of the joy and I focus on the joy a lot more. Whereas, you know, if you came up in the 90s and you were an alternative 90s band, you, there was, you were, there was a currency in that kind of, you know, angst. And so, you know, I think now I don't.

[Interviewer/Host]

Smiling at the photos.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Exactly. Never. And for some reason you always held your arm like it hurt in the 90s. I don't know why that was. It's true. Yeah, but so I, I find that this record is a little more happy.

[Interviewer/Host]

Okay. Don't smile. Hold your arm like this.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Don't smile. Hold your arm.

[Interviewer/Host]

Hurting over there.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. And, and don't smear your, your eyeliner when you put it on.

[Interviewer/Host]

All Night Days is the name of your new album. It's also a term that you coined for a song on the album. This is not hard day's night. This is all Night days. So what is an all night day?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, it came from a conversation where a friend of mine were talking about back when we used to stay up all night. And I had said that, I thought, I said, oh, I think my all night day is over. And then it just sparked an image in my head of your youth being your all night days. You know, when, when your, your body could handle that kind of wear and tear.

[Interviewer/Host]

So that's the time of your life that, that comes to nine to, to mind when you think of all night days. Does the singer want those days back? What's the.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

I think, yeah, I think he's, I think he's hell bent to do it because I think the first line is, you know, whatever happened to the all night days? I'm bringing him back again, so.

[Interviewer/Host]

But you sing in the song. It's all right. We traded, we traded life for feeling safe. For feeling safe.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, that, it's, you know, when I played this for my wife, that line made her cry a little. And I think there was a sadness to that, you know, that feeling of complacency as you get older. And I think that there's gotta be a balance out there. I think that, you know, there's not like a new person, like you have to put on like a Suit when you become older. And as I get older, I look around and I realize that every person my age and every person older is really just a young person that's inside of that body. They're still right there. And so I think, you know, there's a difference between saying you have to burn all of your candles at all of their ends to show that you're alive and saying, you know, maybe it's time for me to put away childish thoughts. There's never a time, you know, I think the saddest thing in the world is that that maybe one day somebody told you you need to grow up. And then you listen.

[Interviewer/Host]

Let's listen to All Night Days. This is the title track from the new album by Rob Thomas.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

Whatever happened to the all night days? I'm bringing them back again. Cause I feel like it's all been done before and your heart's like a wheel From a car that you steal and you drive til you get back home and you ran it over a million miles or more I wanted to steal you from this moment I wanted to take you by surprise I wanted to wrap you up in the starlight and stay there all night I know I'm just a little bit drunk right now. I've never felt like this. I wish I could be wild and just for a little while I've been feeling a little bit stuck. Don't wait to let your hairline down Cause it feels good to be wild.

[Interviewer/Host]

And just all night days. A little bit of the song from Rob Thomas. What are we in now? Are these the all morning days?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, yeah. It's funny like I like now that. Especially now that I'm off the road, it's funny like how excited I am to get back into my routines of, you know, and having your morning and having more of my day. Because when you're on the road, all bets are off, right? Because you gotta be the most awake you've ever been at around 9 o'. Clock.

[Interviewer/Host]

So you really are bringing back those all nights.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, you have to. And then so you walk off stage at 11, you're pretty amped up. You know, I'm playing, I've got my son who's playing guitar with me now in my band out on tour and that, you know, there's a. There's an excitement that that brings. And so it takes a while to kind of get yourself back to sleep. And so you, you sleep a little later in the day. But I'm still old enough now that I don't like to. I don't like to sleep my day away like I used to.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, as you've gotten older and gotten a little further away from maybe those all night days, do you think your songwriting has changed any. Do you approach that any differently or is it kind of the same feeling of just being excited about writing music?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

I think so. A song is usually like 10% inspiration and then 90% craft. Right. And so I think the idea of the inspiration is always kind of the same. I might still wake up in the middle of the night and grab a guitar because I've got a sense of an idea and it's a melody, it's a spark, it's a feeling, it's a vibe. And then now it's like I take more time. Probably over the last like 15, 20 years where I have work days and I go downstairs and I take those inspirations and I lay them out and I start to kind of like craft them into. This is a good lyric. This is a, you know, this is where this shit.

[Interviewer/Host]

What can I do with this?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, exactly. It's just like, you know, like anything else, you start off with raw material and then you try and figure out how do you configure that raw material into something that other people, you know? Because I. I think the whole job of a writer is to not see me in the song. You're supposed to see yourself in a song, and I think those are the best ones.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, you've been writing hit songs since the 1990s.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

And a bunch of non hits too.

[Interviewer/Host]

Lots of songs.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

Let's be honest.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

A lot more non hits than hits, let's be honest.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, but the ratio. It's nice to have some hits in the mix though. It helps.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yes, sir.

[Interviewer/Host]

Now some of those songs are becoming hits all over again, right? On streaming platforms. You go onto YouTube, you'll see like 450 million views.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, it's crazy, the rediscovery of, you know, of some of these things. And it makes sense. You know, as I was growing up, there's so many artists when I was young that I thought I was discovering and they've been around forever, you know, And I love that people are doing that. There are some fans that are in their early 20s that are. That only started to know me through, like solo and then they were. They're just putting together like, oh, he's the guy from this band Matchbox 20. Like it's, it's interesting just the way that other people are experiencing my career.

[Interviewer/Host]

Like, is it interesting to you about which songs are the ones that pop out and really take off in a place like TikTok and others maybe don't.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, in general, I. I love it when it's always funny to me, I think, because when somebody comes to me, like, I met your producer today and she was like, oh, I was, you know, a big fan of yours. I listen to your music and I was like, really? Like, it's almost like I'm incredulous. Like, really? I don't know.

[Interviewer/Host]

Really? All these years later, you still feel that way?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

I'm always like, it's nice of you to say that, but.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, you've written for so many great musicians in addition to writing your own material. Carlos Santana, Willie Nelson, Mick Jaggers. Yeah, it's big time.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It's an embarrassment of riches.

[Interviewer/Host]

An embarrassment of riches. When you're writing a song for someone else, does that change how you write sometimes?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Like, you know, when Mick Jagger and I were writing, we were writing, we did it together. And so just by the having him in the room and kind of riffing off of what he does, I think I went somewhere that I never would have gone with Willie Nelson. We spent a couple days just hanging out and smoking and playing music for each other. And then I had written three songs that he liked and was like, I want to do those songs. And he just wound up doing those songs. I think for the most part, if someone wants to work with me, they probably want my point of view. And so I do my best to write the way that I write. And then sometimes they'll influence it and sometimes they'll take it and, you know, and change it up a little bit and make it their own. But I try not to be a chameleon and. Because then I feel like I'll lose myself.

[Interviewer/Host]

In other words, when you're with a huge presence like Mick Jagger, you're not like, oh, let me try to write a Mick Jagger.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, because I think there's a reason why he called me. Like, he can write his own songs. You know, he wants. He wants him plus whatever it was that he heard in me and that, you know, And I think all of that came after Smooth. There was, you know, with me and Carlos going into that, we were famously a non famous band. Like, we were always talked about as this band that sold all these records, but we were faceless and nobody really knew much about us. And we like that we had famous songs. And then after Smooth, it was like, oh, this is Rob Thomas.

[Interviewer/Host]

He's gigantic songwriter that you worked on with Santana.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. And. And it's funny, like, Carlos, literally, no exaggeration, he texted me just now, like, on my ride into the city from Bedford, just, like, sending me some new music that he's working on, so that that relationship has really grown. And he's been a mentor for all of these 27 years since that happened.

[Interviewer/Host]

Him and Clive Davis, both some nice mentors to have.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. I mean, I don't know. Like, I feel like there's a lot of my. My personal image and who I am in. In this business that probably wouldn't have been the same. It was really shit. I think Carlos, like, taught me the difference between being a successful musician and being a celebrity. Like, all my life, I worked really, really hard to want to make music that people know me for, and music that's a part of people's lives, and that's all part of becoming a famous or known musician. And then to me, as I've over the last 20 years, 25 years, celebrity is almost a dirty word. And it's. And so I don't like when people like, oh, you're a celebrity? I'm like, no, no, I'm a. I work for a living. I'm a songwriter. That's what I do.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, let's listen to another song from the new album which just came out. What, last week?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Last week, Yeah. I was. While I was on stage.

[Interviewer/Host]

It came out while you were on stage. Rob Thomas, the new album. This is a song called Losing My Mind.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Oh, wow.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

I've been staring at the distance Calling from the outside Was I always this way? From the start I've been working through it slowly Did I ever really know me? From my head to the stars yeah we are who we are who we are I'm losing my mind but it doesn't show I get angry and I let it go I've been laughing but it's real though Tears in my eyes they don't run dry Losing my mind But I couldn't say if I ever had it anyway and tomorrow is another day until that time I will be fine Losing my mind well, there's only.

[Interviewer/Host]

So much you Rob Thomas. This is an all of it listening party with Rob Thomas for his new album, All Night Days. That one is called Losing My Mind. You're fine with that? Fine with losing your mind?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah. I think. I think that the. The. The joy in that song is the resignation I have told, you know, Let it go. Yeah, I think. I think that that's okay. I think sometimes people mistake certain things for losing their mind. You know, I think some people, they probably have made career decisions that people thought were crazy that turned out to be the best thing they ever did. Relationship decisions that they had to make that seemed at the time like they might be crazy, but then it turns out that they were. They were right all along there.

[Interviewer/Host]

Sounds like there's a lot of joy on this album. Sometimes finding joy in unlikely places.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, I mean, I think if you're living right, you're discovering those things as you get older, you're finding those things. I've been. I've been lucky to do this. I've been with my wife for the last 27 years, you know, through this whole thing. And so I. I have a different, I think, take on. On relationships than maybe I would have if I were doing this whole thing single. I have a different take on family and those kind of things.

[Interviewer/Host]

How is communication between you and this band when you're doing solo material different than when it's your Matchbox 20 bandmates?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, I mean, we joke that Matchbox 20, a Matchbox 20 album, is the result of an argument between four people. And because it's like four. There's four leading men in that group, you know, cast. And so everyone has. Is a good. Everyone's a great writer. We've been together for. For all of this time, and we. We nudge our way in there. We. You know, and we were crafting it together. Whereas in a solo, it's me and the producer, you know, like on this. In this case, it was me and Greg Wattenberg. It was just. Everything felt very, very still and quiet. And then we write the songs and we build them up, and then I would bring in different musicians, a lot of them being my solo band, who's been my solo band for 20 years. Wow. They come back in and out whenever I do solo. And so they came in a lot of the rhythm section. My son played guitar on a bunch of it.

[Interviewer/Host]

Yeah. I was just gonna say your son Mason is on the album and also playing guitar on this tour with his.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

First full tour with me, which has been nice.

[Interviewer/Host]

How. How is that, you know, what is it like to have your son in the band?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Is that.

[Interviewer/Host]

Are you a different kind of a band leader with your son than with another?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

I don't think so. I mean, I. You know, my. To be fair, like, when I. When I started this tour, I sit the whole band and crew down, and we have a big meeting at the. You know, and rehearsals, and I tell everybody that the stakes are very Low and none of this matters. And I say that because, you know, a lot of people get. They take it so seriously out there, and we're supposed to have fun, and we're supposed to be other people's fun. And so I've seen people. I've seen band members yell at crew members for getting the wrong guitar or yelling at a player in their band for playing the wrong note, you know, and it's like, you're not going to be able to find joy if you're always, like, so guarded and like that. And so I think my son likes that because it becomes infectious with us and the band and the whole crew. It's. Every day is about family and love and jokes and just, you know, we're all there just to have that two hours a night get off the.

[Interviewer/Host]

Hopefully also showing up on time.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yes. Yeah. But you don't get in trouble if you don't.

[Interviewer/Host]

Okay.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

I actually had. I had. During one of my songs, I was like, I went to go play something, but I guess one of my band members got the wrong note, and so he went to go pee, and so we couldn't play the song. So I just started asking the audience, like, what do they would. What do they want to hear? And then each song, I'll be like, no, we can't. He's in that. He's in that. And the first one that came across that he wasn't in, we're like, okay, we'll play that song.

[Interviewer/Host]

These are the things you have to deal with when you're live on stage. Well, let's listen to a song that features Mason. This is Picture Perfect. Tell us about this one.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

This is a. I. I'm a kid of the 80s, so this is definitely, like. This shows my. This could be played at the end of, like, any, you know, Sixteen Candles or. Or say anything or. I'm trying to think of his name right now. It's totally a Sean Hughes movie. John Hughes movies. Exactly. And it's just about the idea of, you know, all those moments. You realize that a photograph doesn't mean as much to you in the moment as it does 20 years later. When you look back on a photograph later on, it's pure gold. And so a Picture Perfect moment is kind of just about the idea of trying to recognize them in real time as they're happening. You know, like, you. Like, right now, if you're fortunate enough to live another 20 years, you're in the good old days right now. And so you try and try and find that as it's happening.

[Interviewer/Host]

Let's hear a little bit.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

You can see it. Jake standing by the red Porsche.

[Interviewer/Host]

Molly Ringwald. They're on the table there at the end of the movie. Yeah, sure. I'll be quiet.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

Yeah. No one knows? It comes and goes? And leaves you without heart and soul? It carries a load that weighs you down? And it feels so bad? When you build your house? On how it used to be? And you wake up mad? Cause your time ran out? And you're waiting? Waiting? Old memories calling? Lots of sad, sad songs? I need a picture perfect moment? I want to hold on to it.

[Interviewer/Host]

Rob Thomas and Picture Perfect. And if you're making that 80s movie now here in 2025, keep this one in mind.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, that's it right there.

[Interviewer/Host]

Before we wrap up, I have to ask you about this. You live in New York, just a little north of here, and you and your wife run a charity that supports no kill animal shelters and rescues as well. It's called Sidewalk Angels. Is that right? Tell us.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Sidewalk Angels Foundation.

[Interviewer/Host]

Tell us about this and why this mission became important to you.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Well, it's now been, I want to say, 25 years. There's, like, 30 different organizations that we help support. We help them with getting funding, critically needed funding for all of their rescues, for their medical centers, for their runs, for their facilities. We started off just going and donating our time. There's a place in Middletown, New York, called Pets Alive. We used to go up there and just donate our time helping out the animals, walking them, cleaning cages and stuff. And we just realized that we had such an enormous reach and that we could, if we wanted to, be the impetus of that change for ourselves. And so we started it, and we've kept it really bare bones. It's me and my wife and her mother. And then my management runs everything. My business manager does all the finances. They all donate their time. And so that way, you know, like, next in January, I'm gonna go do three shows. And I think, let's say for those three shows, if we raise a million dollars, after we pay the band and everybody, that means like, $850,000 will go directly to these organizations. So we've kept it very mean and lean, and we've raised millions and millions and just, you know, helping all of these organizations. My wife does most of the heavy lift, and I am just. I am the mouthpiece and the engine for the. For the thing. But it's. It's nice because we do full tours, full shows that are just. Just, you know, to. To gain money. For that.

[Interviewer/Host]

And can you say the full name of the organization?

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Yeah, it's Cyborg Angels. You can go to cyborgangelsfoundation.org and check out everything you need to know. And if you know, the good thing is if you're not there just to donate to us, you can find local things, you know, that you can donate your time or ways that you can help in your own communities and find and then check up on the ones that we're helping out and see all the good work that's happening.

[Interviewer/Host]

Well, it has been a delight speaking with you today. We've been having an all of it listening party today with Rob Thomas for his new album All Night Days. It is out right now, came out last week and you're gonna be at Rough Trade below tonight. Let's finish with one more song from the new album. This is called Machine. Tell us a bit about this one.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

It's fun because Machine is like I think they're using it for NFL right now for promos and stuff because it's a very. But in my head it was always kind of ironic because I always felt like I was writing it from the point of view of a guy like in a mirror trying to psych himself up to make him believe that he was a machine even if he wasn't.

[Interviewer/Host]

And you can take it in the.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Non ironic way if you want to, however you want. Yeah.

[Interviewer/Host]

Rob Thomas, thanks again.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

Good to talk to you.

[Rob Thomas (performing songs)]

Now here we go. This is who we are On a dead end road in a stolen car Burning daylight bathed in starlight scared of all the in between Starting fires, chasing monsters running from the things I've seen so stop me up I'm gay to see I'm on the moon let it go you shoot me I'm screaming light I guarantee I'm in control I'm a machine I'm a machine.

[Rob Thomas (speaking/interview responses)]

For 140 years, MultiCare has been in Washington prioritizing long term solutions, partnering with local communities and expanding access to care. Together, we're building a healthier future. Learn more@ multicare.org NYC now delivers breaking news, top headlines and in depth coverage from WNYC and Gothamist every morning, midday and evening. By sponsoring our programming, you'll reach a community of passionate listeners in an uncluttered audio experience. Visit sponsorship.wnyc.org to learn more.