Michael Barrett Dixon returns to songs written in his youth and reimagines them as an adult love letter — sincere, orchestral, and unapologetically romantic. A double-album releases February 6.
In the mid-80s, during my late teen years and early 20s, I was prolific in writing songs and instrumentals, but lacked the options to record and release anything professionally. Last year I worked to digitize hundreds of those old cassette recordings. In doing so, I felt the need to revisit many of these songs. Songwriting in those days was a weakness, so I would need to wordsmith/rewrite many lyrics, but the music was fairly solid…it just needed a professional touch and the right equipment.
Over the course of 3 months in late 2025, and into January of 2026, I reworked lyrics of 22 love-themed songs, spanning various 80s genres like soft pop, synth pop, boy band-inspired pop, R&B and pop ballads, and adult contemporary. I then recorded these songs with the revised lyrics. I utilized as many vintage sounds as needed to capture that 80s sound and mixed it with a slightly more warm tone overall. Most song titles remained as-is. Musically, I finally realized my vision for each of these tracks…40 years later!
The songs are grouped into 3 “acts”:
I. Declaration of Love and Devotion
II. Reflection and Recommitment
III. Memory and Renewal
The album is structured as a double album, with a digital release scheduled just before Valentine’s Day, on Friday, February 6, 2026. A limited edition double CD album is in production with an expected release just before Valentine’s Day. It hopefully will be available in a few local Richmond, VA record stores (details will be posted when finalized). Disc 1 would contain Act I songs (8) and disc 2 would contain Acts II and III songs (14).
I can’t wait for you to hear these old songs brought back to life. Go back in time and enjoy some sappy love songs!