Singer Rob Thomas has stepped out of matchbox twenty for a solo album, but he says that won't endanger the band.

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"I've always wanted to do this," Thomas says of his new release, "Something to Be." "When you make a record -- and even the records we're the most happy with in matchbox -- there's always a piece on it that somebody's not happy with, because there's concessions that have to be made to make five people happy.

"After 10 years, all of us were at that point of 'Well, what would we sound like if we did it the way we wanted to do it.' "

"Something to Be" features guest appearances by John Mayer, Robert Randolph and Mike Campbell from Tom Petty's Heartbreakers. It was produced by matchbox twenty collaborator Matt Serletic, who co-wrote the Grammy-winning Santana hit "Smooth" with Thomas.

Thomas is on the road for a short solo tour that wraps up April 30 and the band will regroup to record later this year.