Ray LaMontagne's 'Trouble'

Singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne is being hailed as one of music's hot new finds. With his raspy, soulful voice, LaMontagne is often compared to Van Morrison and his live accoustic performances are sellling out theaters across the U.S.

He stops by The Saturday Early Show's Second Cup Café to perform from his debut album, "Trouble," which already has achieved critical success.

Though he admits he did not start listening to music seriously until he was in his early 20s, LaMontagne says once he got into it, there was no stopping him listening to Stephen Stills, Neil Young, Ray Charles, and more.

It was actually Stills' music that lit a fire in him, LaMontagne says. And so he taught himself how to play the guitar and started to sing.

"I just listened to a lot of records and kept playing. Once you learn a few chords, you can write a song. Not necessarily a good one, but you can," he says.

Performing in public was another thing. He says, "I smashed a couple of guitars and put my music away for months and months at a time. I used to have a hard time performing. I'm a really introverted person. I just make music for myself. To play in public was a huge leap. I'm good with it now, though. I'm feeling better about it all."

Click here to find out more about LaMontagne and his career.