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SONG MACHINE

Other // NEWCASTLE, COUNTY DOWN, Down

After a chance meeting one night in a bar in Northern Ireland, John Truesdale and Martin Manley discovered a shared interest in Bowie, Dylan, The Pistols, Tom Waits, The Pogues and the great Country songwriters like Hank Williams, Merle Haggard and Jimmy Webb and so decided to write some songs together.
With Forty-odd songs now under their belt and many adventures throughout the music capitals of London and Dublin as well as two trips to Nashville doing the rounds of Music Row, they have had a ball "paying their dues" in the music industry. From winning a song contest that saw them taken to Nashville to be the subject of two TV documentaries, to a lifetime of door-stepping artistes such as Tina Turner, Steve Earle and Emmylou Harris, to having a song gaining a healthy amount of airplay in Ireland and the UK only this Spring, they continue to enjoy writing together in search of those elusive hits. At this moment in time they have one song being considered for inclusion in a Hollywood movie while another is under consideration for an American TV series.

The beat goes on.

John is a musician, composer, songwriter, arranger and producer and produced all the songs contained here. Originally from Rathfriland in County Down, he is now a resident entertainer in the Canary Islands and founder member of the Americana band "The Country Jekyll's".

Martin is a musician and songwriter, originally from London and now living in Annalong, County Down, who in the past has written songs for artistes such as Desmond Dekker and once scored a hit record in Australia with one of his songs. He is also a founder member of "The Country Jekyll's".