jimmy the dog - Live!

Reading-based Jim played keyboards in numerous cover bands and studied jazz guitar with Patrick Naylor (a master of the New British Jazz movement) over the years before puting pen to paper (in old school speak) and becoming a writer. Largely starting off writing Outlaw Country and American country-influenced rock having digested years and years worth of Steve Earle, Jackson Browne and Tom Petty, Jim's band material started very soon after to veer towards a hard-edged, up-tempo retro-blues style (he's a big fan of jump-jiver Louis Jordan and the quirky Tom Waits) with elements of rockabilly and cowpunk.

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Some of Jim's country-orientated solo recordings have made it on to BBC Radio (Radio Ulster, Belfast where country music is very much in vogue); "If This Old Horse Could Talk", "Ten Thousand Miles" and "Every Waking Minute" have all had multiple spins there as they have in commercial radio in France and Portugal.

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On the live scene, Jim's biggest moment came in 2016 with a full band appearance (including Neil)  at Standon Calling, a three day summer festival in southern England attracting almost 20,000 festival-goers, followed by an invitation to perform a solo singer-songwriter set at the same festival in 2017.

 

A published songwriter and past-winner of the Belfast-Nashville Songwriter's Festival Song Contest in 2006 he has also been a finalist in numerous prominent songwriting contests including The Dallas Songwriter's Association contest, The UK Songwriting Contest, The International Acoustic Music Awards and the Broadjam 6-Pack. He worked as studio engineer/assistant producer at Mike Myers' (Billy Ocean, The Prodigy, The Nolans, Dollar, The Dooleys) studio, Tinman Creative, in Portugal and has shared the stage with notables including Benny Gallagher (Gallagher & Lyle), Graham Gouldman (10cc), and Irish bluegrass king Niall Toner. Latterly, he's been studying blues fingerpicking with grammy-nominee, the great Eric Bibb (www.ericbibb.com)

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Jim also writes and records incidental music for TV and Film and has had some placement in cable in the US. Check out his incidental music website www.tensioncues.com.

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Jim is available for solo acoustic engagements in the Thames Valley area and beyond.