Win Greg Pearle & John Illsley CDs

John Illsley, of the legendary 120 million selling Dire Straits is back in action with his first studio album in more than 15 years, Beautiful You which is released on 13th October 2008.

Beautiful You is the result of a two year collaboration with Irish singer songwriter Greg Pearle who Illsley first heard performing at a pub gig in Lincolnshire and was immediately captivated by his unique voice and style.

Taking his mark from greats such as Tom Waits, Van Morrison and Chris Rea, Pearle's gravelly tones are infused with emotion from a well-travelled life.

For the album Illsley called in some old friends to help out with the recording including Dire Straits keyboard player, Guy Fletcher and Paul Brady who plays on the evocative song One which is also to be featured in the forthcoming motion picture Anton.

Beautiful You was recorded in Mark Knopler's studio, and the new musical chemistry born out by Illsley and Pearle on the album perfectly mixes elements of classic Straits song writing with a new sound. Dire Straits fans won't be disappointed.

Having led the CD revolution with Dire Straits' massive selling album Brothers In Arms in the early 1980s, in tune with modern trends, a number of tracks from the album Beautiful You will be first available for free, on high quality mp3s, via John's new website.

John Illsley says, "The musical landscape has changed so much since the days of Dire Straits, just getting people to hear the music these days is a challenge - so we thought we'd let people have it . If they like it, we hope they will be back for more."

Inspiration for the artwork for the Beautiful You is drawn from Illsley's other passion, painting, and the cover image along with other paintings from his body of work will feature at venues that Pearle and Illsley will visit on their upcoming UK tour.

Pearle and Illsley take to the road this October and November with a series of live shows in the UK and Ireland, that sees John returning to his musical roots.

"I'm looking forward to playing songs from the new record and the odd Straits song, in an environment that is both intimate and personal, the emphasis is on having fun," says Illsley.

Pearle & Illsley UK & Ireland Tour Dates

October 7th - Bush Hall, London

November 7th - The Waterside Theatre, Derry

November 8th - Barry's of Grange, Co. Sligo

November 9th - The Stables, Mullingar

November 10th - The Thatch, Rahan, Co. Offaly

November 11th - Whelans, Dublin

Web Links

New single Secret Garden and One can be downloaded for free from www.johnillsley.com and Beautiful You will be in stores on 13th October 2008. You can purchase it online from Amazon for £11.99.