For many, John Illsley will always be the imposing figure standing next to Mark Knopfler as Dire Straits left the London pub circuit behind and achieved worldwide domination via their fifth album ‘Brothers In Arms'. The band almost singlehandedly convinced every household they needed a shiny little 5” silver disc to replace all those old and antiquated black slabs of 12" vinyl. Approximately 30 million of us did just that (which, in 2022, is pretty ironic considering the perceived cool factor of LPs these days). Alongside Mark Knopfler, John Illsley was the only other band member to do a full tour of duty with Dire Straits on their almost twenty-year run before the band slowly faded away in the early 1990s. John’s solo career actually began during his time in Dire Straits with the ‘Never Told A Soul’ LP in 1984. John has continued to release albums on a semi-regular basis, with VIII being, unsurprisingly, his eighth studio album.

If you like traditional country music Andrew Beam should be on your radar. Raised in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina as the son of a bluegrass picking preacher Beam grew up in a one-stoplight town where real progress amounted to a second stoplight (yay). Surrounded by music from an early age via the seemingly endless stream of church socials and front porch get-togethers that helped to shape the musical journeys of the likes of Don Gibson, Ronnie Milsap, Charlie Daniels and Randy Travis, Andrew Beam was no different. After graduating Beam became a game warden with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (Beam is an avid fisherman and serious bowhunter) but getting recognised playing shows in local bars wasn't entirely compatible with his day job so, in 2018, he started to explore music full time. Luckily a mutual friend introduced Beam to veteran RCA Victor/Moonwatcher Records producer and guitarist Joe Taylor and the result is Beam’s debut album ‘Selma By Sundown’.

John Illsley - VIII (Album Review)

Andrew Beam - Selma By Sundown (Album Review)