Third Double Header Tour for celebrated young singer songwriter Luke Jackson & Grammy winning Amy Wadge
Acclaimed young singer songwriter Luke Jackson is to join forces for the third time with Cardiff’s Amy Wadge this month for what promises to be a dazzling double header UK tour. Between January 20-February 10, Luke will tour England and Wales with Amy, known for her winning songwriting collaboration with “Britain’s hottest pop star” Ed Sheeran. She and Sheeran, having reached No 1 in the official UK chart with THINKING OUT LOUD which went platinum, won the coveted Song of the Year at the 2016 Grammys. The global smash hit was the first song to celebrate a whole year in the Top 40. The songwriting pair also penned When Christmas Comes Around – the X Factor winner’s debut single – which made a bid to be the Christmas No 1 for newly crowned Matt Terry, but was pipped at the post. Jackson, a widely acclaimed 22 year-old singer songwriter, has recently played dates in Scotland, Belgium, Germany and The Netherlands while in 2015 there was no doubting his versatility when he supported one of Britain’s most successful rock bands, Marillion, on a UK and European tour. The Canterbury musician’s remarkable 2012 debut album More Than Boys (FATEA music magazine’s Debut Album of the Year), triggered a double nomination at the 2013 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards (Young Folk Award and Horizon Award for Best Emerging Act) and just 18 months later he fulfilled all the promise heaped upon him with his second album Fumes and Faith, with the accolades coming thick and fast. A belting blues and roots-infused album it showed how skilfully he had honed his craft in just 18 months. Sparse and stripped back with a wealth of narrative songs it received widespread airplay and accolades across BBC Radios 2,3 and 6, showing the limitless appeal of his ever developing music. Last year the prolific songwriter released his third album, revealing his new trio in This Family Tree – Andy Sharps on bass and Connor Downs (percussion). The punchy seven track EP of finely observed original numbers was released on Luke’s own new label, First Take Records. Nudging the mainstream, the sophisticated songs interwove the tale of one small town family’s high and low journey – sometimes ramped up and rocky, then heartbreakingly gentle and poignant. Joining forces with Amy Wadge presents an exciting start to 2017 – a 15 date tour taking in London, Cambridge and their home towns of Cardiff and Canterbury. Described by Bob Harris as “an irresistible, riveting performer” Amy is widely regarded as one of the country’s most successful female singer songwriters. With great vocal range in her emotive songs she has twice won the Best Solo Female Artist title at the Welsh Music Awards, ahead of Charlotte Church in 2002 and Cerys Matthews in 2003. In 2016 she won two awards at the ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Awards) – Song of the Year and Top Digital Song. A gutsy performer with a voice that is “tough but tender” she has supported some of the world’s great artists – Van Morrison, Damien Rice, Eric Bibb and Jeff Beck – and has seven album releases to her name. In 2015 she unveiled her first solo release in six years – the EP Recovery – and her most recent EP, No Use Crying Over Spilt Milk – includes her own version of Thinking Out Loud.
