James Morrison, Live at the Piece Hall, Jack Savoretti, and Ronan Keating

After his mother suggested that he channel his teenage passion for poetry into songwriting, Jack Savoretti spent the rest of his teenage years almost obsessively writing songs, describing his process as the way that he conversed with the world at large. The backlog that he created, and the sheer experience that it gave him, meant that he was in a recording studio writing his first album by the time he was 21. His very first single, 2006’s “Without” was almost immediately play listed by Radio 2 and got him noticed by Corinne Bailey Rae, who he toured with over Europe for the rest of the year. At just 22 years old, Savoretti released his debut album “Between The Minds” in March 2007, which was critically acclaimed but a slow seller, at least at first.

Ever since then, he’s continued to record and release acclaimed albums, particularly his 2012 third album “Before The Storm”, an album written after a particularly tumultuous period of his career where he nearly gave up music for good. “Before The Storm” reinvigorated interest in Savoretti and in 2014, he signed to Sony BMG for his follow up record, 2015’s “Written In Scars”. Savoretti is a songwriter par excellence, and with the folk-rock world at his feet, he comes highly recommended.

From humble beginnings in Dublin, Ireland, Keating’s graceful journey to pop super stardom began after seeing an advertisement for an Irish Take That in the shoe shop where he worked. After a gruelling audition process with over 300 hopefuls, 14-year-old Keating impressed pop mogul Louis Walsh, and was offered the role of lead vocalist in the band Boyzone. With the recent fall of Take That, British pop was due to new poster-boy band and Boyzone gladly filled those shoes. Over five years Boyzone released four UK No. 1 Albums, 16 UK Top Three singles, and eventually sold over 27 million records before disbanding in 1999.

Just prior to Boyzone’s seperation, Keating recorded a cover of “When You Say Nothing At All”, which appeared on the 1999 film “Notting Hill”. The single subsequently debuted at No. 1 on the UK singles chart, paving the way for Keating’s successful solo career. A year later, in 2000, the singer-songwriter issued his debut solo album “Ronan”, which topped the UK Albums Chart with sales of over 1.2 million. The album showcased Keating’s classy yet sensual delivery and spawned the further singles “Life Is a Rollercoaster”, “The Way You Make Me Feel”, and “Lovin’ Each Day”.

“Destination” arrived in 2002, Keating’s second studio effort, in a collaboration with ex-New Radicals frontman Gregg Alexander. The album represented a more developed songwriter and singer, and produced the hits “I Love It When We Do” and “I’ve Got My Hear on You”. Keating’s third full-length “Turn It On” appeared in 2004 led by the Terence Trent D’Arby single “Let Her Down Easy”. The singer-songwriter subsequently released the compilation album “10 Years of Hits” in 2005, the full length “Bring You Home” in 2006, and the tribute album “Songs for My Mother”, following his mother’s battle with breast cancer. A compilation of duets aptly titled “Duet” earned its release in 2010 and featured the likes of LeAnn Rimes, Cat Stevens, Lulu, and Elton John. The fruits of a collaboration with composer Burt Bacharach were issued on the record “When Ronan Met Burt” in 2011, followed a year later with Keating’s fifth studio album “Fires”.