Hi there! First of all, many thanks for visiting my site to delve into 'Dance Palace Appeal'. I've been working on this for about a year and a half, having started recording sessions way back in July 2019; the original release date would have been nearer Easter, but Covid set us back a little. I've really liberated myself with some large-scale arranging, so expect to hear some rich backdrops of orchestral horns and strings. I've had the pleasure of working with some of the finest musicians in the North-East too, and you'll hear some of their excellent playing right across the album; we had quite a few long, arduous days of recording but everyone showed a great work ethic and played excellently. I'll take you through a few things to entice you...

First off, you'll find a couple of tunes that North-East soul singer-songwriter Beth Macari and I wrote a few years ago and she has been kind enough to let me cover them with my own arrangement. These are anthemic, soulful ballads with very heartfelt lyrics by Beth and they really lend themselves to vast, romantic orchestral arrangements. 

Next, I have the pleasure of introducing a track featuring a collaboration with Jack Fox, a rapper, stand-up comedian and drummer, who has written and performed a rap to my music. It is indeed Not Safe For Work, as all good rap and hip hop is, so be warned and perhaps utilise some earphones in the office... 

The sessions for most of this work (save for some material recorded in personal home settings) took place at The Old Church Studio with Adam Forster producing, engineering and mixing. He has been tireless and patient in helping me achieve my vision, even if I have most likely driven him a little insane with the amount of material he's had to work on. 

I'd like to thank Louise Mehan and Steve Lee of SouLutions for their advice and time with helping me get this thing off the ground on a distribution basis; their help is proving invaluable given that I'm a complete novice at this and I'm most grateful knowing how busy they are. 

As well as the music itself, I'd like to thank Richard Milburn who has designed and produced the gorgeous album cover. Again, Richard is another example of a patient, accommodating professional willing to help realise a vision. The reverse cover and inlay of the album include photos taken by Jordan Embleton (Photo by Jordan) who has done a fantastic job in making me look presentable.

I'm very excited for you to hear this as I'm very proud of what we've achieved. 

J. G. Winter.