A 72-year-old man has realised a long-held dream by releasing his debut album.

'Nashville Dreams' is the brainchild of John Viles, who was born and bred on Walney Island, and was officially released by Seahouse Records on Friday, October 4.

John first got in the recording booth in July 2022 as part of the song writing competition 'The Road to Nashville' with the track 'Tennessee Skies' included on the new album.

Read more: Ten artists make new compilation album about Barrow's heritage | The Mail (nwemail.co.uk)

John said: "This is all very surreal for me, releasing an album at 72.

"A huge thank you for Matt Kassell's talent and also his patience in producing and recording the album for me, and to Peter Kassell for his brilliant guitar work.

"Thank you to my daughter Anna Garstang for her backing vocals and thank you to my family for believing in me -  this album would not exist without my beautiful wife Ann, she encouraged me and gave me the confidence to sing and record."

Ann described the two-year process as an 'incredible experience', and thanked Seahouse Records for believing in John along the way.

"John hadn't played or sung to anyone other than me until he walked in the studio," she added.

"Matt has been his weight in gold, sorting out what John has going on in his head, not to mention the fact that John suddenly lost all hearing in one ear before all this started!"

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Seahouse Records, based in Barrow, focuses on promoting the work of local artists, with Matt - a producer, engineer and multi-instrumentalist - ensuring that John's music could be heard by a wider audience.

He said: "For my part, John came to me little over a year ago to record a song for a country music competition, and he must have enjoyed the experience because that turned into an album. 

"It turned out well, and we thought it was certainly good enough to release on our Seahouse Records label - the songs are catchy, and they all have genuine meaning because John writes lyrics from the heart. 

"I am just very glad that his songs are reaching a wider audience, and happy to have been part of his story - he and Ann make a great team and are lovely people."

'Nashville Dreams' is available to stream now.