Gowna singer on UTV Country Fest stage

A Loch Gowna father-of-three, John Shannon, is "honoured" to be one of the few Republic of Ireland acts performing in the UTV Country Fest, writes Sinead Hogan. John's coup of securing a slot at the weekend festival in The Kings Hall, Belfast, puts him on a bill alongside country music legends like Randy Travis, Martina McBride and Ray Price. UTV Country Fest - billed as Europe's biggest country music festival - features 60 acts on three stages this Saturday and Sunday, August 1 and 2. "I feel really honoured to be on the line-up for this festival, and especially as I'm one of the few artists based in the south of Ireland. The majority of the acts are based in the US or working in the North. There's Jimmy Buckley, Roly Daniels, Robert Mizzell, Mike Denver... and me!" said a delighted John, who is a native of the UK living in Loch Gowna for 12 years, with his Gowna native wife, Ita, and their children, Eli (10), David (9) and Amy May (4). Since moving to Cavan, John has played music here and in neighbouring counties. He has released one album, Step It Out Mary, and a single by the same name, as well as two other singles, Ticks and The Voice. He also plans to record a new album in the near future. John's live sets, at which he often sings cover versions of songs by Garth Brooks, Don Williams, Johnny Cash and other big names in that genre, have been going down a storm. John will perform on the acoustic stage this Saturday, 3-3.45pm. See www.jwpromos.com.