Lenny Kravitz - 'Are You Gonna Go My Way?' at V2008, Staffs from James D Clarke on Vimeo. I went to V Festival in Weston Park, Staffs on Saturday to see Jack McManus who I work with. Jack played mid-afternoon in the Union Arena tent, and put on a great show. The weather was awful all day, so I didn't see as many people as I'd like to - friends, or bands as the rain and mud was a serious de-motivator. But I did catch Jack, The Feeling, and King Of Leon (who were great). The surprise of the day was Lenny Kravitz on the main stage in the afternoon - he played a few golden oldies which took me back a few years - including the above video!

For the last year I've been working with a very talented singer/songwriter called Jack McManus. He's a top lad and has a knack for writing very catchy pop tunes. Think Elton John / Billy Joel / Ben Folds / New Radicals and you're just about there.

After a lot of hard work (for both Jack and I, amongst others!) his debut single 'Bang On The Piano' is released today (yes, Sunday) and I'm asking you to give it a listen, and should you like it - maybe you could click here and purchase it from iTunes (UK) for a mere 79p? (Old Skoolers can get the CD here.)

Your custom will not only help Jack get his career off to a great start, but would also really help me out too!

Should you like what you hear, the album 'Either Side Of Midnight' it out a week on Monday and can be ordered here at Play.com for £7.99 (inc. delivery).

Let me know if you like the track - and please feel free to pass the message on to anyone else you think may be interested!

You can get more info and music at www.jackmcmanus.co.uk and www.myspace.com/jackmcmanus

Check out the video for Jack's upcoming debut single 'Bang On The Piano', released April 28th on Polydor Records. This video was directed by my good friend Simon Willows, who has yet again done a great job. Keep your eyes peeled for the 'making of' video which will be online shorty and is also brilliant!

I've been working with Jack for a while now as he's been preparing to release his debut album 'Either Side of Midnight' which is out on Polydor Records on May 5th and is preceded by debut single 'Bang On The Piano' on April 21st. Many people are comparing Jack to a young Billie Joel or Elton John and I can see why. He's got some great upbeat hook-laden pop tunes, the kind of songs that you can't but help tap your foot to, sing-along to, and battle to get out of your head for days after you've heard them! When I first heard the un-mastered version of his album I found myself singing the songs round and round in my head for days afterwards - surely a good sign? I caught Jack playing live in November when he was supporting Scouting For Girls and I think his live show will be equally as good as his recorded efforts once he begins touring properly.Check out the video above of Jack performing album track 'Fine Time' on his trusty piano, and download another album track 'Not The Hardest Part' from Jack's website.