CHUCK Hawthorne, a veteran from the United States marine corps, is hopping over the pond to bring his country style Americana music to Britain.

Tomorrow, as part of his European tour, the singer/songwriter is stopping off at The Beehive pub, Prospect Hill, in Swindon.

Chuck will be singing songs from his debut album, Silver Line when he comes to the Swindon pub. The former marine has the instinctive knack of writing songs that tell the story, not simply of the horrors of war, but of feelings behind encounters with death and the unspoken bond that grows between his fellow soldiers, the band of brothers.

Chuck served on the USS Iwo Jima in the Adriatic and was one of the American soldiers shipped out to fight in the Iraq war. The song Post 3 Gate was written while in the basement of a Baghdad Palace, it tells the chilling tale of a suicide bomber, and his Iraq experiences are again clear in Welding Son Of A Gun.

Chuck’s early music began on the plains of Texas, when he was working as a cowboy and ranch hand on a farm in Amarillo.

His big break came after his stint in the marines. Chuck had retired to Austin, Texas, and one weekend took a trip to see some friends.

While waiting for his flight home, from a Chicago airport, Chuck ended up sitting beside Ray Bonneville, the Juno Award-winning guitarist who was also carrying his guitar on board.

The two got talking and Chuck has not looked back, with Ray’s applying his production skills on Silver Line. The record came to the attention of Michael Martin Murphey who invited Chuck to play at the Franklin Theatre in Nashville.He is now mentor to the singer.

Tomorrow the winds blow down from the plains as Chuck plays the Old Town pub at 8.30pm. For more details call 01793 523187. - Flicky Harrison