The Southern Companion has released his album Shine A Little Light today (Jan 25th) and it shoots straight to number ONE on the Itunes Country Album Chart.

Listen to Shine A Little Light here
Purchase Shine A Little Light here

“A class Americana album that stands out” – Maverick Magazine

“Wonderful band, I really enjoyed their set, We all love that song here” – Bob Harris – BBC R2

“A Mid-Atlantic Sonic Whirlpool where the US & UK currents meet” – Americana UK

Fronted by singer/songwriter and guitarist Darren Hodson, The Southern Companion is the pseudonym for a collective of some of the UK’s most passionate and talented musicians in their genre. Within the bands ranks, the group have toured and performed with industry big hitters Tom Jones, Take That, Mel C, Lulu, Rumer, James Morrison, Pete Townsend, Amy Macdonald. The list goes on and on. That said, there’s no doubting that the bands real passion, is in authentic country and Americana.

Originally from Lymington, front-man Darren is the songwriter and driving force behind the band. A country & Americana obsessive, his love of performance and his genre is unmatched on the circuit.

“My love of country music & more specifically Americana music just comes from a love of great songs. I grew up listening to everything from Tom Petty to The Black Crowes, The Allman Brothers to Jackson Browne. I then took some great advice and found out what stuff the bands & artists I loved had listened to and were influenced by. That opened me up to all the classic American genres, Blues, Rock n Roll, Country, Folk & Soul music. Americana is the blending of it all, blurring the genre lines, it’s no longer one thing or one style, it’s either just good music or it ain’t.”

The Southern Companion’s first steps on their journey was a session with legendary online and radio institution “Under The Apple Tree”. From here, they bagged a slot at C2C London before embarking on a full tour of the UK, winning the hearts of die-hard Country fans all over the country. It wasn’t long before the industry took notice, as The Southern Companion racked up multiple British CMA Awards, live shows for the AMA-UK, national air play on BBC Radio 2 from Bob Harris, as well as a featured song in the upcoming smash hit movie “Wild Rose” feat. Jessie Buckley & Julie Walters.

Now the band are starting 2019 with a vintage and technically brilliant album “Shine A Little Light”, alongside their first UK headline tour during February and March 2019. It’s everything we’ve come to expect from the gifted storyteller. The album ebbs and flows from lively country music hits, to the darker side of Americana with authority. On the album, Darren states:

I’m really pleased with it, although it’s technically the 3rd Southern Companion record, it’s the 1st time I think we’ve really captured how we sound as a band. We did this one without any outside interference or influence as we didn’t have a label to appease, we just made the record we wanted to make, it’s self-produced, self-funded, self-released, the whole thing has been done “in house” so to speak.

Live Dates

29th January – AMA-UK showcase at Night Tales
20th February – Thomas Tripp, Christchurch
23rd February – The Ivory, Harrogate
24th February – Gullivers, Manchester
25th February – The Maze, Nottingham
27th February – Thunderbolt, Bristol
28th February – The Half Mood, Putney
1st March – Stables 2, Milton Keyens
2nd March – Jagz, Ascot
3rd march – Kitchen Garden Café, Birmingham
4th March – The Hawth, Crawley