With so much top-rate entertainment going on in Melrose that weekend - Melrose Festival and the Borders Book Festival - there was a great chance that this musical gem could have been overlooked. But thanks to an enthusiastic, sell-out audience of music lovers, Jill Jackson had the assembled lucky ticket holders in the palm of her hands as she played two sets of songs from her eagerly anticipated second album.

Unlike previous Border outings when she'd flown solo, she was joined on stage by her band who brought a different dimension to the songs, with some beautiful harmonies and expert musicianship from Lorna Thomas on five stringed bass guitar, Alan Frew on acoustic guitar, and Carl Taylor providing sensitive percussion and drums.

Jill's lifelong love of country music is evident in her new songs as she wears her heart on her sleeve, providing the listener with an aural feast of melody and lyric - the audience was so enthralled you could hear a pin drop.

Highlights from the new album included a song called Tennessee and the new albums title track, Wanted. Mind you it wasn't all angst and highbrow as clever covers of Abba's Dancing Queen and Lily Allen's Its Not Fair had even the most unliklely fans joining in under the cover of darkness.

Jill's new album, Wanted is set to be released next month on her own label, and will be available to buy at www.cdbaby.com and to download at www.i-tunes.com

Until then you why not have a listen to her first album and find out more about Jill at www.myspace.com/jilljackson

AKW