Cornish singer / songwriter Joe Francis is Winter Mountain. Hailing from the wild northern shores of Cornwall, UK Winter Mountain is a blend of melodic songs, an extraordinary voice and heartfelt lyrics in a sound reminiscent of a time before digital recording when the emphasis fell on the importance of live performance and the essence of the song. Indeed, it was these very qualities that inspired folk star Cara Dillon and her husband/producer Sam Lakeman to sign Winter Mountain to their 'Charcoal Records' label after watching a performance in Donegal, Ireland. Winter Mountain released their self titled debut album in 2013 to unanimous critical acclaim with The Sunday Express naming "Winter Mountain" 'an utterly fabulous record' and awarding it a 5 star review, The Irish Post calling it 'A smashing album, a terrific, classy debut', whilst Maverick Magazine had this to say: 'Winter Mountain make them like they used to, and three cheers for that!'. At present there are over thirty 5 star reviews on Amazon for the album. Following the release Joe signed with the prestigious Faber Music Publishing. Winter Mountain have toured the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland opening for some of the worlds most talented artists including Richard Thomson, Seth Lakeman, Cara Dillon, Rosanne Cash, Leann Rhimes, Patty Griffin, legendary songwriter Benny Gallagher, Paolo Nutini, Fleet Foxes and many others, and have graced the stage at some of those countries most distinguished venues inc The Ulster Hall (Belfast), Union Chapel (London), The Belfast Waterfront, Vicar Street (Dublin) and headline sets to sell-out crowds at the likes of the infamous Camden Barfly and Dublins Whelans Bar. While opening for some of Cara Dillons' bigger shows they outsold her on the merchandise stand and, unbelievably, whilst opening for Sara Watkins (Nickle Creek, The Decemberists) they won over audiences so much that they were often invited back for an encore, before the main act had even taken to the stage! Recent times have seen Winter Mountain opening for Guy Garvey of Elbow & pop legend Seal. The forthcoming album 'I swear I flew' is due out in Autumn 2016 x