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UNITE THE NATION

There will be many budding songwriters and amateur musicians around the country all busily trying to write the definitive World Cup song but 43 year old pharmacy technician, Geof Jackson, looks set to lead the field with what is his first ever composition, 'Shout For England'

Geof wrote to the FA suggesting they adopt 'Shout For England' as the official England World Cup anthem, but they wrote back saying they were not having a World Cup song because they wanted the players to concentrate on the football.

"I do not think the World Cup song is really for the players", says Geof, "It is more about uniting the nation and getting everyone behind the team."

GEOF MEETS THE PRODUCER

Geof and Mikey Matteo

Since entering the song in an online competition Geof was approached by young RnB music producer, Mikey Matteo who took Geof into his studio and together they have created a powerful new version of Geof's song. Mikey has performed on the same shows as some of today's top stars like Chipmunk and N-Dubz so he knew exactly how to give 'Shout For England' a big dancey beat that would sound at home in the top ten.

Geof, a family man, who also works as a nightclub doorman, is first and foremost a big England fan who loves the game so much he took up a third job as a football steward - what he calls his 'labour of love'.

His entry into the world of songwriting began when his wife bought him a keyboard one Christmas and he suddenly realised the benefit of all those piano lessons his mum had dragged him to when he was a boy!

THE REBEL WITH A CREATIVE STREAK

In fact as a teenager Geof was the typical rebel and when at 16, his parents told him he would be staying on at school and eventually going to University, he promptly left and became a hairdresser. He set off to London to make his fortune providing perms and rinses to the ladies of Kingston-upon-Thames but after three years he realised he missed Merseyside and came home and applied to join the police. After five unsuccessful attempts he heard on the grapevine that the reason the police kept turning him down was that they thought he was 'too nice'.

Geof has always been looking for new challenges and throughout his life has invented numerous games and has come tantalisingly close to seeing some of them hit the big time. "With one of my games I got asked down to London to give a demonstration." Says Geof, "Unfortunately when I got there the working model I'd made the night before didn't work as well as it should have and they didn't take my idea. This really annoyed my wife Jackie because I'd been up all night working on my game on the kitchen floor lino, with a stanley knife. When I lifted my game off the floor, the lino was destroyed. She wasn't impressed"

Another game for children was about to go into production when at the last minute it was dropped on Health and Safety grounds because it used party balloons which were deemed too dangerous for kids!

THE DREAM

Geof and the letter from the FA

But it is Geof's love of football that has brought him to his newest venture and with 'Shout for England' receiving rave reviews from all who hear it, Geof is preparing to see it released on iTunes on 24th May in time for the World Cup 2010 tournament.

"I would love England to win the world cup this year as they last won it when I was born in 1966.

I was inspired to write the England World Cup song because I wanted to create a song that would have the whole nation chanting and singing England's name, spuring them on for a 2010 England win in the world cup in South Africa."

Help Geof realise his dream by joining his Facebook group: 'WE WANT A WORLD CUP ANTHEM - SHOUT FOR ENGLAND'