THE experience of love and loss captured in a new ballad written and performed by a Ramelton woman, will be launched next week.

Jean Patterson (nee O'Hanlon), a mother of seven, was amazed at the way the music and lyrics for "Without You" came to her as she sat in her sitting room of an evening.

"As I thought about the person the song is about, the words started to come to me and my foot was taping out the music. It was amazing. It was all finished in half an hour, I couldn't believe it.

"Then I took it to Percy Robinson's studio and he really liked it. He got his guitar out and began to play with the song. When Donal K O'Boyle heard it he told me it would be worthwhile to get it registered," Jean explained.

This is not the Ramelton women's first venture into the music scene. She already recorded two separate CDs for charities and raised over ¤6,000 for Down Syndrome and Children in Need.

GREAT LOVE

Jean has been singing since she was 16 and always had a great love for music.

"I would have written a lot of poetry as a pastime but never thought about writing songs. If this CD goes well I will consider a third charity for some of the proceeds. I am so excited about the whole thing and the very positive way the CD has been received by so many people," Jean said.