JOAN Armatrading returns to Wirral later this year as part of her first and last solo world tour.

The three-times Grammy nominated, Brit award nominee and Ivor Novella winning singer-songwriter will be at the Floral Pavilion on November 7.

This group of intimate concerts in later this year will be followed by further solo appearances around the world in 2015.

Looking ahead to the show, the 63-year-old West Indian-born singer told the Globe today: "I will never retire, but this will be the last major tour that I will undertake.

"I've been touring since 1976 and they can be very long tours, sometimes lasting 18 months.

"I just decided that I wanted to go do something different this time.

"It will just be me playing the guitar, piano and singing. There will be no backing musicians. I’ll be 65 when this tour ends.

"I want these concerts to be a special lively interactive one to one experience."

In a career spanning 42 years, Joan has released 20 albums, including Show Some Emotion and Me, Myself, I.

She also provided backing vocals on Queen's 1986 album, A Kind Of Magic, featuring on the track Don’t Lose Your Head.

Joan’s many hits include Love and Affection, Willow, Drop The Pilot and Me, Myself I.

In 2005, she was awarded the MBE for services to music. For her last tour she has decided it is the perfect time to perform her first ever full-scale solo concerts.

Her performances will include songs that span her entire career so far.

During her long and illustrious career Joan has been successful in all musical genres, Pop, Blues, Folk, Reggae, and Jazz.

Looking back on her career, Joan said: "Everything I've done is a highlight.

"I worked with some incredible people and visited places that I would otherwise never have had the chance.

"To get my BA honours degree in history was a huge highlight."

Her audience of newly attracted and long term fans are as loyal to her as she is faithful to them.

On her music legacy, Joan ended: "I'm hoping that people will remember my music for a long time to come and that the songs will endure.

"I want people to be inspired by my music. People get engaged, using my music as a backdrop. I find it an honour to be able to have played a part in their lives.

"I've also heard from fans who say my songs have mirrored situations in their own lives. The Weakness In Me is among those inspirational songs."

Tickets for Joan's show at the Floral Pavilion are from www.floralpavilion.com or 0151 666 0000.