A SONGWRITER is helping to raise awareness of animal cruelty across the world.

Peter Webb, who lives in Leigh, has penned a song which features on a album called Harambe and Friends in a bid to support the work of the group Animals Worldwide.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Artimus Pyle, who played drums for the 1970s band Lynyrd Skynyrd, also features on the album.

Peter, 60, said: “I am proud to have been asked to be involved in a project like this.

“It is nice to achieve something that is going to benefit animals around the world by hopefully making a difference to their lives.

“I was also amazed to find out Artemus was playing on the track as I loved his music when I was younger.”

The CD is named after a gorilla called Harambe, who was shot dead by a zoo worker in America two years ago.

A young boy had got into the animal’s enclosure and was being dragged around by the gorilla so the worker took the decision to shoot it.

Animal rights activists suggested the use of a tranquiliser gun would have been a more appropriate way of dealing with the situation.

Peter’s song, I Found My Paradise, is performed by American singer Michael Turner, who he has been working with for eight years.

Producer Lois Chazen brought some of the artists together in a US concert last year.

Peter added: “I used to have a songbook when I was 16 but it was not until I retired that I started writing.

“I have worked with Michael on more than 80 songs and love seeing what is created from the words I write and like it when something turns out better that what you expect.”

To buy the album visit bit.ly/2HePOyP.