Having been compared to the likes of Nick Drake, Simon and Garfunkel and Elliott Smith, Iron and Wine’s Sam Beam is one of today’s greatest folk songwriters, crafting tales full of hopeless love and dreams of longing. A Virginia Commonwealth University grad, Beam released his first Iron and Wine album, “The Creek Drank the Cradle” in 2002 and that same year, he recorded a cover of the Postal Service’s song “Such Great Heights,” which was later included in the popular indie film “Garden State.” After a number of successful albums, including 2007’s “The Shepherd’s Dog,” which was voted one of the 10 best of 2007 by Paste magazine, and 2011’s “Kiss Each Other Clean,” which blends his earlier styles with a stronger pop influence, Iron and Wine’s fifth studio album, “Ghost on Ghost,” was released in April and further explores pop sounds while also showing off some jazz and R&B influences. Iron and Wine performs at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden on Thursday, May 16, at 6:30 p.m. $30-$50. groovininthegarden.com.