Has there been a thread about John Martyn?

that guitar tone is extremely metal

love it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDMWVr9k5R8

Uncle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYLVM560Fok

One World got me in the last week of December.

I love that Lester Bangs story about being on a music biz junket to Jamaica in the mid-70s, and while the other hacks are hanging round the pool smoking weed at the Holiday Inn, he gets a ride into Kingston -- against everyone's advice -- to go record shopping. After an hour or two he goes for a drink and is surprised to see another long-haired, bearded white guy sitting at the corner of the bar, only to find it's John Martyn.

I've prob. misremembered the details, but it just says a lot about what I love about JM; that he was from this folky background, but so hip -- for want of a better word -- to what was going on in jazz, reggae, dub, ambient etc. Not sure who/what would be the equivalent these days.

It says a lot about how he liked a bevvy too.

"small hours" (the extended mix on one other world) is where i want to live

What is One Other World? Is it the second disk of the deluxe edition?

yes. if you dig one world but haven't heard that bonus stuff, do yourself a favor

I do dig it and have the bonus disc, was wondering if there was more! I’m greedy for this beauty.

The deluxe appears to be on Spotify but I don’t see an extended mix of Small Hours, just a live version and instrumental mix:

https://open.spotify.com/album/1G8gcNHZxeRUaqHVFyCADO?si=Y9_cJHbnSOScs9gbJazY1Q

Are you referring to the latter?

I bought the 2004 double disc. I'm blasting the live disc as I type.

I don't have spotify so I can't verify the link, but I think they're talking about what you're calling the instrumental mix.

There's an instrumental version of Solid Air on one of the extended editions that is just fantastic. God bless Danny Thompson.

Solid Air is so fucking dope.

I was thumbing through some albums at a gf of my uncle's house decades ago and asked him if Solid Air was any cop and he said something really crap and not very otm like: oh he's a quite interesting nick drake protege..

I happen to have just made a mix called 'Pith & Echo,' the heart of which is "Small Hours," and which throughout focuses on music with a similar combination of total minimalism and maximum emotional impact:

https://musicophilia.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/musicophilia_00__various_-_pith-echo_1968-2019_cover-a.jpg?w=1024

https://musicophilia.files.wordpress.com/2020/02/musicophilia_00__various_-_pith-echo_1968-2019_cover-b.jpg?w=1024

https://musicophilia.wordpress.com/2020/02/23/pith-and-echo/

Sunday's Child is super underrated, if not the all-out masterpiece that One World is. Was not ready for Root Love to go so hard

that mix looks great ian!
and yeah i love sunday's child — "spencer the rover" is one of my fave Martyn moments.

I'd be interested in listening to that mix, but it would be easier for my listening set up if it was in two parts (so that the file sizes would be smaller). The same for your Elegy to Mark Hollis and your Evensong mixes.

They're streamable, too, if that helps. I had assumed file size wasn't a cobstraint for people now, so once the 100MB file size limit on Mediafire went away, I favored sound quality...

Were you aware that The Dawning now seems to be blocked for download? For me at any rate. Haven't come across any problems with any of the others so far.

This is a fabulous mix.

I took the liberty of making a Spotify playlist (hope that's OK, soundslike - shout if not): https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5iFobpwIBwLrpk8DL4bZnj?si=WB0VpHK_TIOWP8vdZMG5eg

The only thing missing is Low.

Sorry for the extended derail!

I tend to prefer avoiding Spotify because it doesn't pay artists anything. And because I put a lot of effort into the segues (and even the silence length between tracks, when it occurs). I also make sure mixes are streamable on Mixcloud. But obviously it's not my music, so folks can replicate mixes on Spotify if that's preferable.

Solid Air is some of the most perfect morning music ever

I love this dude now.

My dad is really into John Martin, but it wasn't until I heard this that I joined him

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvFMEiVX_Ck

I tend to prefer avoiding Spotify because it doesn't pay artists anything

The royalty arrangements are fairer via Mediafire + Mixcloud? (Genuine question; I haven't a clue.)

The royalty arrangements via Mixcloud are probably similarly slim (i.e. nearly nothing). But my goal is to get people to buy music, which in the past I'd frequently been told was successful. Nowadays, people probably just add things to their Spotify queue for the most part, unfortunately. But all I can do (besides continuing to buy music myself) is try.

Agreed, also I don't like how Spotify switches round the versions of tracks.

I see. Thanks!

Fun fact: the first time I ever heard John Martyn was by streaming BBC Scotland around the turn of the century. I only tuned in because they intended to quote a silly review I wrote in a program about Orange Juice. Then they played something from Solid Air when that was done. I was sufficiently intrigued to buy said album shortly thereafter. I would likely have waited centuries for such a chance hearing on my own side of the world!

On the deluxe version of Sunday's Child there's a five-track solo acoustic John Peel session that is amazing.

Great thread, hadn't seen it before. The elusive Beverly turns up on Renbourn's v. enjoyable time junket The Attic Tapes, and thinking again of that finally got me to check this:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beverley_Martyn

the electric piano on “dreams by the sea” = most beautiful sound in the universe.

Listening to his 2004 (post-amputation) album On the Cobbles and it's got some goodly things. It sounds glorious; there's a reworking of Go Down Easy, which has Nick McCabe making some beautiful noise; Danny Thompson sounds great; The Creator is meandering and needs some thinking through. Could have done without the Weller track.

This latest Alabaster LePlume (all instrumental, none of the usual "whispered" vocals, as described here) so far has a Martyn-compatible vibe (notes mention "Celtic" etc, some of it seems Adriatic)-mostly reeds & guitar, occasional keys, mbira: https://intlanthem.bandcamp.com/album/to-cy-lee-instrumentals-vol-1

(There's also a thread for it, but wanted to listen before reading.)

Little bit of violin, cello bow down in there now. Won't liveblog tho sry

Sweet Little Mystery was featured on the most recent episode of Devs

I dunno why "Give Us A Ring" chokes me up?

me too!! i love that song so much and i have never understood why i found it so poignant

originally written for Nick Drake, aiui; it would've fitted in quite nicely on Bryter Layter. But yeah, for a song seemingly about smuggling weed through customs, it's lovely.

It would totally fit on Bryter Layter. Beautiful song. Paul Harris on piano, too (him off Manassas), which might explain why it totally reminds me of Descending by the Black Crowes.

I had a poke around on the internet and the fellow who write the song put up his own version at some point. Such a great song.

https://soundcloud.com/paulwheeler8/give-us-a-ring

it must be something about the chords or melody or vocal delivery that gets me because i can only remember a few lines, so it's not the lyrics. i don't think "what's the food like, have you slept well" or "give us a ring when you get there" is enough to make me emotional lol

Ah! I never knew it was written for ND. Would indeed fit nicely into "Bryter Layter" which happens to be my fave Drake album. Such a lovely song.