Album: Bless The Weather
Artist: John Martyn
Born: New Malden, Surrey
Released: September 1971
Genre: Electric Folk
Influenced: Talk Talk, Cocteau Twins, Tindersticks, Beck
John Martyn is my favourite acoustic guitarist. His sense of rhythm is astounding. Like many singer-songwriters that emerged from the British folk scene in the 60s, Martyn was a free spirit that brought in elements of blues and jazz to his sound. Born in England but largely raised in Scotland, he was mentored by the brilliant Hamisch Imlach, who also taught Billy Connolly guitar and probably regaled him with a funny story or two. After recording two albums with his wife Beverley (one of which, Stormbringer!, even featured The Band's Levon Helm on the sublime, John The Baptist), Martyn returned to being a solo artist on his fifth album, Bless The Weather. Two elements of his signature style evolved on this record, the slurred and stoned singing voice and the "echoplex" (tape delay) guitar effects. Like his friend Nick Drake, Martyn created his own unique form of jazzy pastoral folk, with Fairport Convention's Danny Thompson contributing on double bass, as he did on many of the great electric folk records of the era. Listening to this album makes me want to camp in the wilds, sit around a bonfire and commune with friends and nature.
"Bless the weather that brought you to me / curse the storm that takes you away"; much of the songwriting on the album is full of references to the natural world. Go Easy makes for a blissful start to the album and morphs brilliant into the next song, Bless The Weather, full of intricate guitar playing and impressionistic singing that emphasises the tumultuous highs and lows of being in love. Walk On Water is another complex composition, while side 2 opener Head & Heart is the simplest, most direct love song on the album, and no less stunning for that, with a brilliant vocal performance from Martyn. Let The Good Things Come sees him teaming up again with his wife Beverley, while Back Down The River returns to pastoral themes and also explores brilliantly that urge to remain independent while in a relationship. None of this would have prepared the listener at the time for what comes next, the acoustic feedback loops and echoplex tape delays of Glistening Glyndebourne, all of which coalesce into a completely original and groundbreaking sound. Martyn would take this experimentation further on future albums and this blog will return there before the 70s fade.
John Martyn is my favourite acoustic guitarist. His sense of rhythm is astounding. Like many singer-songwriters that emerged from the British folk scene in the 60s, Martyn was a free spirit that brought in elements of blues and jazz to his sound. Born in England but largely raised in Scotland, he was mentored by the brilliant Hamisch Imlach, who also taught Billy Connolly guitar and probably regaled him with a funny story or two. After recording two albums with his wife Beverley (one of which, Stormbringer!, even featured The Band's Levon Helm on the sublime, John The Baptist), Martyn returned to being a solo artist on his fifth album, Bless The Weather. Two elements of his signature style evolved on this record, the slurred and stoned singing voice and the "echoplex" (tape delay) guitar effects. Like his friend Nick Drake, Martyn created his own unique form of jazzy pastoral folk, with Fairport Convention's Danny Thompson contributing on double bass, as he did on many of the great electric folk records of the era. Listening to this album makes me want to camp in the wilds, sit around a bonfire and commune with friends and nature.
"Bless the weather that brought you to me / curse the storm that takes you away"; much of the songwriting on the album is full of references to the natural world. Go Easy makes for a blissful start to the album and morphs brilliant into the next song, Bless The Weather, full of intricate guitar playing and impressionistic singing that emphasises the tumultuous highs and lows of being in love. Walk On Water is another complex composition, while side 2 opener Head & Heart is the simplest, most direct love song on the album, and no less stunning for that, with a brilliant vocal performance from Martyn. Let The Good Things Come sees him teaming up again with his wife Beverley, while Back Down The River returns to pastoral themes and also explores brilliantly that urge to remain independent while in a relationship. None of this would have prepared the listener at the time for what comes next, the acoustic feedback loops and echoplex tape delays of Glistening Glyndebourne, all of which coalesce into a completely original and groundbreaking sound. Martyn would take this experimentation further on future albums and this blog will return there before the 70s fade.
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