ALBUM OF THE MONTH

JOHN MARTYN
MAY YOU NEVER
Island *****

This anthology has been released to mark the death of John Martyn in January and, as such, does the man proud. The material concentrates on John’s early to mid career period and it’s amazing to note just how many classic songs emanated from around this time. As well as the title track, the CD revisits tunes like Solid Air, Bless The Weather and Head And Heart – all of which left an indelible mark on those outer fringes of the British folk scene that the man made his own.

Naturally, it’s easy to mourn tracks that didn’t make the compilation and the decision to include the covers of Singing In The Rain and Over The Rainbow might faze a few fans. But being given another chance to hear the agonisingly beautiful Small Hours, reputedly recorded in the grounds of Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in Box at the dead of night, makes us more than willing to forgive anything!

Anonymous
Guitar Techniques
1 March 2009