Martin Stephenon – June 2013 Newsletter

Yes I know it has only been a couple of weeks since the last newsletter, but there is quite a lot going in Stephenson-land at the moment (stops for a moment to consider a Daintee equivalent of Dolly World…noooo!) and hence the frequency of these things needs to be upped I reckon (no pressure then Rich).

So…can I suggest you take some time out of your day, get a cup of coffee or a cold beer, and sit back and take in the following…

OK let’s start with Bandcamp. Just a reminder about this excellent site that Martin uses to enable folk to download digital versions of his albums. You can try before you buy and unlike some sites, Martin gets pretty much all of the dosh you pay. At an average of £7 an album it represents great value for all.

Well the value just got better as for a limited period you can buy two of his best albums for the 75% discounted price of £1.75!

The deals are on Collective Force and Songs From Airdrie.

 

Here’s the links and the codes…

http://daintees.bandcamp.com/album/collective-force – use code force1news at checkout.

http://daintees.bandcamp.com/album/songs-from-airdrie – use code air75news at checkout.

 

The codes will expire on 30th June.

 

 

Here’s a little bit about the albums in question:-

Collective Force was the result of a new enriched musical vision that had its roots in the mix of musical travellers Martin enjoyed in 2001, from touring again with the Daintees to a host of other group ventures and duets – but was in many ways a response to the new popularity he was enjoying, thanks to a session recorded for Janice Long’s Radio 2 show, in which a track reminiscent of his earlier Daintees work called Orange is the Colour of Joy would feature.

Recorded in the Scottish Highlands and Brighton, the album featured the participation of a number of musical friends, including B J Cole (pedal steel guitarist with a session track record that defines the word extensive – lets just say Elton John and REM for now), Bobby Valentino (ex-Hank Wangford and fiddle player on The Bluebells’ Young At Heart), one time Lotus Eater and man about MerseysidePeter Coyle and a gospel choir from Sussex. 

The result of all this is an album of sunny, spiritually happy sounds, musically as varied as usual and successfully fusing Martin’s style and the traditional types of music that inspire him. On release it received radio attention from the likes of Bob Harris, Mike Harding, Johnny Walker, Terry Wogan and the Kershaw siblings.

Songs From Airdrie is a bit special. It is the digital download version of a CD album from 2004 called Airdrie that barely saw the light of day back then due to “business issues”. This was a real shame as the album is, like Collective Force, a major production (by Stuart MacLeod) and features the talents of two original Daintees, drummer Paul Smith and vocalist Andrea Mackie, alongside long-time friends and collaborators Jim Hornsby and Frankie Gibbon. Many of the songs have featured heavily in Martin’s set lists since then, such is their quality.

 

On The Road…I’ll be brief on live shows this month as we covered some of these last time…

Martin makes his annual trip to the wonderfully intimate Eyre Chapel, Chesterfield on Friday 21 June. If you would like to experience a unique, atmospheric, show tickets are available fromhttp://www.wegottickets.com/event/216971

The highlight of June has got to be The Daintees appearance at Glastonbury on Friday 28 June. The time is not confirmed, but we think it should be around 6.00pm on The Acoustic Stage. Keep tweeting to @bbcglasto urging them to show the performance!!

Prior to that, there are Daintees shows in Glasgow at Oran Mor on Tuesday 25 June, Settle Victoria Hall Wednesday 26 June, and a return to Liverpool Lomax on Thursday 27 June. There is still chance to snap up tickets for these shows at the websites below.

http://www.synergyconcerts.com/listings-tickets/eventdetails/25-jun-13-martin-stephenson–the-daintees-oran-mor

 

http://www.settlevictoriahall.org.uk/prog/2013/jun_daintees.html

 

http://www.wegottickets.com/event/220008

 

 

Also…how do you fancy attending a Martin gig from the comfort of your own home? Yes in these days of everybody being sedentary and obese we thought we’d jump on the bandwagon! So sod the government’s health guidelines, you can stay in, have a drink and a smoke and catch the man himself via a Stage It performance on 16th June at 8:00pm. Seriously these are great fun, you can pay what you like and have a bit of banter with Martin and the other attendees in the chat room. What could possibly go wrong?!

http://www.stageit.com/martin_stephenson_highland_trio/live_in_your_lounge_from_martin_s_hoose/24101

 

 

Keep checking the website as dates are being added all the time

http://www.daintees.co.uk/daintees.co.uk/Dates.html

And Finally…

Your humble newsletter writer attended Martin’s gig at Hull Fruit last week…

Arriving at this excellent new venue at the slightly worrying late time of 9:15, Martin and the venerable Jim Hornsby took the stage in front of a small but perfectly formed and attentive group of around a 100 E Yorks types. It has been around 15 years since Martin last played in Hull and he fondly recalled some of the old venues he played during the course of the evening. An evening that saw our two troubadours play for circa two and half hours without a break. The audience were captivated throughout from the swinging but lyrically venomous Left Us To Burn through a set list of quite breathtaking variety and depth. I have seen Martin play live many, many times over the last 20 years or so, but I seriously think he is improving all the time. As a guitar player, as a singer, as a lyricist and raconteur who can have you laughing your head off one minute and suddenly finding yourself with a bit of dust in your eye the next minute as he talks about his departed Mum prior to playing Home. “I would give away all my guitars, all my possessions for just 5 minutes sitting chatting with her again on the settee”.

Jim Hornsby is in many ways Martin’s ideal sparring partner at gigs like these. He has a deftness of touch and the ability to go wherever Martin’s muse takes the songs without missing a note or a beat. He also gets the mickey well and truly taken out of him, whilst at the same time you can feel the respect Martin has for him as a player and as a friend.

The gig reached a climax with a version of Nancy as requested by a lady called Camilla in the audience (“you don’t get many lasses called Camilla from Hull”), with the title of the song changed appropriately for her, a rousing Wholly Humble Heart and a version of Lilac Tree that was truly special in terms of what these two musicians can do to the dynamics of a song with just two guitars.

Wonderful, life-affirming stuff. Don’t miss out if Martin with Jim or The Daintees are anywhere near you in the coming months.