Editing John Martyn (section)

=== 1960s  and 1970s ===
Mentored by [[Hamish Imlach]], Martyn began his professional musical career when he was 17, playing a fusion of blues and folk resulting in a distinctive style which made him a key figure in the British folk scene during the mid-1960s.<ref name="all" /> He signed to [[Chris Blackwell]]'s [[Island Records]] in 1967 and released his first album, ''[[London Conversation]]'', the same year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.johnmartyn.com/1960s/london-conversation/|title=London Conversation (1967)|date=4 April 2013|website=The Official John Martyn Website|language=EN-US|access-date=24 February 2019}}</ref> Released in 1968, his second album, ''[[The Tumbler]]'', was moving towards [[jazz]].

{{listen
| filename     = John Martyn Eibhli.ogg
| title="Eibhli Ghail Chiuin Ni Chearbhail"
| description="Eibhli Ghail Chiuin Ni Chearbhail" (1973), built around a traditional tune, was featured on ''Inside Out''. It typifies Martyn's unique use of the [[echoplex]] effect, coupled with a [[Distortion (music)|fuzzbox]] and phase-shifter.}}

By 1970 Martyn had developed a wholly original and idiosyncratic sound: acoustic guitar run through a [[Distortion (music)|fuzzbox]], phase shifter and [[Echoplex]]. This sound was first apparent on ''[[Stormbringer! (John and Beverley Martyn album)|Stormbringer!]]'' released in February 1970.

''Stormbringer!'' was written and performed by Martyn and his then-wife Beverley, who had previously recorded solo as [[Beverley Martyn|Beverley Kutner]]. Their second duo album, ''[[The Road to Ruin (John and Beverley Martyn album)|The Road to Ruin]]'', was released in November 1970. Island Records felt that it would be more successful to market Martyn as a solo act and this was how subsequent albums were produced, although Beverley continued to make appearances as a backing singer as well as continuing as a solo artist herself.<ref name="timesobit" />

Released in 1971, ''[[Bless the Weather]]'' was Martyn's third solo album. In  February 1973, Martyn released the album ''[[Solid Air]]'', the title song a tribute to the singer-songwriter [[Nick Drake]], a close friend and label-mate who would die in 1974 from an overdose of [[antidepressants]]. In 2009, a double CD Deluxe edition of ''Solid Air'' was released featuring unreleased songs and out-takes, and sleeve notes by Record Collector's Daryl Easlea. On ''Bless the Weather'' and on ''Solid Air'' Martyn collaborated with jazz bassist [[Danny Thompson]], with whom he proceeded to have a musical partnership which continued until his death.

Following the commercial success of ''Solid Air'', later on in 1973 Martyn quickly recorded and released the experimental ''[[Inside Out (John Martyn album)|Inside Out]]'', an album with emphasis placed on feel and improvisation rather than song structure. In 1975, he followed this with ''[[Sunday's Child]]'', a more song-based collection that includes "My Baby Girl" and "Spencer the Rover", which are references to his young family. Martyn subsequently described this period as 'very happy'. In September 1975, he released a live album, ''[[Live at Leeds (John Martyn album)|Live at Leeds]]'' — Martyn had been unable to persuade Island to release the record, and resorted to selling individually signed copies by mail from his home in Hastings. ''Live at Leeds'' features Danny Thompson and drummer [[John Stevens (drummer)|John Stevens]]. In 2010, a 2CD Deluxe version of Live at Leeds was released, and it was discovered that not all of the songs on the original album were from the Leeds concert. After releasing ''Live at Leeds'', Martyn took a sabbatical, including a visit to Jamaica, spending time with reggae producer [[Lee "Scratch" Perry]].

In 1977, he released ''[[One World (John Martyn album)|One World]]'', which led some commentators to describe Martyn as the "Father of [[Trip-Hop]]".<ref>His obituary in ''The Times'' states that "The record's dubby, echoing soundscapes have been claimed as the forerunner of the 'trip-hop' style that emerged in the 1990s."</ref> It included tracks such as "Small Hours" and "Big Muff", a collaboration with Lee "Scratch" Perry. ''Small Hours'' was recorded outside; the microphones picked up ambient sounds, such as geese from a nearby lake.<ref name="munro" /> In 1978, he played guitar on the album ''Harmony of the Spheres'' by [[Neil Ardley]].