Editing John Martyn

{{Short description|British musician (1948–2009)}}
{{About||other people by the same name|John Martyn (disambiguation){{!}}John Martyn|the Swedish singer|John Martin (singer)}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2021}}
{{Infobox musical artist <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians -->
| name             = John Martyn<br /><small>[[Order of the British Empire|OBE]]</small>
| image            = JohnMartyn1978.jpg
| caption          =  Martyn in 1978
| birth_name       =  Iain David McGeachy{{cn|date=February 2025}}
| birth_date       =  {{Birth date|1948|9|11|df=y}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://johnmartyn.com/biography/|title=Biography|website=Johnmartyn.com|access-date=15 June 2021}}</ref>
| birth_place      =  [[New Malden]], [[Surrey]], England
| death_date       = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2009|01|29|1948|09|11}}
| death_place      = [[Thomastown, County Kilkenny|Thomastown]], Ireland
| genre            = {{hlist|[[Folk blues]]|[[progressive folk]]|[[folk-rock]]|[[folk jazz]]}}
| occupation       = {{hlist|Musician|songwriter}}
| instrument       = {{hlist|Guitar|vocals}}
| years_active     = 1967–2009
| label            = {{hlist|[[Island Records|Island]]|[[Warner Music Group|WEA]]}}
| associated_acts  = [[Beverley Martyn]]
| website          = {{URL|johnmartyn.com}}
}}

'''Iain David McGeachy''' {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|OBE}} (11 September 1948&nbsp;– 29 January 2009), known professionally as '''John Martyn''', was a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums and received frequent critical acclaim. ''[[The Times]]'' described him as "an electrifying guitarist and singer whose music blurred the boundaries between [[Folk music|folk]], [[jazz]], [[Rock music|rock]] and [[blues]]".<ref name="timesobit">[https://web.archive.org/web/20100530183139/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article5613933.ece Obituary: "John Martyn: guitarist and singer"], ''The Times'', 30 January 2009, pg. 75.</ref>

Martyn began his career at age 17 as a key member of the Scottish folk music scene, drawing inspiration from American blues and [[Folk music of England|English traditional music]], and signed with [[Island Records]]. By the 1970s he had begun incorporating jazz and rock into his sound on albums such as ''[[Solid Air]]'' (1973) and ''[[One World (John Martyn album)|One World]]'' (1977), as well as experimenting with [[guitar effects]] and [[Delay (audio effect)|tape delay]] machines like the [[Echoplex]].<ref name="all">{{cite web|last1=Hartenbach|first1=Brett|title=John Martyn: Biography & History|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-martyn-mn0000196969/biography|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=2 March 2017}}</ref> Domestic and substance abuse problems marked his personal life throughout the 1970s and 1980s, though he continued to release albums while collaborating with figures such as [[Phil Collins]] and [[Lee "Scratch" Perry]]. He remained active until his death in 2009.

== Early life and education ==
Martyn was born in Beechcroft Avenue, [[New Malden]], [[Surrey]], to Belgian Jewish mother Beatrice "Betty" Ethel (''née'' Jewitt) and [[Greenock]]-born Scottish father Thomas Paterson "Tommy" McGeachy.<ref>{{cite web|title=Feeling Gravity's Pull – The Official John Martyn Website|url=https://www.johnmartyn.com/magazines-and-newspapers/feeling-gravitys-pull/|website=Johnmartyn.com|date=May 1998|quotation=Since his birth in 1949 (sic), to an English mother and Scottish father, he's forever been shuttling the length ... In fact she wasn't she was Jewish Belgian. ... Exit Ms Frederick stage left, rapidly, but the song remains: Sandy Grey turns up the following ...}}</ref><ref name="munro">John Neil Munro, ''Some People Are Crazy&nbsp;— the John Martyn Story''; {{ISBN|978-1-84697-058-0}}, Polygon, 2007 p.125</ref><ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/arts_ents/17373827.musical-genius-or-a-wasted-talent-in-search-of-the-real-john-martyn/|title=Musical genius or a wasted talent? In search of the real John Martyn|website=HeraldScotland|date=26 January 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite ODNB|url=https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-100767|title=Martyn, John [real name Ian David McGeachy] (1948–2009), musician and songwriter|year=2004|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/100767|isbn=978-0-19-861411-1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.scribd.com/book/464995057/Small-Hours-The-Long-Night-of-John-Martyn|title=Read Small Hours Online by Graeme Thomson &#124; Books|via=www.scribd.com|quote=His parents were Thomas Paterson McGeachy and Beatrice Ethel Jewitt... Beatrice was born on December 10, 1924 to Maud and Harold Jewitt, into a Jewish family that had moved, after her arrival, from Belgium to England.* Her father was a broker for a shipping company, her mother a housewife. They lived at 34 Compton Avenue, in the new and affluent garden suburb of Gidea Park in Romford, Essex.}}</ref> His parents, both [[opera singers]], divorced when he was five and he spent his childhood alternating between Scotland and England. Most of this time was spent in the care of his father and grandmother, Janet, in [[Shawlands]], Glasgow, part of his holidays each year spent on his mother's houseboat.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.johnmartyn.info/sleevenotes/serendipity-brendan-quayle|title=Serendipity – Brendan Quayle &#124; Big Muff|website=Johnmartyn.info|access-date=13 July 2020}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oubUlFP3zuQ&t=453s| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/oubUlFP3zuQ| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=Graeme Thomson on John Martyn's "lifelong grudges and huge, messy explosion of records"| date=9 July 2020|publisher=[[YouTube]]|access-date=13 July 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/john-martyn-heaven-can-wait-562230.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220613/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/john-martyn-heaven-can-wait-562230.html |archive-date=13 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=John Martyn: Heaven can wait|date=5 May 2004|website=The Independent}}</ref> He adapted his accent depending on context or company, changing between broad or refined [[Glaswegian dialect|Glaswegian]] and southern English accents, and continued to do so throughout his life.<ref name="auto" /><ref name="auto2" /><ref name="auto1" /> He attended [[Shawlands Academy]] in Glasgow.<ref name="timesobit" /> At school, he was a keen rugby player. On leaving school he attended [[Glasgow School of Art]], but left to pursue his musical aspirations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.johnmartyn.info/node/321|title=Glasgow Walker &#124; Big Muff|website=Johnmartyn.info}}</ref>

== Career ==

=== 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]].

=== 1980s ===
Martyn's marriage broke down at the end of the 1970s and "John hit the self destruct button"<ref>{{Cite web|date=30 January 2009|title=The wild man of folk dies aged 60|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/the-wild-man-of-folk-dies-aged-60-1520400.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220613/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/the-wild-man-of-folk-dies-aged-60-1520400.html |archive-date=13 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=9 July 2020|website=The Independent|language=en}}</ref> (although other biographers, including ''The Times'' obituary writer, attribute the break-up of his marriage to his already being addicted to alcohol and drugs).<ref name="timesobit" /> In her autobiography, Beverley also alleges protracted domestic violence.<ref name="honesty">Beverley Martyn, Jacki Dacosta, ''Sweet Honesty – The Beverley Martyn Story''; {{ISBN|978-1-90721-188-1}}, Grosvenor, 2011</ref>  Out of this period, described by Martyn as "a very dark period in my life",<ref name="bio1980">{{cite web|url=http://www.johnmartyn.com/?location=/web/1980s|title=''John's Diary 1980s'' — Martyn's biography on his website|publisher=Johnmartyn.com|access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref> came the album ''[[Grace and Danger]]''. Released in October 1980, the album had been held up for a year by Chris Blackwell. He was a close friend of John and Beverley, and found the album too openly disturbing to release. Only after intense and sustained pressure from Martyn did Blackwell agree to release the album. Commenting on that period, Martyn said, "I was in a dreadful emotional state over that record. I was hardly in control of my own actions. The reason they finally released it was because I freaked: Please get it out! I don't give a damn about how sad it makes you feel—it's what I'm about: the direct communication of emotion. ''Grace and Danger'' was very cathartic, and it really hurt."<ref name="bio1980" />

In the late 1980s, Martyn cited ''Grace and Danger'' as his favourite album, and said that it was "probably the most specific piece of autobiography I've written. Some people keep diaries, I make records."<ref name="bio1980" /> The album has since become one of his highest-regarded, prompting a deluxe double-disc issue in 2007, containing the original album remastered.

[[Phil Collins]] played drums and sang backing vocals on ''Grace and Danger'' and subsequently played drums on and produced Martyn's next album, ''[[Glorious Fool]]'', in 1981. Martyn left Island records in 1981, and recorded ''Glorious Fool'' and ''[[Well Kept Secret (John Martyn album)|Well Kept Secret]]'' for [[Warner Music Group|WEA]] achieving his first Top 30 album.<ref name="timesobit" /> In 1983 Martyn released a live album, ''[[Philentropy]]'', and married Annie Furlong but the couple, who had lived in Scotland, later separated.<ref name="munro" /><ref name=":0" /> Returning to Island records, he recorded ''[[Sapphire (John Martyn album)|Sapphire]]'' (1984), ''[[Piece by Piece (John Martyn album)|Piece by Piece]]'' (1986) and the live ''[[Foundations (album)|Foundations]]'' (1987) before leaving the label in 1988.

=== 1990s and 2000s ===
[[File:John-Martyn-at-the-Barbican-Centre.JPG|thumb|upright|Martyn performing at the [[Barbican Centre]] in London, 2008]]
Martyn released ''[[The Apprentice (album)|The Apprentice]]'' in 1990 and ''[[Cooltide]]'' in 1991 for Permanent Records, and reunited with Phil Collins for ''[[No Little Boy]]'' (1993), which featured rerecorded versions of some of his classic tracks. The similar 1992 release ''[[Couldn't Love You More]]'' was unauthorised and disowned by Martyn. Material from these recordings and his two Permanent albums have been recycled on many releases. Permanent Records also released a live 2-CD set called "Live" in 1994. ''[[And (John Martyn album)|And]]'' (1996) came out on [[Go! Discs]] and saw Martyn draw heavily on trip-hop textures, a direction which saw more complete expression on 2000's ''[[Glasgow Walker]]''. ''[[The Church with One Bell]]'' (1998) is a covers album of blues classics, which draws on songs by other artists, including [[Portishead (band)|Portishead]] and [[Ben Harper]].<ref>{{Cite web|date=9 April 1998|title=The Church With One Bell (1998)|url=http://johnmartyn.com/discography/1990s/the-church-with-one-bell-1998/|access-date=19 July 2020|website=John Martyn|language=en-GB}}</ref> In 2001, Martyn appeared on the track "Deliver Me" by [[Faithless]] keyboard player and DJ [[Sister Bliss]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Sister Bliss – Deliver Me|url=https://www.discogs.com/Sister-Bliss-Deliver-Me/release/137902|access-date=23 June 2020|website=Discogs.com|language=en}}</ref>

[[File:JohnMartyn.jpg|thumb|left|Martyn in 2006]]
In July 2006, the documentary ''Johnny Too Bad'' was screened by the BBC.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/music/features/john-martyn.shtml|title=Johnny Too Bad |publisher=Bbc.co.uk|date=1 January 1970|access-date=24 August 2012}}</ref> The programme documented the period surrounding the operation to amputate Martyn's right leg below the knee (the result of a burst [[cyst]] that had led to [[septicaemia]]<ref name=":0" />) and the writing and recording of ''[[On the Cobbles]]'' (2004), an album described by Peter Marsh on the BBC Music website as "the strongest, most consistent set he's come up with in years." Much of ''Cobbles'' was a revisiting of his acoustic-based sound.
Martyn's last concerts were in November 2008, reprising Grace and Danger.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Biography Part 5|url=https://johnmartyn.com/biography-part-5/|access-date=11 July 2020|website=Johnmartyn.com|language=en-GB}}</ref>

In collaboration with his keyboard player Spenser Cozens, Martyn wrote and performed the score for ''Strangebrew'' (Robert Wallace 2007), which won the Fortean Times Award at the London Short Film Festival in the same year.<ref>{{Citation|title=Strangebrew (2006) – IMDb|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3017202/fullcredits|access-date=9 July 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Robert Milton Wallace|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0908838/bio|access-date=9 July 2020|website=IMDb}}</ref> The film concept being a strong influence of the album design of Martyn's ''[[Heaven and Earth (John Martyn album)|Heaven and Earth]]'' (2011). On 4 February 2008, Martyn received the lifetime achievement award at the [[BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards]]. The award was presented by his friend Phil Collins. The BBC website stated Martyn's "heartfelt performances have either suggested or fully demonstrated an idiosyncratic genius." [[Eric Clapton]] was quoted saying that Martyn was "so far ahead of everything, it's almost inconceivable."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/events/folkawards2008/winners.shtml|title=Folk Awards 2008 – Winners and Nominees |publisher=Bbc.co.uk|access-date=13 December 2018}}</ref>

To mark Martyn's 60th birthday, Island released a 4 CD boxed set, ''[[Ain't No Saint (album)|Ain't No Saint]]'', on 1 September 2008. The set includes unreleased studio material and rare live recordings.

Martyn was appointed [[Order of the British Empire|OBE]] in the 2009 New Year Honours and died a few weeks later.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{London Gazette|issue=58929|date=31 December 2008|page=11 |supp=y}}</ref> His partner Theresa Walsh collected the award at Buckingham Palace.<ref>{{cite web |title=Partner collects folk singer John Martyn's OBE for services to music |url=https://johnmartyn.info/content/partner-collects-folk-singer-john-martyn%E2%80%99s-obe-services-music |website=Big Muff The John Martyn Pages |access-date=17 August 2021}}</ref> Martyn had recorded new material before he died and his final studio album, ''[[Heaven and Earth (John Martyn album)|Heaven and Earth]]'', was completed and released posthumously in May 2011. The sleeve note says, "all the tracks on this recording were kept as John wished — in their entirety".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Edwards|first=Mark|date=15 May 2011|title=John Martyn Heaven and Earth|language=en|work=The Sunday Times|url=https://www.thetimes.com/sunday-times-rich-list/profile/article/john-martyn-heaven-and-earth-bk7q3d0h0cb|access-date=19 July 2020|issn=0140-0460}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=27 April 2011|title=John Martyn's final recordings to be released|url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/apr/27/john-martyn-final-recordings|access-date=19 July 2020|website=The Guardian|language=en}}</ref>

== Death ==
Martyn died on 29 January 2009, at a hospital in [[Thomastown, County Kilkenny|Thomastown]], [[County Kilkenny]], Ireland,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.advertiser.ie/kilkenny/article/8267/john-martyns-last-appearance-in-kytelers |title=John Martyn's last appearance in Kytelers |publisher=Advertiser.ie |date=6 February 2009 |access-date=16 August 2015}}</ref> from [[acute respiratory distress syndrome]]. He had been living in Thomastown with his partner Theresa Walsh. Martyn's health was affected by his life-long abuse of drugs and alcohol. He was survived by his partner and his children, Mhairi, Wesley and Spencer McGeachy.<ref name=bbc>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7858458.stm |title=UK &#124; Scotland &#124; Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West &#124; Songwriter Martyn dies, aged 60 |work=BBC News |date=29 January 2009 |access-date=16 August 2015}}</ref>

=== Tributes ===
Following Martyn's death, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' lauded his "[[progressive folk]] invention and improvising sorcery".<ref name="rs">{{cite magazine|last1=Fricke|first1=David|title=Fricke's Picks: Remembering Singer-Guitarist John Martyn|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/frickes-picks-remembering-singer-guitarist-john-martyn-20090511|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=11 May 2009|access-date=2 March 2017}}</ref> Friend and collaborator [[Phil Collins]] paid tribute to him, saying, "John's passing is terribly, terribly sad. I had worked with and known him since the late 1970s and he was a great friend. He was uncompromising, which made him infuriating to some people, but he was unique and we'll never see the likes of him again. I loved him dearly and will miss him very much."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/phil-collins-pays-tribute-to-john-martyn-194047|title=Phil Collins pays tribute to John Martyn|work=MusicRadar|first=Michael|last=Leonard|date=29 January 2009}}</ref>

[[Mike Harding]] introduced an hour-long tribute to Martyn in his BBC Radio 2 programme on 25 February 2009. A tribute album, ''Johnny Boy Would Love This'', was released on 15 August 2011, comprising cover versions of his songs by various artists.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/john-martyn-pioneering-singersongwriter-who-blended-folk-with-jazz-and-played-with-eric-clapton-and-dave-gilmour-1520361.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220613/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/john-martyn-pioneering-singersongwriter-who-blended-folk-with-jazz-and-played-with-eric-clapton-and-dave-gilmour-1520361.html |archive-date=13 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=John Martyn: Pioneering singer-songwriter who blended folk with jazz and played with Eric Clapton and Dave Gilmour – Obituaries – News |newspaper=The Independent |date=30 January 2009 |access-date=16 August 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.popmatters.com/review/148147-various-artists-johnny-boy-would-love-this-a-tribute-to-john-martyn/ |title=Various Artists: Johnny Boy Would Love This… A Tribute to John Martyn |work=PopMatters |date=30 October 2011 |access-date=16 August 2018 |author=Beaudoin, Jedd}}</ref>

The "Grace & Danger: A Celebration of John Martyn" tribute concert held on 27 January 2019 at [[Glasgow Royal Concert Hall]] marked the tenth anniversary of his passing.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Virtue|first=Graeme|date=28 January 2019|title=Grace & Danger: A Celebration of John Martyn review – torrid tribute from Paul Weller and friends|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jan/28/celebration-of-john-martyn-review-royal-concert-hall-glasgow|access-date=25 June 2020|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Curated and hosted by [[Danny Thompson]], artists including [[Eddi Reader]], [[Eric Bibb]] and [[Paul Weller]] performed "to do full justice to a selection of Martyn's finest songs and channel some of the great man's spirit".<ref>{{Cite web|date=1 February 2019|title=Review: Grace & Danger, A Celebration of John Martyn, Celtic Connections 2019|url=https://thefountain.eu/music/2019/02/review-grace-danger-a-celebration-of-john-martyn-celtic-connections-2019/|access-date=25 June 2020|website=The Fountain|language=en-GB}}</ref>

On 19 April 2025 his song "May You Never" was featured in an episode if the [[BBC Radio 4]] series ''[[Soul Music (radio series)|Soul Music]]''.<ref>https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002b6j2</ref>

== Discography ==
=== Studio albums ===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan=2| Year
! rowspan=2| Album
! Peak chart positions
|-
! <small>[[UK Albums Chart|UK]]</small> <br /><ref name="Official Charts">{{cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/3063/john-martyn/ |title=JOHN MARTYN full Official Chart History |website=[[Official Charts Company|Official Charts]] |access-date=23 January 2021}}</ref><ref>''Some People Are Crazy – the John Martyn Story'' – John Neil Munro (Polygon 2007)</ref>
|-
| 1967
| '''''[[London Conversation]]'''''
* Released: October 1967
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 952)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1968
| '''''[[The Tumbler]]'''''
* Released: December 1968
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9091)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1970
| '''''[[Stormbringer!]]'' (with [[Beverley Martyn]])'''
* Released: February 1970
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9113)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1970
| '''''[[The Road to Ruin (John and Beverley Martyn album)|The Road to Ruin]]'' (with [[Beverley Martyn]])'''
* Released: November 1970
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9133)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1971
| '''''[[Bless the Weather]]'''''
* Released: November 1971
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9167)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1973
| '''''[[Solid Air]]'''''
* Released: February 1973
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9226)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1973
| '''''[[Inside Out (John Martyn album)|Inside Out]]'''''
* Released: October 1973
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9253)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1975
| '''''[[Sunday's Child]]'''''
* Released: 28 January 1975
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS 9296)</small>
| align=center| -
|-
| 1977
| '''''[[One World (John Martyn album)|One World]]'''''
* Released: 4 November 1977
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS/ZCI 9492)</small>
| align=center| 54
|-
| 1980
| '''''[[Grace and Danger]]'''''
* Released: 13 October 1980
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS/ZCI 9560)</small>
| align="center" | 54
|-
| 1981
| '''''[[Glorious Fool]]'''''
* Released: September 1981
* Label: WEA <small>(WEA K/K4 99178)</small>
| align="center" | 25
|-
| 1982
| '''''[[Well Kept Secret (John Martyn album)|Well Kept Secret]]'''''
* Released: August 1982
* Label: WEA <small>(WEA K/K4 99255)</small>
| align="center" | 20
|-
| 1984
| '''''[[Sapphire (John Martyn album)|Sapphire]]'''''
* Released: November 1984
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS/ICT 9779)</small>
| align="center" | 57
|-
| 1986
| '''''[[Piece by Piece (John Martyn album)|Piece by Piece]]'''''
* Released: February 1986
* Label: Island <small>(ILPS/ICTCID 9807)</small>
| align="center" | 28
|-
| 1990
| '''''[[The Apprentice (album)|The Apprentice]]'''''
* Released: March 1990
* Label: Permanent Records <small>(PERM CD/MC/LP 1)</small>
| align="center" | -
|-
| 1991
| '''''[[Cooltide]]'''''
* Released: November 1991
* Label: Permanent Records <small>(PERM CD/MC/LP 4)</small>
| align="center" | -
|-
| 1992
| '''''Couldn't Love You More'''''
* Released: August 1992
* Label: Permanent Records <small>(PERM CD/MC/LP 9)</small>
| align="center" | 65
|-
| 1993
| '''''No Little Boy'''''
* Released: July 1993
* Label: Permanent Records <small>(PERM CD/MC 14)</small>
| align="center" | -
|-
| 1996
| '''''[[And (John Martyn album)|And]]'''''
* Released: August 1996
* Label: Go! Discs <small>(828798-2/-4)</small>
| align="center" | 32
|-
| 1998
| '''''[[The Church with One Bell]]'''''
* Released: 23 March 1998
* Label: Independiente <small>(ISOM 3CD)</small>
| align="center" | 51
|-
| 2000
| '''''[[Glasgow Walker]]'''''
* Released: May 2000
* Label: Independiente <small>(ISOM 15CD)</small>
| align="center" | 66
|-
| 2004
| '''''[[On the Cobbles]]'''''
* Released: 26 April 2004
* Label: Independiente <small>(ISOM 43CD)</small>
| align="center" | 95
|-
| 2011
| '''''[[Heaven and Earth (John Martyn album)|Heaven and Earth]]'''''
* Released: 16 May 2011
* Label: Hole in the Rain <small>(LSM4010)</small>
| align="center" | 51
|-
! scope="row" colspan="4" style="text-align:center"| "-" denotes a release that did not chart. Note: the 2009 reissue of Solid Air reached 88 in the UK chart.
|}

=== Live albums ===
* ''[[Live at Leeds (John Martyn album)|Live at Leeds]]'' (September 1975)
* ''Philentropy'' (November 1983)
* ''Foundations'' (October 1987)
*''BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert'' (May 1992)
*''Live'' (July 1995)
*''The New York Session'' (November 2000)
*''Germany 1986'' (July 2001; with [[Danny Thompson]])
*''The Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal 1986'' (August 2001) (with [[Danny Thompson]])
*''Live at the Town & Country Club, 1986; Collectors Series 2'' (August 2001)
*''Sweet Certain Surprise'' (live in New York, 1977) (October 2001)
*''Live at the Bottom Line, New York, 1983; Collectors Series 3'' (November 2001)
*''Live in Milan, 1979; Collectors Series 4'' (May 2002)
*''And Live'' (June 2003) (recorded in 1996)
*''Live in Concert at the Cambridge Folk Festival'' BBC 1985 (December 2003)
*''Classics Live'' (November 2004)<ref>{{Cite web|title=Classics Live (2004)|url=https://www.johnmartyn.com/2000s/classics-live/|date=26 April 2013|website=Johnmartyn.com}}</ref>
*''Live in Nottingham 1976'' (May 2005)
*''On Air'' (Bremen Town Hall, Germany, September 1975) (May 2006)
*''In Session'' (August 2006) (BBC sessions, recorded for [[John Peel]] and [[Bob Harris (radio)|Bob Harris]], between 1973 and 1978)
*''Live at The Roundhouse'' (May 2007)
*''BBC Live in Concert'' (June 2007)
*''The Battle of Medway: 17 July 1973'' (November 2007)
*''The Simmer Dim'' (Garrison Theatre, Lerwick, August 1980) (June 2008)
*''The July Wakes'' (July Wakes Festival, Chorley, Lancs, July 1976) (October 2008)
*''Live at Leeds'' (2010) (deluxe 2 CD reissue)
*''Live at the Hanging Lamp'' (Richmond, London, May 1972) (2013) (vinyl-only release)

=== Compilation albums ===
*''[[So Far So Good (John Martyn album)|So Far So Good]]'' (March 1977)
*''[[The Electric John Martyn]]'' (October 1982)
*''Sweet Little Mysteries: The Island Anthology'' (June 1994)
*''The Hidden Years'' (December 1996)
*''The Very Best Of'' (April 1997)
*''Serendipity&nbsp;— An Introduction to John Martyn'' (1998)
*''Another World; Collectors Series Vol 1'' (1998)
*''Classics'' (March 2000)
*''The Best of Live '91'' (July 2000)
*''Solid Air&nbsp;— Classics Re-visited'' (September 2002) (compilation of previously released tracks)
*''Late Night John'' (May 2004)
*Mad Dog Days (June 2004)
*''Anthology'' (September 2004)
*''The John Martyn Story'' (May 2006)
*''One World Sampler'' (November 2006)
*''Sixty Minutes With'' (April 2007)
*''[[Ain't No Saint]]'' (September 2008) (40-year anthology)
*''May You Never&nbsp;— The Very Best Of'' (March 2009)
*''Remembering John Martyn'' (June 2012)
*''Sweet Little Mystery: The Essential'' (September 2013)
*''The Island Years'' (September 2013) (18 disc box set)
*''The Best of the Island Years'' (November 2014)
*''May You Never: The Essential John Martyn'' (November 2016) (3 Disc Compilation)
*''Head and Heart: The Acoustic John Martyn'' (June 2017)

=== Tribute albums ===
* ''Johnny Boy Would Love This'' (August 2011)

=== Singles ===
* "John the Baptist" / "The Ocean" ([[Island Records|Island]] WIP 6076, January 1970)
* "Anni Part 1" / "Anni Part 2" (with [[John Stevens (drummer)|John Stevens]]' Away) ([[Vertigo Records|Vertigo]] 6059 140, 1976)
* "Over the Hill" / "Head and Heart" (Island WIP 6385, February 1977)
* "Dancing" / "Dealer" (version) (Island WIP 6414, January 1978)
* "In Search of Anna" / "Certain Surprise" (Island K7450, 1979)
* "Johnny Too Bad" / "Johnny Too Bad" (version) Island WIP 6547, October 1980)
* "Johnny Too Bad" (extended dub version) / "Big Muff" (extended remix) (Island IPR 2047, March 1981)
* "Sweet Little Mystery" / "Johnny Too Bad" (Island WIP 6718, June 1981)
* "Please Fall in Love with Me" / "Don't You Go" ([[Warner Music Group|WEA]] K 79243, August 1981)
* "Hiss on the Tape" / "Livin' Alone" (WEA K 79336, October 1982)
* "Gun Money" (U.S. remix) / "Hiss on the Tape" (live) (WEA 259987-7, November 1982)
* "Over the Rainbow" / "Rope Soul'd" (Island IS 209, October 1984)
* "Angeline" / "Tight Connection to My Heart" (Island IS 265, February 1986)<ref>Angeline was the world's first ever CD single, released in 1986</ref>
* "Classic John Martyn" (Island CID 265, February 1986)
* "Angeline" / "Tight Connection to My Heart" / "May You Never" / "Certain Surprise" / "One Day Without You" (Island 12 IS 265, February 1986)
* "Lonely Love" / "Sweet Little Mystery" (live) (Island IS 272, October 1986)
* "Send Me One Line" / "Patterns in the Rain" (Hypertension HYS 100 102, May 1990)
* "Deny This Love" (remix) / "The Apprentice" (live) (Permanent S12, August 1990, 7-inch vinyl)
* "Deny This Love" (remix) / "The Apprentice" (live) / "Deny This Love" (album version) (Permanent CD Perm 1, August 1990)
* "Jack the Lad" / "Annie Sez" / "The Cure" / "Jack Sez" (Permanent CD Perm 3, April 1992)
* "Sweet Little Mystery" / "Head and Heart" (Permanent, Perm 6, September 1982)
* "Lonely Love" / "May You Never" (Permanent, Perm 8, December 1992)
* "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" ([[Voiceprint Records|Voiceprint]], JMCD001, 1998)
* "Excuse Me Mister" / "God Song" (live) / "Rock, Salt & Nails" (live) / "John Wayne" (live) ([[Independiente (record label)|Independiente]], ISOM14MS CD, May 1998)
* "Deliver Me" (with [[Sister Bliss]]) ([[Multiply Records]], CDMULTY72, March 2001)

=== DVD/video ===
*''John Martyn in Vision 1973–81'' (1982)
*''Live from London'' (Camden Palace, 1984)
*''Foundations: Live at The Town and Country Club'' (recorded 1986, released 1988)
*''The Apprentice Tour'' (August 1990)
*''Purely Music'' (January 1992) (released on [[LaserDisc]])
*''Tell Them I'm Somebody Else'' (2000)
*''Live in Concert''  (John Martyn & Band at Camden Palace Theatre, London, 23 November 1984) (2001) (DVD release of 1986 ''Live from London''; re-issued ''Live at the Camden Palace Theatre London 1984'' (2004) & ''Live from the Camden Palace'' (2012))
*''Live in Dublin''  (with Danny Thompson at Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, for RTE TV, Ireland, June 1986) (February 2005)
*''John Martyn at the BBC''  (various 1973–1982) (August 2006)
*''The Apprentice in Concert''  (John Martyn & Band with Dave Gilmour at Shaw Theatre, London, 31 March 1990) (2006) (DVD release of 1990 ''The Apprentice Tour'')
*''Empty Ceiling''  (John Martyn & Band recorded for Ohne Filter, German TV, April 1986) (November 2006)
*''Solid Air Live at The Roundhouse''  (John Martyn & Band in London, 3 February 2007) (May 2007)
*''The Man Upstairs''  (John Martyn (solo) recorded for Rockpalast, German TV, 17 March 1978) (April 2008)
*''One World One John''  (John Martyn & Band recorded mostly at Vicar Street, Dublin in 1999, 2000 & 2003) (February 2012)

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*[[John Neil Munro]], ''Some People Are Crazy: The John Martyn Story'' (2007), 2011: foreword by [[Ian Rankin]], {{ISBN|9781846971655}}
*[[Chris Nickson]], ''Solid Air: The Life of John Martyn'' (2011), {{ISBN|978-0-615-53485-5}}
*Mat Snow, ''John Martyn In Person'' (2011)
*Graeme Thomson - ''Small Hours - The Long Night of John Martyn'' (2020), ISBN 978-1787600195

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
*[http://www.johnmartyn.com/ Official website – johnmartyn.com]
*[http://www.johnmartyn.info/ Big Muff – johnmartyn.info]
*{{allMusic}}
*{{IMDb name|id=0554415|name=John Martyn}}

{{John Martyn}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martyn, John}}
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