I first became aware of Martyn Joseph through his version of Bruce Springsteen’s One Step Up.
Now, that’s already a fantastic song, but Martyn did something I’d never heard before. In the middle of the performance, he broke into a spoken-word section that completely transformed the piece. It caught me off guard and genuinely blew me away.
The combination of storytelling and song worked so well that I immediately wanted to hear more.
A few CDs were subsequently acquired.
The more I listened, the more impressed I became. Martyn has that rare ability to combine thoughtful songwriting with a powerful stage presence, even when armed with nothing more than an acoustic guitar.
So when his tour was announced, I bought tickets.
The original date was postponed for a few months, which turned out to be no bad thing as it meant Emma was able to come along too. As seasoned gig-goers, we naturally secured our preferred location down the front.
Some habits are worth maintaining.
While waiting for the doors to open, I spotted an empty seat at the ticket desk and decided to make myself comfortable.
This seemed perfectly reasonable to me.
Emma, however, was considerably less impressed.
Her scepticism only increased when people started arriving and, seeing me sitting behind the desk, assumed I actually worked there. Before long I was fielding questions about the venue, the tickets and the evening’s arrangements.
Apparently, I looked official enough to be trusted with important information.
A worrying thought.
Sadly, I wasn’t able to help much beyond vaguely pointing people in the right direction and trying not to look too confused.
Once inside, however, there was no confusion whatsoever.
Martyn Joseph was absolutely fantastic.
There was no support act and no elaborate production. Instead, he took the stage alone and delivered two hour-long sets that completely held the audience’s attention from beginning to end.
That’s no small achievement.
Many performers struggle to keep an audience engaged for twenty minutes on their own. Martyn managed it for two hours with apparent ease. The songs were excellent, the stories between them were often funny, moving or thought-provoking, and there wasn’t a moment where the evening felt anything less than compelling.
What impressed me most was the connection he established with the audience.
Despite performing to a room full of people, he somehow made the evening feel personal. It felt less like a concert and more like sitting in a room listening to a gifted storyteller who just happened to write brilliant songs as well.
Those are often the best kinds of gigs.
The atmosphere throughout was warm, intimate and completely focused on the music. There was very little of the chatter and distraction that can plague other concerts. People had come to listen, and Martyn rewarded them with a performance that was heartfelt, passionate and utterly captivating.
By the end of the second set, it was impossible not to admire both his stamina and his talent.
Two hours alone on stage is a long shift by anyone’s standards.
Looking back, the evening more than justified the wait caused by the postponed date. Emma got to discover why I’d become such a fan, I got to hear some wonderful songs performed live, and for a brief period before the doors opened, I apparently enjoyed a successful career in venue management.
Not bad for one night.
The videos below capture some of Martyn Joseph’s performance and provide a glimpse of an artist who remains one of the finest singer-songwriters working today. If you’ve never heard him before, I’d strongly recommend starting with One Step Up.
That’s certainly where my journey began.
While we were waiting to go in, I took the seat at the ticket desk, which Emma wasn’t too impressed with, especially when many people arriving started asking me questions about the gig. Martyn was absolutely fantastic and with no support he done two hour long sets.
The Photos
Cheers!
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