aa

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

40 Year Itch : Living On Solid Air

Posted on 2:00 AM by Unknown



[Purchase]

"I didn't like that finger-in-the-ear stuff. I'm a funky, not a folkie."
 -John Martyn

 Described as a "poet-ruffian" by the Guardian, the tempestuous John Martyn released his best album, Solid Air, in February of 1973. It's one of those middle of the night folk-jazz "growers" that, if heard at the right time, will mesmerize its listener. Fans of Terry Callier, Beth Orton and Nick Drake should find something special here.

     Martyn had already made five albums by the time he entered the studio with acoustic bassist Danny Thompson and Fairport Convention's Dave Pegg and Dave Mattacks. Playing an effects-laden acoustic guitar, Martyn and his band explored that place where deeply personal lyrics meet hallucinogenic improvisation.

The title cut was dedicated to Martyn's friend , Nick Drake, who had died of an overdose 18 months earlier.




Of the song Martyn said "Now Solid Air... I really like the title track. It was done for a friend of mine [Nick Drake], and it was done right with very clear motives, and I'm very pleased with it, for varying reasons. It has got a very simple message, but you'll have to work that one out for yourself."



The best known song, his tribute to kinship "May You Never", was covered ( some say "butchered") by Eric Clapton on Slowhand, earning Martyn a sizable royalty check. At a lifetime achievement award for Martyn, Clapton sent a message saying Martyn was "so far ahead of everything, it's almost inconceivable".


Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to Facebook
Posted in 1973, John Martyn, Solid Air | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • 40 Year Itch: Maidens, Warriors and Sentinels
    [Purchase] The year after Wishbone Ash won Melody Maker 's Brightest Hope Award , they delivered Argus (on April 28,1972), their third ...
  • 40 Year Itch: Bad Bad Dreams
    [Purchase] I can't speak for the entire album, but the single "Run To Me" is one of my 5 all time favourite Bee Gees tunes. Th...
  • 40 Year Itch : Back From The Abyss
    [Purchase] "It really wasn't difficult to get people to help. In fact, you might be surprised at a few names I could mention who wo...
  • 40 Year Itch : The Caped Composer
    [Purchase] Released in January of 1973, and written on Yes's tour of the United States, Rick Wakeman's Six Wives of Henry VII is an...
  • 40 Year Itch : Waist Deep in Cash
                                             Keith Richards at Seattle Customs . Photo by  Ethan Russell . When tickets went on sale in Seattle...
  • 40 Year Itch: Like A Leper Messiah
    [Purchase] "I fell for Ziggy too. It was quite easy to become obsessed night and day with the character. I became Ziggy Stardust. Da...
  • 40 Year Itch : The Masterpiece
    [Out of Print] Producer Norman Whitfield followed up The Temptations's  All Directions and its 12 minute #1 single " Papa Was a Ro...
  • 40 Year Itch : Feel The Need
    [Buy The Greatest Hits] If you want proof that the British have better taste than their American counterpoints, consider the Detroit Emerald...
  • 40 Year Itch: Sandy
    [Purchase] "Sandy (was) my favourite singer of all the British girls that ever were " -Robert Plant  The most curious thing about ...
  • Curt Smith of Tears For Fears Picks His Top Ten
    [Purchase] To promote their singles "Pale Shelter" and "Mad World" ( then climbing to #3 on the UK charts) , Tears For F...

Categories

  • 10cc
  • 1972
  • 1972. Aerosmith
  • 1972. Homecoming
  • 1972. Howard Tate
  • 1972. Parole Parole
  • 1972. Rolling Stones
  • 1972. The Faces
  • 1973
  • 1979
  • 1982
  • 1983
  • 1984
  • 40 Year Itch
  • 666
  • Adam Gopnik
  • Adriano Celentano
  • Aerosmith
  • African Music Machine
  • Al Anderson
  • Al Green
  • Aladdin Sane
  • Alan Toussaint
  • Albert King
  • Alex Chilton
  • Alf Moyet
  • Alice Cooper
  • Alison Moyet
  • All Directions
  • All The Young Dudes
  • Allman Brothers
  • Aloha from Hawaii
  • Amazing Grace
  • America
  • America Eats Its Young
  • American City Suite
  • American Gothic
  • Analogy
  • And Then
  • Andy Johns
  • Ann Peebles
  • Aphrodite's Child
  • Approximately Infinite Universe
  • Aretha Franklin
  • Argent
  • Argus
  • Arlo Guthrie
  • Art Garfunkel
  • Arthur Alexander
  • Atem
  • Baby O
  • Badfinger
  • Bananarama
  • Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso
  • Bandstand
  • Barbara Streisand
  • Bare Trees
  • Bataclan
  • BB King
  • BBC
  • Beach Boys
  • Bee Gees
  • Bees Make Honey
  • Bette Midler
  • Betty Everett
  • Bettye Swann
  • Big Country
  • Big Star
  • Bill Withers
  • Billy Preston
  • Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs
  • Binders Full of Women
  • Bing Crosby
  • Black Byrd
  • Black Caesar
  • Black Heat
  • Black Sabbath
  • Blackfoot Sue
  • Blinded By The Light
  • Blockbuster
  • Blondie Chaplin
  • Blue Oyster Cult
  • Blueprint
  • Bob Seger
  • Bobby Charles
  • Bobby Hebb
  • Bobby Ramires
  • Bobby Whitlock
  • Boney M
  • Bonnie Raitt
  • Boogaloo
  • Boz Scaggs
  • Brainstorm
  • Bread
  • Brian Cole
  • Brian Eno
  • Brian Wilson
  • Brinsley Schwarz
  • Brother Brother Brother
  • Brownsville Station
  • Bruce Springsteen
  • Bryan Ferry
  • Buck Owens
  • Burning Love
  • Byrds
  • Byzantium
  • C Moon
  • Ca
  • Caetano Veloso
  • Candi Staton
  • Canned Heat
  • Captain Beefheart
  • Captain Beyond
  • Captain Sensible
  • Caravan
  • Caravanserai
  • Carlos Santana and Buddy Miles
  • Carly Simon
  • Cashman and West
  • Cat Stevens
  • Cheech and Chong
  • Chicago
  • Chicago V
  • Chris Smither
  • Chuck Berry
  • close to the edge
  • Cluster
  • Colin Blunstone
  • Concert 10
  • Continental Drifters
  • Cooley Munson
  • Cornelius Brothers and Sister Rose
  • Cosmic Travelers
  • Creedence Clearwater Revival
  • Crocodile Rock
  • Curtis Mayfield
  • Cymande
  • Dan Hicks And His Hot Licks
  • Dan Penn
  • Dave Edmunds
  • Dave Marsh
  • David Ackles
  • David Bowie
  • David Crosby
  • David Peel
  • Deaf School
  • Deep Purple
  • Delaney and Bonnie
  • Dennis Linde
  • Depeche Mode
  • Detroit Emeralds
  • Diana Ross
  • Discover America
  • Dixie Chicken
  • Dolly Parton
  • Don Dixon
  • Don't Shoot
  • Donald Byrd
  • Donna Fargo
  • Donnie and Joe Emerson
  • Donny Hathaway
  • Donovan
  • Doobie Brothers
  • Doremi Fasol Latido
  • Doug Sahm
  • Dr. John
  • Dream On
  • Dreamin Wild
  • Eddie Kendricks
  • Edgar Winter
  • Ege Baymasi
  • Electric Light Orchestra
  • Elephants Memory
  • ELO2
  • Elton John
  • Elvis Costello
  • Elvis On Tour
  • Elvis Presley
  • Emerson Lake and Palmer
  • Emtidi
  • Ennismore
  • Eric Clapton
  • Ernie Hines
  • Everly Brothers
  • Everybody's In Showbiz
  • Exhaustion
  • Exile On Main St
  • Family
  • Flatlanders
  • Fleetwood Mac
  • Focus
  • Focus III
  • Foghat
  • Food For Thought
  • For The Roses
  • Foxtrot
  • France Gall
  • Franco Battiato
  • Frank Sinatra
  • Frank Zappa
  • Frederick Knight
  • Friendliness
  • Frumpy
  • Full House
  • Funkadelic
  • Gary Glitter
  • Garybaldi
  • Genesis
  • Gentle Giant
  • George Jones
  • George McGovern
  • Gerard Cox
  • Gerry Rafferty
  • Gilbert O'Sullivan
  • Gilberto Gil
  • Give It Up
  • Glen Campbell
  • Godspell
  • Golden Earring
  • GP
  • Graham Nash
  • Gram Parsons
  • Grammy Awards
  • Grateful Dead
  • Great Lost Kinks Album
  • Greetings From Asbury Park
  • Guess Who
  • Gypsy Cowboy
  • Haircut 100
  • Hall and Oates
  • Harry Nilsson
  • Hawaii
  • Hawkwind
  • Haysi Fantayzee
  • Heaven Help The Child
  • Hi Hi Hi
  • High Low and In Between
  • Holland
  • Hot August Nights
  • Hotlegs
  • Humble Pie
  • Hurricane Smith
  • Ian Anderson
  • Icarus
  • Iggy and the Stooges
  • In The Right Place
  • Insipid
  • IRS Records
  • Isley Brothers
  • J Geils Band
  • Jackson 5
  • James Brown
  • James Gang
  • James Taylor
  • Jean-Claude Vannier
  • Jefferson Airplane
  • Jerry Jeff Walker
  • Jerry Lee Lewis
  • Jerry Lewis Telethon
  • Jerry Rubin
  • Jethro Tull
  • Jimmy Cliff
  • JJ Cale
  • Joan Baez
  • Joe Cocker
  • Joe Egan
  • Joe Simon
  • Joe Walsh
  • John Cale
  • John Denver
  • John Entwhistle
  • John Fahey
  • John Lennon
  • John Martyn
  • John Mayall
  • Johnny Cash
  • Johnny Nash
  • Joni Mitchell
  • Joy of Cooking
  • Judge Dread
  • Kenny Rogers
  • Kent Hartman
  • Ketty Lester
  • King Harvest
  • Kiss
  • Kraftwerk
  • Kris Kristofferson
  • LaBelle
  • Lafayette Afro Rock Band
  • Last of the Red Hot Burritos
  • Laura Lee
  • Le Orme
  • Lee Oskar
  • Leon Russell
  • Leonard Cohen
  • Les Harvey
  • Lester Bangs
  • Let's Active
  • Lieutenant Pigeon
  • Life Love and Faith
  • Lindisfarne
  • Little Feat
  • Little Jimmy Osmond
  • Little Richard
  • Living In The Past
  • London Rock N Roll Show
  • Long Hiared Lover from Liverpool
  • Lonnie Donnegan
  • Lou Reed
  • Lyn Collins
  • Lynsey DePaul
  • Macondo
  • Maggie Bell
  • Magma
  • Manassas
  • Manfred Mann's Earth Band
  • Marc Bolan
  • Mark Almond
  • Marshall Tucker Band
  • Marti Jones
  • Marvel Comics
  • Marvin Gaye
  • Masterpiece
  • Matching Mole
  • Matthew Stafford
  • Maytals
  • MC5
  • Mekanik Destrictiw Kommandoh
  • Melanie
  • Mellow Candle
  • Merit Hemmingson
  • Merle Haggard
  • Merry Clayton
  • Mickey Newbury
  • Midnight Special
  • Mike Quatro
  • Miles Davis
  • Mimi Farina
  • Mina. Alberto Lupo
  • Mitch Easter
  • Modern Romance
  • Mom's Apple Pie
  • Moody Blues
  • Mothers of Invention
  • Mott the Hoople
  • Mouldy Old Dough
  • Mouth and MacNeil
  • MTV
  • Nazareth
  • Neil Diamond
  • Neil Sedaka
  • Neil Young
  • Nervous On The Road
  • Neu
  • New Orleans
  • New Riders of the Purple Sage
  • New Yorker
  • Nona Hendryx
  • Norman Whitfield
  • Novos Baianos
  • NRBQ
  • Octopus
  • Ohio Players
  • Osibisa
  • Otis Clay
  • Paris Concert
  • Patti LaBelle
  • Patti Smith
  • Paul McCartney
  • Paul Simon
  • People Hold On
  • Pete Townshend
  • Peter Frampton
  • Peter Gabriel
  • Peter Murphy
  • Peter Zaremba
  • PFM
  • Plainsong
  • Pleasure
  • Poconos Concert
  • Popol Vuh
  • Procol Harum
  • Psychedelic Furs
  • Quella Vecchia Locanda
  • Rainbow Concert
  • Randy Newman
  • Raspberries
  • Ravi Shankar
  • Raw Power
  • Ray Charles
  • Really
  • Record Mirror Readers Poll
  • Retires
  • Richard Thompson
  • Rick Wakeman
  • Ricky Fataar
  • Ringo Starr
  • Rita Coolidge
  • Robert Wyatt
  • Roberta Flack
  • Rod Stewart
  • Rolling Stones
  • Rory Gallagher
  • Rory Storm
  • Round 2
  • Roxy Music
  • Royal Scots Dragoon Guards
  • Ry Cooder
  • Salem 66
  • Sammy Davis Jr
  • San Antone
  • Sandy Denny
  • Santana
  • Scolopendra
  • Scott Walker
  • Screaming Lord Sutch
  • Serge Gainsbourg
  • Shocking Blue
  • Simon and Garfunkel
  • Sing Sing Prison
  • Six Degrees of Separation
  • Slade
  • slayed?
  • Smash Hits
  • Smokey Robinson
  • Smokin' O.P's
  • Solid Air
  • Son of Schmilsson
  • Soul Train
  • Spirit
  • Spotlight Kid
  • Spring
  • Squeeze
  • Stackridge
  • Staple Singers
  • Stealers Wheel
  • Steely Dan
  • Stephen Stills
  • Steve Marriott
  • Steve Miller Band
  • Steve Young
  • Stevie Wonder
  • Stone the Crows
  • Stories We Could Tell
  • Styx
  • Such a Night
  • Superfly
  • T. Rex
  • T.Rex. Buick Mackane
  • Talking Book
  • Tammy Wynette
  • Tangerine Dream
  • Tears For Fears
  • Temptations
  • Terry Callier
  • The Association
  • The Band
  • The Bangles
  • The Carpenters
  • The Chi-Lites
  • The Cutting Edge
  • The dB's
  • The Doors
  • The Dramatics Whatcha See
  • The Eagles
  • The Edgar Winter Group
  • The Faces
  • The Flying Burrito Bros
  • The Harder They Come
  • The JB's
  • The Jean Genie
  • The Kinks
  • The Late Great
  • The Merseybeats
  • The Meters
  • The Miracles
  • The O'Jays
  • The Osmonds
  • The Persuasions
  • The Rolling Stones
  • The Shocking Blue
  • The Six Wives of Henry VIII
  • The Slider
  • The Stylistics
  • The Sweet
  • The Temptations
  • The Who
  • The World is a Ghetto
  • The Wrecking Crew
  • There It Is
  • Thick As A Brick
  • Tim Buckley
  • Time
  • Tina Turner
  • To Whom It May Concern
  • Tom T Hall
  • Tommy Keene
  • Tony Joe White
  • Tony Peluso
  • Townes Van Zandt
  • Traffic
  • Transa
  • Transformer
  • Trevor Horn
  • Trilogy
  • Trouble Man
  • Truck
  • Twenty Sixty Six
  • Tyranny and Mutation
  • Uriah Heep
  • Valentine's Day
  • Van Dyke Parks
  • Van Morrison
  • Vangelis
  • Velvet Underground
  • Vol 4
  • Waka/Jawaka
  • War
  • Waterloo Lily
  • Wayne Newton
  • Wembley Stadium
  • West Bruce and Laing
  • White Trash
  • Whole Oats
  • Willis Alan Ramsey
  • Wings
  • Wings Over Europe
  • Wishbone Ash
  • Woman Is The Nigger of The World
  • WTUL
  • Yaz
  • Yazoo
  • Yes
  • Yoko Ono
  • Ziggy Stardust
  • ZZ Top

Blog Archive

  • ▼  2013 (46)
    • ▼  February (23)
      • 40 Year Itch : Refried Confusion
      • 40 Year Itch: Kobaia Vs. Planet Earth
      • 40 Year Itch: Leonard Cohen Retires ...Kind Of
      • 40 Year Itch : The Worst Album of 1973?
      • 40 Year Itch : Let's Sip A Cup Of Kindness
      • 40 Year Itch : The Masterpiece
      • 40 Year Itch : Walk On Hot Coals
      • 40 Year Itch : With a Pint To Get It Down
      • 40 Year Itch : Black Byrd
      • 40 Year Itch : A Supernatural Delight
      • 40 Year Itch : Eloquent Profanity
      • 40 Year Itch: Before The Splatter of Marmalade
      • 40 Year Itch: Bowie's St Valentine's Day Massacre
      • 40 Year Itch : Just A Sexual Glider
      • 40 Year Itch : Living On Solid Air
      • 40 Year Itch : Hornswoop Me Bungo Pony
      • 40 Year Itch: Crocodile Rock Hits #1
      • Alison Moyet's All Time Top 10
      • 40 Year Itch: World's Most Forgotten Boy
      • My Top Ten Tunes by Andy O of Blue Zoo
      • 40 Year Itch : Paid The Cost To Be The Boss
      • 40 Year Itch: When Fridays Rocked
      • 40 Year Itch: ELO on TOTP
    • ►  January (23)
  • ►  2012 (254)
    • ►  December (18)
    • ►  November (28)
    • ►  October (29)
    • ►  September (28)
    • ►  August (12)
    • ►  July (32)
    • ►  June (26)
    • ►  May (30)
    • ►  April (28)
    • ►  March (23)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

Unknown
View my complete profile