"Ain't No Saint" is a John Martyn box packed with alternate takes and live versions of songs throughout his catalog, and I was tempted to cough up the cash and order it, but instead I ordered the remastered (again!) "Solid Air" double-disc set, "The Tumbler" (his second album -- produced by Al Stewart!), and a DVD of interviews and live broadcasts. We'll see how those sort out when they arrive, but it did give me an opportunity to relisten to John's catalog.
If you only buy one John Martyn CD, you could get by rather nicely with "Sweet Little Mysteries: The Island Anthology" (and yes, technically it's 2 CDs.) The bulk of John's career was spent on Island Records, until his later years when he bounced around a lot. The ultimate John Martyn anthology would probably be a licensing nightmare, but the Island collection manages to snag the good bits. As always in anthologies, there are treasures tucked away on the original releases that didn't make it to the Island set, but it is programmed well, something you can't always say about the original albums.
"Bless the Weather" may not be my favorite John album, but it's probably the one I listen to the most, just because it's a good collection and there aren't any stinkers to jar the flow. It also is the album that introduces John's work with the echoplex, which allowed him to "duet" with himself on guitar, something he explored in more depth in his concerts. "Weather" was a transitional album that showed him just beginning to break with the 'folk' tradition, and the follow-up "Solid Air" firmed up that direction. "Solid Air" is also considered John's ultimate achievement for many people, but I always have to hop up and skip "I'd Rather Be the Devil" because my wife hates it! "Inside Out" was next, and this one is where John's slurred vocal effects (supposedly based on John attempting to sound like a sax) are pushed to the extreme. This and "Sunday's Child" also pump up the harder edged guitar work on a few tracks. "Live at Leeds" holds up pretty well, and it offers some of John's ummm... mercurial? stage banter.
"One World" is more slickly produced, John's fronting a real band now, and the acoustic early work is all but a distant memory. Best part for me is the longer instrumental version of "Small Hours" (10:19!) on the second disc of the Deluxe Edition.
After this, John went through some personal turmoil, and though his records were even more slickly produced, old fans fell by the wayside and new ones were slow to respond. "Grace and Danger" was produced by Phil Collins, and John's described it as "me and Phil working through the breakup of our marriages". Not easy listening even with Phil's studio sheen. Phil was back at the board for "Glorious Fool", which is patchy but the good songs are...good.
John and I parted ways around this time; since I worked at record stores, I heard some of his albums but nothing I really needed in my collection. Got back on board with 1999's "Glasgow Walker" (albeit patchy again), and 2004's "On the Cobbles" (a better collection to my ears). The posthumous "Heaven and Earth" (thanks, Bowling Joe!) doesn't reverse the trend, but you gotta treasure his last songs.
It's a tie for my wife and I for whose work we've enjoyed the most over the years, John Martyn or Van Morrison (she'd go more with the Van vote, while I'd lean towards John). There may be some albums by other artists that hold a higher spot in our hearts, but thinking in terms of a career retrospective, I'd stick with these 2 guys. Sad that John's rough and rowdy ways brought him all sorts of grief (even in many of the reminiscences by fellow travellers who knew and loved him dearly, phrases like "drunken craziness" and "boozed-up fistfights" recur far too often.) Like many artists whose personal demons made them less-than-easy to live with, John's music stands apart from his personal mistakes, and it's a wonderful and heartwarming achievement.
No comments:
Post a Comment