I’m getting very excited about John Martyn’s visit to Derry on Thursday 23 November. Despite being a fan of the guy for while now, I have still never had the opportunity of seeing him live. But he’s been to Belfast, Derry, Culdaff and Letterkenny on a few occasions I hear you say. Yes this I know, but for some reason the shows have always fallen at a bad time for me when circumstances, cash or both prohibited me from being there. This time I have no excuse, and I’ll be in the downstairs bar hours in advance!
The guy has been through the mill over the past few years but it hasn’t affected his consistency. Even becoming an amputee after crashing into a cow didn’t stop him recording. He eventually began to perform live a few months after the operation to remove the lower part of his leg. He has remained busy ever since. It’s going to be a big night and I expect Sandinos to be crammed.
Here’s a track from the late ’70s by the man himself. I was going to put up something shorter and better known, say the gorgeous ‘May You Never’. But just say for instance you may be reading this and it’s after midnight, you’ve had a few glasses of wine or a few…oh I don’t know (!), well this is the track for you. It’s called ‘Small Hours’.
I remember one summer night; we were coming back from a gig in Donegal Town. It was one of those summer nights where the sky doesn’t really get dark. We were driving through the valley of Barnesmore Gap and decided to put this track on. It was as if it was written for that place and that time. Perfect!
Now don’t say I’ve never done my bit for Donegal tourism!
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