The Man With Two First Names

His name is Martyn Joseph. He is a Welsh singer-songwriter. He plays guitar. He also sings. He is good. He was in Belfast. I was there. It was a good concert. I talked to him after the concert. He is a very friendly man.

This would be my review if Martyn played in Belfast in 1988. Oh, it wouldn’t! I spoke no English and didn’t know Belfast existed when I was ten years old… Luckily enough, the concert took place in 2008, I speak a bit English and I live in Belfast…

A singer/songwriter will never be popular globally. One of the reasons for this is the fact that it is actually quite difficult to fully understand the lyrics since it is usually deeply rooted in the culture author grew up or lives in. Another reason is, one needs a bit of intellect to understand the lyrics, which, obviously, is not a mainstream thing (it’s not like ‘Oops! … I did it again’ (Britney Spears) or ‘I’m a sexy mama who knows just how to get what I wanna’ (Pussycat Dolls))…

Every singer/songwriter stands on three pillars: lyrics, musicianship (if this is not a word it is now…) and entertainment. Vast majority of them limp on one or other side. It is different in case of Martyn Joseph. Excellent lyricist, accomplished guitarist and fantastic entertainer meet in this tall being. Absolute pleasure and honour to experience him live (also thanks to Real Music Club). Highly Recommended!

(It seems Martyn is left-handed here. No, he isn’t. And no, there is no image manipulation involved. I just didn’t want to disturb walking around The Errigle Inn while I wanted to get a picture of him singing to the light and there was a speaker in my way so I used a reflection in a mirror on a wall. And, as we know, mirrors change things…)