Eddie Martin is one of the UK's premier bluesmen,whether with his outstanding electric band,listen to 'Contrary Mary' his most recent band release for proof of that raved about by critics and blues fans alike.But now he has for this release produced his acoustic side in a release that oozes quality throughout.Eddie plays solo quite often with his one man band,and here we get a studio version of his live shows in that format.He plays guitars,harmonica ans stomp drums.As one of Europe's finest slide guitarists there's ample proof here with an acoustic version of his ussually electric song,'Let It Slide', and it sounds as great as ever even adding more depth as a solo performance.Also is one of my personal favourites of his songs 'Flowers In The Desert' never released as a track before but is a superb EM song that will be enjoyed by all who get this album. Theres a real diversity and quality throughout this absolutely top release that without doubt will have critics and fans raving about when the annual blues awards are voted one.ut more than just blues more and more he is emerging as a songwriter of varying and top class.This has twelve of his own songs,all worthy ,all superbly played and Eddie has such a great blues edged voice that pulls the best out of all the songs he writes and then plays.
20109 has seen two truly outstanding acoustic based blues releases,that stand out above all of the others,one is Eric Bibb's 'Bookers Guitar' and this one by Eddie Martin. This fabulous release deserves to be heard and enjoyed time and time again.Modern blues,modern music that also sounds timeless by one of the true developers of modern blues music, producing a CD that will bring joy every time it's played for years to come.
One more thing is the excellent cover art.Eddie sat with his guitar,his cap on,his bass drum in front of him, and his dog sat by him, the coveris classic in style but the quality in the music is as fresh as blues gets by an absolute craftsman of his chosen field of music. A release no blues or acoustic fan should be without,buy with absolute confidence, this is classic blues by a modern mucian at the very peak of his form.