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"A well-written, sympathetic biography of a complicated but important musical figure."—Booklist STARRED
Small Hours is an intimate, unflinching biography of one of the great maverick artists.
Though Martyn never had a hit single, his extraordinary voice, innovative guitar playing and profoundly soulful songs secured his status as a much admired pioneer.
Covered by Eric Clapton, revered by Lee Scratch Perry, and produced by Phil Collins, Martyn influenced several generations of musicians. But beneath the songs lay a complicated and volatile personality. He lived his life the same way he made music: improvising as he went; scattering brilliance, beauty, rage, and destruction in his wake.Did any musician in the Seventies fly so free as John Martyn did on Bless The Weather, Solid Air, Inside Out, and One World? Did any fall so far?
Drawing on almost 100 new interviews, Small Hours is a raw and utterly gripping account of sixty years of daredevil creativity, soaring highs, and sometimes unconscionable lows.
STARRED Review, Booklist, "John Martyn ... was a key figure on the 1960s–’70s British folk scene, known for his distinctive guitar style and idiosyncratic sound....A well-written, sympathetic biography of a complicated but important musical figure."
Selected as a Book of the Year by The Times, Financial Times, Evening Standard and The Telegraph.
“It’s [the] adherence to home-truths... which gives Small Hours its power.” 4**** Mojo
“This painstaking, eloquent biography... balances the fan’s assiduousness with a critic’s sieving action.” Observer
"Excellent and necessary" Guardian
"Unflinchingly critical of Martyn’s failings and his substance-fuelled excesses (and) equally glowing in its praise of his finest achievements as a genre-blurring performer. Insightful and beautifully written." Shindig!
"Thomson’s subtle illumination of the relationship between Martyn and his work is one of the many strengths of a balanced and insightful biography." The Herald
"Landmark book. Graeme Thomson sees merit in the music but does not ignore the appalling decline. 8/10" Classic Rock