John Martyn - Backstage Interview - MOJO Honours List 2008

[TheMrgaztop]

He was a handful when drunk! And would fight anyone, for any reason you care to name. Often, he would pick on the biggest bloke first. He could have a row! and knew how to fightm even when plastered.

[lcboo9]

He has problems with accents... when he is in scotland he has a broad scottish accent when he is in london. He is a londoner. lol I love the guy,

[echo680]

@dav2777 FWIW , just picking up on you saying that you "bet he would have [admitted] he was a monster after a skinful" -you're exactly right. A friend interviewed him in Aberdeen in late 80's and he quoted him as essentially saying exactly that about himself. For myself, I saw enough gigs to get some idea at least of the possible extremes. Worst was Perth on last tour (rambling, incoherent)-best Edinburgh (early 90's)-utterly stunning, and ,interestingly, apparently sober (or near sober)

[thorplands9]

What happened to the Scottish accent? 

[Broblem12]

Great to see this! thank you and I love Mojo magazine.

[thistlemunch]

Why is his accent Scottish when he's being interviewed by a Scotsman and English when he's being interviewed by an Englishman?

[angefox1]

Gotta love those songs though...

[angefox1]

The man was a vicious thug. I knew him personally and saw him banned from a lot of pubs for drunken and violent behaviour. Lead with his fists. Smashed my beautiful guitar.

[packoftwenty]

@angefox1 I can well believe it. And here we see him in the ultimate stage of his selfishness - mumbling so badly that nobody can understand what he is saying - because he doesn't CARE if you can understand him or not. Grossly overweight, giving dreadful 'performances' of his already crap 'songs', and the 'fans' line up because they think it makes them 'cool' and 'trendy'.

Britney Spears sold millions of records too, does that make her good as well?

[DamianNixon]

...hahaha. At :51 secs I was sure he was going to sing. What a character!

[DamianNixon]

@DamianNixon ....Hurt in your heart or....somethin like it.

[MrBriguy82]

wow such a humble man

[echo680]

@MrBriguy82 pls don't get me wrong - he was and still is my favourite guitar player, but well,while there may well have been a humble side to him, having seen several gigs of his, humble is not at all a word I would have chosen to describe him

[packoftwenty]

@echo680 How dare you! Don't you know that nobody is allowed to tell the truth about the 'god' that was John Martyn? Just because he was a miserable, self-obsessed tosser - i.e. he was an ALCOHOLIC, who drank so much that he had to have his f-ing leg amputated, and still couldn't face reality after that happened, doesn't mean he wasn't just 'wonderful'.

Reading the pathetic hero worship by all the tossers on Youtube is sick making. Didn't you watch the BBC documentary on this sad character?

[echo680]

@packoftwenty so, lets see, you start off by kind of agreeing with the point I made , then you slag me off for apparently not seeing his imperfections...which was kinda the point I was making. Look, if you're going to be a fucking TROLL, you simply need to do better than this adolescent attempt.

[jpstirling]

@packoftwenty You my good man are a an imbecile...And after visiting your youtube channel i can see that i am not the only person that thinks so......John Martyn like all legends had his demons. Deal with this simple fact.

[worddeep3]

20 years too late

[BritFez]

What a nice bloke!

[OneBigRetard]

He is obvioulsy refferring to John Mclaughlin. Quite possibly the greatest living or all time guitarist.... Pause for vitrolic contrary suggestions...

Martyn was right.  Johnny Mac is obviously special, ridiculous, technically on another planet and beautiful.

Not bad for a Yorkshireman.

[bellowheadfan]

@OneBigRetard I'm with you, Martyn can make me cry in a second but Mclaughlin is incredibly good. Either him or Gordon Giltrap for the best.

[OneBigRetard]

@bellowheadfan

Thanks.

I am not sure Gordon would place himself with Johnny,

/watch?v=ZCupYfzJkpA (get in about 1:50)

/watch?v=7h2uL8lk2lM

[xspacecadetx]

he was defintiley a rarity, i'm only gutted that i didn't discover him sooner. He just seems like the most amazing person and the other day i was stoned, and watched you can discover from 1975, and then on and on until i saw him doing solid air in 2007, and it was gutting to watch.

[TheLeviathan1312]

he wins the award for greatest human.

[doublepick]

It's such a pity he went from being a talented rather lovely guy to being an utter shit. I came across him in a restaurant once and couldn't believe this bully could have written such sensitve love songs.

[edenic]

@doublepick have heard the same too..there are some who loath him and his behaviour., Drunk, alcoholic, wife abuser.. but that's the talk . Personally I love his music..booze does strange things to the head.

[quickshooter100]

he spent alot of time in glasgow so picked up yhe twang of it! and maybe it comes out more when hes in scotland!

[BoabBarca]

He came from Glasgow, lived in Ayrshire. Also spent a lot of time in London & lived in Ireland latterly. He seemed to change his accent depending on the situation & also for effect. Frank Zappa did the same if you listen, although there was no Glaswegian in there.

RIP John Martyn.

[guitarworld3]

@BoabBarca Yes, he was the UK's very own FZ!! Whatever people might say about him, he was an English and extremely talented Guitarist/Songwriter/Arranger. I listen to your music, everyday man. Keep your bassplayer in check up in heaven, and make sure he keeps time for you!!

[TheSoulboy90]

@guitarworld3

john martyn english? wtf?

[guitarworld3]

@TheSoulboy90 I stand corrected, he was born a scot in Glasgow wasn't he? However, he did live in the UK, didn't he? Isn't Donovan a scot aswell?

[TheSoulboy90]

@guitarworld3

He was Glasgow's own alright, and always described himself that way. But he grew up in Surrey, before returning home, so he had two accents.

Click on "John Martyn - Hurt In Your Heart (2007)" to hear him talking to Phil Cunningham in his REAL accent! No mistaking it!

Donovan is Scots too.

[DoodlesMusic]

@TheSoulboy90

JM was born in Surrey.

[TheSoulboy90]

@DoodlesMusic

Actually, John Martyn's real name was "Iain David McGeachy" & "John's parents separated and his early childhood was spent in Glasgow, John recalls, "you went out and kicked a few heads or you where looked on as a pansy." John learnt to play the guitar at fifteen and on leaving school at seventeen he started playing in some of the local folk clubs under the wing of Hamish Imlach"

Everything he was, he owed to his upbringing in Glasgow, which he always acknowledged!

[DoodlesMusic]

@TheSoulboy90 Yep I read that on wiki too. But he was born in Surrey.

At the end of the day, though, it doesn't really matter where he was born, does it?

[comeonfuckingcunt]

But of pure nonsense and rock n roll I love the pistols! Nice one...

[thecrimsonfloyd]

He has the best accent! You can't understand him,But you love to hear him talk!

[nigusberries]

wat a lege

johnny mac??? anyone got any idea who he meant?

[TheOuttakeman]

I think he means John McClaughlin, guitar player with Mahavishnu Orchestra, Miles Davis, Jack Bruce etc

[echo680]

@TheOuttakeman exactly - has to be

[samnninty]

maybe johnny marr ?

i'm not sure

[echo680]

@nigusberries yep, (like"theouttakeman" said) it surely has to be John McClaughlin that he's talking about ?

[ronnieknotts]

yeah, he really sounds English here...

What planet are you from.

Who the fuck sounds English these days; What does English sound like?

Wey man am fookin inglish but a divant soond leik the kween ya na!

Lorn th langwidge pet!

light hearted william

[nealohara]

RIP John. You will forever be missed!

[gmatt112]

Im actually here to see me friends xD classic. Missed

[freshinit]

missed whatch

[malarbusto]

Yeah. A one off.

[Bobbonkers]

John martyn has already been remembered longer than all us when we die and he's only dead a few months. so who gives a fuck what he did when he was off his head. if only you could give that much before you go eh.

[worddeep3]

it was actually danny who nailed john under the carpet

[eArtrash]

John Martyn = Legend!

[stoker10]

i love the nutters

ahahha

great john great artist we miss u

rip

[floozysuzie20]

I'm really confused with his accent. I know he was born in England, but in the video with him and Phil Cunningham he speaks broad Glasweigan.

[blatspanner]

'pparently he see-sawed between home counties and glaswegian,and flawlessly. it is quite peculiar.

[Buttercup2084]

he was from Scotland

[teamcrumb]

ok, but then why is he speaking without an accent here? not trying to be awkward, I was looking through the comments cos i didn't understand why he sounds English in this clip and Scottish in the Hurt in Your Heart

[malarbusto]

Too much talent to speak with just one accent. Saw him in Liverpool, circa 79, English, London. Notts circa 83, English, received pronunciation; Madrid 96, Scottish. It's not a pretense, it's the mood he was in.

[freshinit]

you should have heard his Jamacan! after a couple of spiffs

X

[floozysuzie20]

Haha yeh i saw the documentary "Johnny Too Bad" where that accent was in full flow!

[freshinit]

crazy clever man...with a bundal of talent that overflows til this day!

Peace flooz

X

[echo680]

@freshinit nice comment :)

[lhaverson]

RIP john

[worddeep3]

i cant belive you would say such an awful thing to a man who has released more albums in his life than you have hot dinners he is a genious

[AK2927]

What's up, Worddeep? John Martyn never made any secret of his love for a drink, to the exasperation of many a gig-goer. He created some of the most beautiful music ever made - it's frustrating to think what he might have done had he been sober a bit more. Still, I'm sure he died with no regrets, and good luck to him.

[worddeep3]

yes a i know but i hate seeing such diss respect

[missremorse]

thank you Mr Martyn, you are one of the greats.

[rcleere]

Died in Ireland 29th January 2009 R.I.P

[sparizzla]

cynical but funny

[mcan4287]

I mean, Martyn. Still great.

[mcan4287]

The great Mr. Martin.

[PeterHope2]

So, where does Ozzy come into that???

[cccc06824]

I would like to see him and Ozzy have a talk show together. John Martyn = Incredible Artist!!!!!

[gnomebottom]

Nice guy :)