One World

I don’t really like the overall sound of this album and John Martyn’s voice is really not a great voice, I can’t give it a 1 though because dealer is an okay opener and couldn’t love you more is actually pretty good. 2/5

Dancing OK song

It's extremely chill post rock project. The voice kind of similar to Joe Cocker, very rough.

5/10. I'd never heard of this album before, and I don't see myself telling anyone about it in the future.

I found this to be less interesting than Solid Air but I was compelled to listen to it twice. Nice little Steve Winwood appearance too. 7/10

Oh my god, I’m so bored! Wasn’t one album from this guy enough? The monotony! The monotony!

Waiting-in-a-pastel-painted-dentist's-office-in-the-80s-ass album

I have no knowledge of this artist or record, but in looking at the cover I am expecting some songs about fantasy fishing. I hope it delivers. *Starts Record* Well, it's not van art metal or prog fishing songs, but it's surprisingly good! I prefer the uptempo, funkier numbers over the slower, jazzier jams but overall it's a decent listen.

Out of the gate this feels like Don Henley meets Billy Gibbons. Kind of funky / warbly instrumental with some gravely vocals laden with effects. Smiling Stranger has a pretty cool vibe about it. Guitar echo effects reminiscent of Watermelon Man (Herbie Hancock) with some skittering drums and organ thrown about. I dig it. There really are not enough songs about muff these days. Skwanky guitar tone that gives it a loose / funky vibe. Small Hours is a spacious ambient jam. Kind of reminds me of Fennesz a bit. I feel like I've heard it before, but I can't imagine where. In any case, I really enjoy the song; super peaceful outro. I'm a soft 4 / 5 on this one. Definitely not an album I would go out of my way for, but there are some really high points (Small Hours, Smiling Stranger, Big Muff) and a lot of diversity to the sound for its relatively short playtime.

This album is an interesting one. A lot of variation between songs that all fit nicely together. I was a bit off put by John Martyn's voice, and overall think it detracts from the instrumentation in each song. The album really picked up with Big Muff, Couldn't Love You More, Dancing, and Small Hours. I enjoyed this album to the tune of 3.5 stars, but I think the uniqueness and flow of this entire album brings it squarely into the 4 category.

Really funky Clapton sounds in the first song. Pink Floyd vibes in the second song This singer has a really nice raspy funky voice I like how you can have no idea what type of song is going to come next each song is so unique. Could be funk, rock, jazz, or trippy. They way that Small Hours is the ending just being super peaceful with some nice ambient wave music was the perfect way to cap off the album. This would an excellent drugs album This is exactly what I love about this album of the day thing. I had no idea who John Martyn was going into this but now I feel like I have to learn everything about him. Absolute 5/5

First off, this cover is fuggin sweet. Also this album apparently originated trip-hop so I'm mad excited for that. This guy has a smokers voice that's for sure. I listened to this in the background at work and enjoyed it but nothing crazy special.

Pop experimental. Ni fu ni fa.

Experimental ambient de pop - folk -rock- blues - rock. Agradable.

Interesting effects and sounds. Even while being experimental, it's very listenable. Not sure if it's on the list, but Solid Air is a superior album.

Very nice. 3/5

Chill background music

Never heard of this dude before ? And I like this genre. Pretty decent stuff for me to have missed it all these years

This guy should have stuck to playing the guitar and left the singing to someone else.

Background listening. That's about it

Interesting I enjoyed it. If I listened to it more it would grow on me even more

Leuke muziek, irritante zangstem. Helaas dus onder de maat. **

Interesting. Music was cool, dude's voice killed me

Not mad about this, but it isn't terrible. Just a few experiments that didn't pan out. However, not sure why it's on the list here, assuming Solid Air and Bless the Weather are on the list. Those would be plenty.

loved it

There were times when this album made me think "Nick Drake might have sounded like this if he hadn't been crippled by depression," but I wasn't into it.

This mega sucked & took the spot of an album that deserves to be here. Dumb.

Not sure why this album is considered to be so great. I found it tedious

Atmospheric/spacey jazz rock

This was strange but not really memorable.

Jangly and dreamy

Dullsville

one world is an album that doesn't sound like it's from 1977. "couldn't love you more" sounded more like some nineties alternative than seventies experimental pop! other than that, some of this album came off as uninteresting. i'm already not the biggest fan of experimental, so unfortunately that's a strike against john martyn he can't fight. i will say that steve winwood's energy is definitely felt here. he popped in nearly every track on this album, and a song like "small hours," a pleasant instrumental, felt like another song from winwood's eighties career.

I won't lie, when I saw the album cover art, the decade, and Steve Winwood's involvement, I was hoping this was going to be a yacht rock album. I was unfortunately mistaken. There were various parts of this album that intrigued me at different points...some of the experimentation, the funk sounds, the vocals, Steve Winwood's musical fingerprints. But none of these ever quite fully came together in order to make me like any of these songs, or this album.

Rough start, and kinda dad rock-y, but very chill & upbeat. The sound of the last track surprised me given when this came out. 4.5. BT - One World - Big Muff - Couldn't Love You More - Sweet Certain Surprise - Dancing - Small Hours

Good

Huh, what? Did I fall asleep?

Smooth porno vibes.

Light and airy old hippy music

Pretty weird album that doesn't pass the vibe test with me. I actually enjoy the arrangements on pretty much all of the songs, but the way the vocal recording was handled detracts from the product as a whole pretty significantly. The jazz and funk feels in the instrumentals are very much welcome, however. Favorite track: Dancing

I dont feel like a lot happened, but it was sort of interesting 2.5/5

Arty and intriguing, but perhaps a little aimless. Strange and groovy and trippy, almost entirely in a good way. Quite a few tunes I’d like in the right mix, with segues and contrasts that flatter, because they hold up well, but the playing excels the vocals by a considerable – and quite noticeable – distance.

Surprising album, never heard of this. You can hear an influence on Nigel Godrich's production style, especially on Beck's "Sea Change"

Interesting stuff. Folksy, funky, poppy, experimental.

Mais um disco folk. Parece que tem uma guitarra bem executada, mas não me chamou a atenção.

Занимательно

Soulful voice with jazz and blues music. Enjoyed this album a lot more than I thought I would

Weird sounds, wouldnt probably listen to any of it again

lovely

Wel oké. Blijft echter weinig in het hoofd hangen

no. just no.

quirky album, would like to listen more.

Have to admit it didn't grab me enough for me to pay much attention to. Doesn't sound bad, though

Small Hours is a phenomenal song and brings the album up a whole star on its whole, but the rest didn’t do anything much for me. Definitely a great album musicality-wise, and Martyn’s guitar effects make this a very sonically-unique album for the time, but many of the songs come out a bit too same-y for me. Small Hours will absolutely be in regular rotation from now on, though!

Nicht so eine Granate wie die Solid Air, „Couldn‘t Love You More“ ist allerdings wie ein hocherfreuliches Wiedersehen mit einem guten, alten Bekannten, dass einem Gänsehaut und Tränchen im Knopfloch beschert, schön! Martyns Songwriting ist etwas ganz besonderes.

zweet zertain zurprise! Favorite Tracks: Certain Surprise, Dancing, Small Hours 4/5

This was a pretty groovy album and John has a pretty interesting voice, dare I say what that weirdo Tom Waits wishes he could be. 6/10.

Hadn't heard it before, but definitely interesting!

Solid Air this ain't. Smooth folk with a hint of funk works better for me that smooth funk with a hint of folk. Never again.

Adult movie elevator music 1.4

legalzinho mas nao muito empolgante

I got John Martyn's album "Solid Air" several hundred albums ago, and I remember not really caring for it (I found it boring). This album is a bit more lively, but only in the yacht-yist of yacht rock ways. I think my whole problem here stems from... these tracks are fine, I guess. They don't leave any impression on me, aside from the fact I'm surprised there's a bossa nova track (though should I be?). I liked the relaxing sound collage/guitar of the final track "Small Hours", but... this album just didn't leave me feeling anything. It'd be fine being background music at a dinner, but this, to me, just sounds like music for people who don't have any opinion on music.

The vibes won me over

Enjoyed more than expected but was ready for it to end. First song really bangs and the voice is distinctive.

One day, I won't be bored by a John Martyn song. Today is not that day.

This one was just okay for me. I can appreciate most of it - he's a talented composer and musician, but I couldn't really get into most of it. Big Muff was the standout track. Worthy of the list, but not for me.

A good album that I enjoyed as background music. Nothing that really stood out to me. 2/5

cool album, thought it might have lost its touch over the years but still very cool material

Didn’t listen.

I'm not sure what I just listened to but it wasn't the worst thing on this list by far. I even enjoyed bits of it. I won't listen to it again but it wasn't like... terrible.

New one for me.. Nothing great but a enjoyable listen.

Smiling Stranger has a groovy creep to it I liked, the strings and sax had a definite 70’s vibe and it worked. I especially liked Dancing, but Martyn creates some interesting atmosphere in most of the tracks. As well, I liked quite a lot of the record although some of it is forgettable. But I’m surprised I was completely ignorant of this artist. Enjoyable.

Didn't mind it. Was really enjoying it till the last track which wandered aimlessly for 8 minutes. Between a 3 and a 4.

First few songs were very strong. I could see them on a playlist of other easy listening songs and fitting in quite nicely. Then it got a little weird in the middle and end. Not terrible, but I thought it started out stronger than it finished.

It was fine - I much prefer Solid Air. The porny guitar effects were a bit distracting

I thought the vocals were odd but the instrumentation was pretty groovy.

I'd like to go on record being a giant fan of Big Muff. Well, maybe not 'giant' but it was one of the better songs. Based on the first track I thought this was relatively new, not from 1977. After it plays it shows its age and the rest of the album kinda drifts off into the sounds of trippy yesterworld. Ray LaMontagne must love this guy, as he's tried hard to emulate John Martyn's voice. Didn't love this the first listen, but a couple of tracks have grown on me, those being Dealer and Big Muff.

A lot of words have Latin roots, which can aid in understanding their meaning. For instance, 'bene' means good. Y'know, like benefactor, benign, beneficial, etc.? John Martyn's "One World" is not bene-anything. And 'muff' doesn't seem to be a Latin root. Muffin, muffaletta, muffed... these words start the same but have very different meanings. Even 'muff' itself has multiple different meanings. So which one is "Big Muff" about!? Is it about a hand warmer? A fumble? Or something else? Perhaps this song is a companion piece to Primus' "Wynona's Big Brown Beaver?" As with the first John Martyn album we reviewed, this one started out pretty terrible. And even the legendarily large muff couldn't fully reverse that. Martyn seems to have no style of his own, dabbling here and there in different genres and styles, with ever-changing vocals. His career may have gone all over the place, but I hope it doesn't go onto the list for a third time.

This one is hard to nail down, is it blues? jazz? pop? Sometimes his voice really worked for me (Couldn't Love You More) and sometimes it really didn't. Overall, I am more intrigued than turned off.

Did this guy invent mumble pop?

Terrible sounding voice…a poor Sting impression

John Martyn, yet another UK artist I've never heard of. But this time, it blew me away! What a great, beautiful album. Dense but peaceful all at once. I've heard some complaints regarding his voice, but I kind of like it. It's reminiscent of someone like Nick Drake. This would be a nice relaxing Sunday listen.

Sounds like an not very interesting fusion album. I'd rather listen to something like Weather Report or Return to Forever when i'm in the mood for this kind of music. Nothing here was particularly enticing.

Another album of John Martyn in this list and I thought I knew what I was going to get based on the other one, but nothing could be further from the truth. With a lot more experiment, range, more funk and more introverted songs on just one album, this is an incredible range of songs. I enjoyed this from start to finish.

More John Martyn! Bonus! Effortlessly cool. Not as great as Solid Air though. How I miss those late nights with wine and friends.

I really enjoyed this album. I wished I'd heard of him before yesterday. This is the type of stuff I used to listen to regularly as a teen. I see he's worked with many of my favorites. My younger self would have liked the experimental vibes of this album. I'm old and cranky now so it's less interesting but still enjoyable. The main reason this isn't a 5 star is because there's no emotional connection and too dated to establish one. Great production for the time and quailty musicians. Glad to meet you John Martyn. I'll stick your card in my rolodex.

A medium bodied selection. I detected notes of Michael McDonald, Nick Drake and a hint of Eric Clapton with a mellow finish. Pairs nicely with running errands on a grey day.

Well, my second listen wasn't as enthralling as the first when it comes to John Martyn. I was, more than once, annoyed at the vocal delivery (and placement in the mix). Has something radical changed with him or did I just miss this the first time around? His voice was graveled and not very dynamic and the music was like a jam band without the jam. It wandered and never delivered. So, there were moments of enjoyment, but overall, not an album I'm planning on coming back to.

Small Hours was fantastic. The rest was a'ight.

Don't care for the vocals at all but the instrumentation is excellent.

Meh.

It ain't anything spectacular, but it's pleasant

John Martyn's previous folk album Solid Air grew on me over time, and I was pleasantly surprised by this one as well. His voice is calming, and I can see how the ambient instrumentals may have influenced 90s downtempo. It's pretty captivating (especially on the echoey guitar), embracing a bit of funk and jazz (including samba). Embodies the spirit of his good friend Nick Drake in songs like "Couldn't Love You More." Doesn't impress me much, and there aren't any songs I'd specifically return to, but I had a good time with this one.

give it Woy until the end of the season.

Stick your head in the oven and crank it up to 300! We have finally hit the jackpot with this blockbuster of a record which makes me wetter than my auntie's honking, steaming pussy. The hills are alive with the sound of me wanking myself into an incestuous coma and you're all welcome to join me for the ride.

Arsed

Funky and weird, probably very unique at the time; it still feels unique now. It’s hard to listen to these songs and not be distracted by John Martyn’s vocals. He oscillates between a deathbed Huey Lewis and Michael McDonald on LSD. On the list to listen again - “Dealer”.

4.0

Somehow I had never heard of Mr. Martyn before. I'll definitely listen to more of his music in the future.

A nice mood and of some interest but lacks grit and heft for sustained interest.

This is pretty basic soft rock music from the 70s. It sounds like this guy has some problems enunciating and his singing is like being dragged across sandpaper. The instrumentals are decent and relaxing but it doesn’t help restore the rough sound of the singing. I enjoyed one song on this album more than the others but overall it wasn’t great. 5.5/10

Liked it, not too spectacular

Best Song: Small Hours. A beautiful and gentle song that uses sparsity and quiet to great effect. Worst Song: Big Muff. Awful title, longer runtime without doing much with it. Overall: A nice, quiet little album. The vocals are pleasantly raspy, a bit like Ray Lamontagne. Nothing particularly exciting, but also probably no designed to excite.

ну будем честны, не успела понять. что-то многозвучное и стариканское

Some nice jazzy, laid back vibes. Martyn's voice is a little rougher than I cared for, but overall this was an intriguing listen. Fave Songs: Small Hours, Dancing, Certain Surprise, Dealer, Couldn't Love You More

Generally liked this, though I have to say a lot of it felt slack and sloppy. Though it runs counter to some ideas of the artist I think many of these people would have ended up stronger musicians if they'd managed to battle their demons more successfully.

Oof

Dreamy and definitely carries dub influences. The last track didn’t need to be 8 minutes long.

Who knew? John Martyn is actually Artist #1667 on my scrobbles Never heard this album though Hmm, disappointed actually - I was really looking forward to this one.

Interesting album, enjoyed the listen, would probably listen to more from Martyn

bit boring but chill

Not 100% sure if what to make of this. Didn’t like his voice especially. It was very much an experimental late 70s sound. I don’t think I’d listen to it again.

Nice. Ahead of its time sonically speaking, with a few catchy hooks and a lot of interesting moodpieces. Besides, I can't help feeling *One World* fares slightly better than *Solid Air* today. Oddly enough, it's songs from that latter record that have the largest number of streams on Spotify--they are indeed very nice cuts, but as far as whole albums go, *Solid Air* still sounds like a patchy affair to my (limited?) ears. Conversely, *One World* offers something that's both adventurous and cohesive in terms of sound and songwriting. I did a quick search online to see if I could buy this album. It seems it is extremely hard to find today, and this in any format. Bummer. Chances are that I'll be less inclined to revisit it if I don't own a physical copy of it. Still, I'm including it in my list of essential records. This is where this app is pretty useful. It can help you single out albums that deserve to be a little more popular than they already are. Number of albums left to review or just listen to: less than 700, I've temporarily lost count here Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens:  approximately a half so far (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: a quarter Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): the last quarter

Not bad to work to. Fairly relaxing and upbeat. Not something I would necessarily pick again.

looooov

John Martyn was ever one of the most questing of the folkies, and on this album there's nary a hint of music associated with the real ale brigade. True, the spinning, swirling Echoplex guitar and slurred vocals heard on Solid Air are still in place; but if this isn't quite as accomplished as his best album, it's more expansive. Alongside some slightly New Wave touches we have a kind or soul-folk on 'Certain Surprise' and, perhaps most gorgeous of all, whalesong guitar on the meditative 'Small Hours', underpinned by a subtle heartbeat percussion. Lovely stuff. I hope Solid Air is on this app.

Got a bit bored to be honest

I couldn’t tell if there were any actual songs on this.

Another album by a British musician I had never heard of. This was definitely an interesting discovery! I would characterize this as soft, mellow, experimental prog-jazz-folk-rock? Whatever it is, it's cool, and I like it. Very cool guitar playing. I would absolutely listen to this again. Love the album art too.

Ensimmäinen biisi on oikein hyvä, loput jäivät taka-alalle mutta mietityttämään. Sopiva mitta!

Ensimmäinen biisi oli selittämättömässä tarttuvuudessaan toivottu yllätys, mutta muut eivät lunastaneet odotuksia. Saattoi johtua sävellyksiä enemmän laulutyylistä. Olihan se helvetin outo.

I think I liked it but I can't remember much of it to be honest. I'll have to get back to it but yeah, good but unmemorable.

The arrangements are nice, but the mumbling guy just turns me off.

Felt sleepy...Album to listen too while drinking a coffee

Cool and smooth album, very pleasing and enjoyable. There's nothing that really stand out here, except maybe the songs Dancing and Certain Surprise. Nothing innovative or amazing, but certainly nice.

Had never heard of John before and really liked this one, will be revisiting!

Second John Martyn album in consecutive days. I think this is more accessible than Solid Air and has a more pop feel about it than the blues/jazz/folk of Solid Air. Not bad. John's gruff rock voice is growing on me, but I still prefer his more natural pretty vocals.

"One World" is the seventh studio album by Scottish guitarist and singer Iain David McGeachy known professionally as John Martyn. The album was recorded outdoors at Island record owner Chris Blackwell's (also the producer) Berkshire Farm. Martyn had become disillusioned with the music industry but was revitalized after a prior trip to Jamaica and meeting and playing with various people including Lee "Scratch" Perry who co-wrote a song appearing on the album. Also appearing on the album are musicians Steve Winwood (various instruments), Danny Thompson (bass), Hansford Rowe (bass) and Rico Rodriguez (trombone). This music style is very unique incorporating various guitar effects including echoing, heavy bass, Moog synthesizer and influences from dub music and Lee Perry. It sounds like a mixture of pop, jazz, experimental and world music. This album is credited as originating trip-hop. "Dealer" begins things and right away there's a lot going on. Prominent bass. The Moog synth. Reverb guitars. Flutes. Martyn's scratchy voice. Kind of funky and World music sounding. I think obviously about a drug dealer. "Smiling Stranger" is another "big" sounding song. Guitar with the effects. Sax and strings are also added. Never trust a smiling stranger. "Big Muff" was co-wrote with Lee "Scratch" Perry and we have reverb heavy guitar. A great groove with the bass. The second side is love song focused. "Certain Suprise" is samba-esque and very smooth jazz. More strings and a trombone. "Dancing" was the only single and has a swinging rhythm. A plea to his wife and sounds like latter-day Peter Gabriel. The nearly nine-minute "Small Hours" concludes the album. Very ambient. You hear water. You hear geese sounds. More of his echo guitar. Very chill. This is my first venture into John Martyn. A lot going on musically and the future influence is apparent. A great sounding and orginal album. Recommended for anyone willing to venture into jazz, ambient, dub, world and other experimental musical styles.

Ok-ish background music, but not attention grabbing, other than to think 'this guy's voice is a bit annoying'. I could have guessed Steve Winwood's involvement from both the album cover and the music. Rating: 2/5 Playlist track: Dancing Date listened: 22/12/22

Short album, has some variety, nothing really stands out but I enjoyed the slow, chilled tracks, especially the last one.

The second album of his that I've gotten and I listened to it twice to give it a fair rating. I believe that I enjoyed this one more than the other. Nothing specifically jumped out but it was pleasant enough to listen to.

Pretty average sounding album by my standards

a couple of the last songs were pretty groovy

bardzo przyjemne, zwłaszcza Certain Surprise

Not for me

Dude sounds like Patty and Selma

Not my bag man

The part of this album I enjoyed was the instrumentation, and arrangements. However, his voice is of the sort I do not care for when listening to male voices. It is a faux sense of soulful, or “world weary”, sound. Think a Citizen Cope, or Ray LaMontagne. Again: another album that is hard to understand why it is a “bucket list” album.

Never heard of John Martyn. Is he like the Arther Russell of Eric Claptons? Or the acid casualty of Paul Simons? I like that this guy has done way more of the right drugs than Clapton. The story of being lured to Jamaica to work with Scratch to get him back into music is pretty ridiculous. Not a bad album. Still all a bit too adult contemporary white guy world music for me, even though I mildly like it. I’d like to hear a totally underproduced album of he and Scratch and no one else locked together for a month. I heard the geese and the squealing train in the outside ambience of Small Hours. Shout out Ethan AD on the title.

The beginning of the final track was a cool soundscape, but then he started singing. Otherwise, I would never want to hear this again.

👽🫦

Really quite enjoyable instrumentation, particularly the synth wobble bass and calypso percussion

Pretty intriguing overall. Varied and complex

Okay voice that sometimes shows off some bluesy chops, middling music, One World isn't worth a place on the list. Beige 2/5.

Dreamy, on the verge of porny, but with slightly too much energy to be either. Not unpleasant (although his voice sounds like Louis Armstrong has stopped taking Strepsils and lost a decent chunk of musicality), but not super interesting either. Started badly, got better as it went on, but still not really enough to elevate it above a 2. Did enjoy the final track though.

Sounds like it was the inspiration for Dave Matthews Band. Not bad, just kind of jam music. I didn’t mind it

Another one for my “glad-I-listened-but probably-won’t-try-again” list. It is a very inventive record for sure, but it sounds dated and it didn’t give me anything solid enough to hold onto. Didn’t love his voice either, much preferred the instrumental parts.

Pero

En ple any del punk, Martyn va sorprendre amb el seu retorn amb un disc amb aires reggae, funk, i uns temes ideals pels capvespres de primavera. Els músics que l'acompanyen, els arranjaments i la producció fan del disc un dels millors moments de la carrera discogràfica de l'autor

What a surprise. I love the mellow production and vocals, paired with all kinds of different sounds, and the ambience peace at the end. All in a perfect run time.

Enjoyable, easy listening album with a surprising range of instruments. Ultimately just falls short of 4 stars though

Some really lovely stuff on here, from early on in his time, an album I definitely wouldn't have heard if it wasn't for this.

eh he’s j lame

Good background music for study but didn't spark much interest

His vocal delivery is so annoying and the instrumental doesn’t help

very interesting

Interesting but not special, pretty nice job.

Fome

Genius. Small Hours is in my all time top ten tracks. The live version (I think I saw him perform it 6 times) of Big Muff was spellbinding, A very, very sad end to possibly the best British unsung hero of contemporary music (along with Roy Harper and Nick Drake).

Didn't hate it. Distinct voice.

A few interesting moments here and there, but overall I just wasn't very interested. Might be his vocal delivery, might be the choice of instruments, not quite sure. Not bad, not at all, just doesn't do anything for me.

JMC WILL RELISTEN 👂

Listens: 2 Enjoyed Meh The music is excellent and creates such a relaxing vibe. I'm just not really a fan of his vocals especially over this type of music

I enjoyed this album, though not quite as much as the last John Martyn album we had on this list, “Solid Air.” (I thought the songs were better on that one.) There’s a lot of great music and the production has some interesting choices. Occasionally I felt the production gave the music a kind of muddy sound but just as often I found it hypnotic. Same goes for Martyn’s vocals — he’s an excellent, emotive singer but chooses to bury it on a few of these tracks. “Dancing” is a particularly fun song. Overall I like it. I ended up going back and listening to “Solid Air” a bunch of times after the initial listen so I’m expecting to do the same with this album.

I didn't love the singing voice but I gotta admit by the end of track 1 I was groovin and jammin a bit! "Couldn't Love You More" is such a wonderful song. I used to listen to a singer named Marcus Foster sing that song a lot and I hadn't heard it in years before this album came up on this list. It was really nice to be reconnected with that track. Interesting album cover. I love the composition of the diagonal line going across the artwork. 3/5!

Just listening to the album the first time around, I found the music to be enjoyable and interesting in a low key way, probably not enough to draw me back for more but probably 3-3.5 stars worth. Reading more, before and during a second listen, I learned that John Martyn was abusive to his wife, children and others. Does this change my perception of the music? Yes, because the album included some quite beautiful songs of love, holding onto love after years of marriage, with peaceful and gentle music...only now, they are tainted for me by my awareness of the common dynamic (of most abusers) of using "but I really do love you!" as some kind of excuse, justification or manipulation after episodes of violence. It makes it hard now for me to relate to those songs as any kind of inspiration, regardless of the subjective (and no doubt genuine) feelings of their author. So this isn't the opposite of an album I dislike but with redeeming features (e.g. like but with demerit points) - it's an album I liked at first but now can't enjoy in the same way.

In July 1978 I was working for the Migrant Services Section of the Social Security Department, in Clarence St Sydney. One morning I received a phone-call from a mate who was a student at Sydney University, telling me to get my arse up to the Union Theatre (now The Footbridge) on campus, because John Martyn was playing a free concert at 1.00pm. As it turns out, this was part of a world tour to promote the album One World. I got there in time. John Martyn was late, and extremely hung-over, carrying what appeared to be an acoustic guitar with a plethora of wires coming off it (and no doubt a bunch of effects pedals). It was one of the great concerts I’ve ever attended. At the time I was only familiar with the 1970 album Road To Ruin, which he recorded with his wife, Beverley, & which is an all-time favourite of mine, so most of what I saw him play that day was unfamiliar to me, but he was in blistering form. And I imagine a lot of what he played came from this album. How lucky I was, because this is a great record. I can’t think of anything else that sounds like it. About 30 years later, a different mate gave me a dvd titled The Transatlantic Sessions, which features many great artists & includes an enthralling version of Big Muff with Martyn on guitar & Danny Thompson on double bass. Do yourself a favour & google it. This is the song he co-wrote in Jamaica with Lee Scratch Perry the year before he made the album. You also hear the great reggae trombonist Rico Rodriguez on Certain Surprise. I love the fact that Chris Blackwell set up mikes in the middle of a lake on his property(where the lp was recorded) to catch whatever noises nature was providing at the time. This was way ahead of its time. Love it.

I reviewed John Martyn's Solid Air earlier in this project, and enjoyed it more than I was expecting. Based on that, I thought I knew what to expect with this record. And was pleasantly surprised again. Much of side 2 seems like a fairly natural progression from Solid Air. Similar smooth jazz/soul/funk/folk blend, now with a touch of latin rhythms on Certain Surprise, with Martyn's foggy voice woven beautifully through the arrangements. I love his voice, which he uses like an instrument, although sometimes his slurred diction slides almost into self-parody.Take it easy, John. But side 1 is a revelation. The heavy use of effects, especially delay, and dub production techniques (without being pastiche - this is definitely not reggae) is something quite fresh. Big Muff is co-written by Lee Scratch Perry! I can see the influence, without it sounding like a Lee Scratch Perry record per se. I really loved the songs on side 1. Discretely funky, weird sounding without being abrasive, without any histrionics. I can see how these tracks (especially Big Muff and Small Hours) are cited as influences on trip hop, especially Massive Attack. This album caught me by surprise, and I really enjoyed it. Haven't heard much quite like it, and it really grabbed me (especially side 1)

kinda nice but got quick. 2.5 stars.

Listened to on 10/30/22 3/5 Favorite song: couldn’t love you more Beautiful ballads with some beach vibes and easy background music

Background acoustic guitar music

Not going to be my favourite record but surprisingly listenable. Has a good flow too.

Boring

Chill

nice music, not a fan of the vocals but a reasonable album

Je pouvais sentir l’engagement de l’artiste, mais ce n’est pas un genre qui me rejoint vraiment. N’a pas retenu mon attention.

Very interesting work. Rare to see someone’s 7th record on here. Also had heard of the song recorded across a lake before but hadn’t heard it

Gave up after a few songs. It's not that it's awful. It's just the worst of background music. It's like a bad music soundtrack.

This was completely new to me, and I liked this quite a bit. Sort of R&B meets progressive rock. I like the song about the big muff. Planning to listen more. 3 stars.

Nope.

Percussion!

A few songs I wouldn’t care if I never heard again but some redeeming tracks.

Not much to say. I didn’t actively dislike anything, I thought a lot of the dissonances the vocalist chose were fun, but the music felt a little too lounge-y for my taste.

I had never heard of John and didn’t know what to expect. Clearly dated but a cool mix of guitar, funk, psychedelic. Enjoyed it.

Such a unique album, nothing immediately stood out but I didn't feel the need to skip a single song. I should definitely give it some more listens in the future.

Interesting album. I kind of liked it.

The first track tricked me into thinking I’d like the album more than I did

The vocals in the opnener are a bit rough but they mellow out as the album continues. Small Hours feels very ahead of its time. Overall not really my thing but pleasantly listenable throughout.

This one was a bit of a head scratcher for me. This album had interesting moments, but when placed within the history of jazz fusion and ambient music I feel like there are much better and more influential examples from this time period. It wasn’t unpleasant though and I’m certainly glad to have heard it.

Nicht meins

My partner likes John Martyn, or rather, she really likes Solid Air, I'm not sure I've heard her play anything else tbh. I like that kinda, it's not really my thing but it's nice and chilled. So, expecting more smokey, chilled and timeless acoustic stuff, the first track here was a bit of a surprise. It sounds much more dated to me, sadly. Nah, I'm really not feeling this. Even the more chilled, acoustic ones just seem...busy, somehow.

Forgettable. One World vocals sounded like an old man on quaaluds trying to sing with apple sauce stuffed in his mouth.

Some nice sounds here and there but mostly suffered through this one.

I'm a big fan of John Martyn, particularly around this point in his career. Such a unique hybrid of influences that is miles ahead of its time. Martyn has such a natural, casual soulfulness to him that it makes his more experimental tendencies go down easy. Love that they recorded parts of the album from across a lake to capture the natural reverb/echo. Yet another example of artists creating their best work while in remote country locations.

I dunno, vocals just kind of annoy me. Reminds me of middle ages dudes on vacation in Cancun. And then there's a random ambient track at the end? Talk about genre shift. Meh.

Tough call... on the one hand, this was pretty cruisy something-or-other and went well with a Saturday morning walk. It wasn't loud and obnoxious, it was nicely produced and all instruments/vocals were well played. On the other hand, it's yet another artist from the UK I honestly didn't need to hear. Will they stop with the constant pushing of the UK here? Not a fucking chance. If I want to make it to 1001 I'll just have to put up with that, but it's taking me a while to learn some tolerance. 3/5.

Brilliant

It wasn't as good as 'Solid Air' but a fine follow up to that album nonetheless. 3.5/5

Small Hour and Dancing were the best tracks. The rest of the album was boring.

Such a cool mix of influences on this that make for an interesting listen - though there aren't many tracks that I'm really gonna want to revisit so for now i'll give this like a high 3

skipped though all the songs and gave up. Not horrible but not in the mood.

Like a funky, sometimes folky remix of Anthony and the Johnsons.

Dit was best leuk, alleen die stem werd me op een gegeven moment wel echt te veel...

Mwah, kon nauwelijks verstaan wat ie zong.

Dit was onbekend voor me maar best goed. Fijne sfeer weet de beste man neer te zetten.

Ligt goed in het gehoor!

More odd inclusions in this list - there have to be 3001 albums better than this. it's fine, it's even got a funny song, but it doesn't feel like my life is better for having listened to it

A bit bland

Really? Two albums by this guy? Feels like an extension of the last one.

Sounds like Martyn was aiming for a lot on this record. Pretty odd production with a heavy focus on synthesisers, combined with rock, jazz and some funk. I enjoyed it but won't be coming back to it

Man, I loved hearing this album. I knew and loved the tracks Couldn't Love You More, and Small Hours already, but it was excellent to hear all the album cuts. Dude's voice was a jazz instrument, and his playing acoustic-like-it's-an-electric guitar playing is pioneering and totally cool too. Gonna deep dive his catalogue now. THIS is the reason I'm on this listening journey!

The previous JM album on the list, Solid Air, is quite strong (4 stars) but I could not get into this album, which I had not heard before; the closing track was just annoying.

2.5

Kinda boring, singer sounds drunk.

God, please make it stop.

This was an inspiration. There are problems with production that at points feels dated, but once I let this go and got past some of the more late 70s/ early 80s sounds, I felt uplifted and held by this album in a way I haven't by many albums. Small Hours blew me away, it's wonderful ambient guitar over a simple pulse beat, eventually leading up to a short song, before returning to guitar and sound was perfect. It's made me want to hear more.

Kindoff unique slow rock

Gave this one a couple of listens but still don't have much to say about it. I think I enjoyed it?

I thought the mix on this sounded pretty bad

Really good album, didn't expect the level of serenity there was in the last song, but goddamn that was so nice. 3 I'm sure the whole thing is going to grow on me, just like Solid Air

-Opening track, "Dealer" is probably the strongest on the album. Solid fun synth-y-ish stuff going on. reminded me of some parts of stuff from the 'Who Are You" album by The Who. -Most of the rest of the album is kind of boring and low-energy. "Dancing" is nice, and "Big Muff" has some okay bits. -Most is pretty slow, boring songs. -"Small Hours" borders on like, AI-generated soothing ASMR music. Just nothing happening at all.

Couldn`t Love You More é

Never heard of this guy. Pretty chill vibes on this one. Not super amazing, but totally music I could relax to.

Slipped into the background but the bits I did notice seemed dull and dreary.

couldn't finish

Was alright, a bit mellow for today, and I didn't listen very closely.

Well produced and played, MOR adult music, more for the background

Interesting album. Liked it more than I thought I would. Very varied and, as a result, a bit patchy.

Zzzzzzzzvvvvrrrrrr ZzzzzzzzGgggguuuuuuudddd ZZZZaaaallllbbbmmmmmzzzz

folk hop, flute bop

Ordagrant cheelin

I really like ”Couldn’t Love You More” and ”Small Hours”. Had an interesting sound otherwise, Martyn’s voice was a bit coarse on most of the songs

I do not care for this. However, it was very different than what I was expecting. Still not my thing. Sorry John.

good!

I didn’t hear the whole album but I was underwhelmed. It didn’t hurt my ears and was inoffensive so low 3*

Probably heading for a boring 2 stars until 'Certain Surprise' which was excruciating.

lol another noodly white guy from the 70s, what a surprise

Don't know, why it is a AYMHBYD.... the only track that really justifies the album is the progressive jam Small Hours. (5/10) FT: Small Hours

Meh was ok

Liked ‘certain surprise’ . Not as good as Solid Air album

Didn’t really like the first half but he recovered nicely for the end

I liked this not as much as the other John Martyn though

Cool guitar effects and very dub influenced style. Feels kind of like world music-influenced pop.

áhugaverð plata

Wild, interesting album from someone I knew nothing about.

Not my jam- not actively bad though

Lacking the talent of Van Morrison (the most obvious comparison) or the Neville Brothers (perhaps the less obvious comparison, but still, this reminded me in places of Yellow Moon), Martyn works the same white blues territory as the former with similar love for its black roots--not just in soul but jazz, too. His voice is silly, no doubt, but malleable enough to attain the tender devotional quality he's reaching for. Some of the arrangments have a delicate muscularity. One of those is called 'Certain Surprise'. Another is called 'Dancing'. Yet another is called 'Big Muff'. I repeat: 'Big Muff'. I can't even.

An adorable dreamy piece of work. This was my 110th on this, and I loved every moment of it. 5 stars because there aren’t 6.

Hi- Dealer, Certain Surprise Feels like an alt-universe Dinosaur Jr. where J.Mascis got his start opening for Jimmy Buffett. I like it a lot more than I expected I would, but I will say...John is not a great singer. Guitar work here is amazing, though his vocal work...is definitely not. Jimi Hendrix was also known as a guitar god, while not being completely vocally complex, so this is not an antipattern for this time. Dealer is a strong opening number, and the rest of the album is pleasant and easy to listen to, with Certain Surprise being a standout. Closing out with Small Hours evokes early morning sunrises over the ocean, it's very pleasant and a great way to send off the listener.

Not what I expected at all - enjoyable enough. Vocals were completely unexpected.

No

Some quality songs on here. The amusingly titled 'Big Muff', 'Dancing' and 'Couldn't love you more' which made it onto my Spotify playlist for 2022 and made a tear come out. I don't know what genre this is, but seems a big ole' mashup of whatever worked, and his raspy voice is nicely unusual.

Nice chill and groovy record.

I liked the first album we heard from him more

Jazz and funky beats on the moon. And a tune called “Big Muff,” which I want to look up the meaning of. And some ambient.

First listen to album and artist. Quality stuff and worth a listen.

All the different styles. Santana, sting, the list could go on.

Pretty easy listening at times, but some moments

Interesting. I had never listened to John Martyn before. I'm not a big fan of his voice.

One day, a fish (or some old man who accidentally swallowed a fish bone, I don't know which) learned how to sing and make some music. So, he grabbed some guitar and harmonica, gathered a bunch of other musicians and decided to record an album. All I can say about the result is, he did a pretty decent human music. But the critter needs a lot of improvement. I love the "One World" title though, it's like we and those fishes live in one world or something, right? Probably not. I mean, I don't get the sound of it. It sounds include tropical restaurant background music, default ringtone of cellphones, and some pretty decent bossa nova stuff. But perhaps more important than the sounds is the vocals. Yes, singing in the air is difficult for a fish, but it should be improved further. There are lots of great singers (yes, even outside of death metal and black metal) who have raspy vocals. A little bit of vocalization and now he's good. Overall, boooring. It kind of reminds me of Pink Floyd's "Meddle", another ocean-vibe rock album that was released six years before this one. It's a masterpiece of course, I mean there were whales lmao. But at least this album, unlike "Meddle", was so experimental it invented trip hop, among other genres. A nice achievement for a fish, isn't it?

Enjoyable, sounds like a precursor to 80's synth.

Easy breezy - apparently this album was written after a visit to Jamaica revitalized the artist. It’s not Reggae, but it’s on island time.

I have never heard of John Martyn. This album was not memorable and just ok.

Good musician.

Boring. I found myself just not listening to it at times. Normally when an album pops up here that I’ve never heard of it’s some British oddball stuff that has/had no US impact. Feel like this is one of those. Evidently people claim this to be the original trip-hop and led to Portishead etc. for that reason I’ll round a 2.5 up to 3

Nothing special / not bad I'll probably forget all about this album in a day. Oops, I already did

Love the music, but not a huge fan of the vocals on most tracks, I might even like this record better with no vocals. That being said, John Martyn clearly has an extremely unique and distinctive voice so more power to him and those who appreciate it, especially when used interestingly in this world music western fusion context. I also thought on certain songs like “couldn’t love you more”, the vocals were extremely beautiful, but in that case the music was pretty basic. Can’t have it all on this record, so 3 stars.

2.5 this sounds really nice

Rock, pop. Extrañamente interesante.

good at work listen

Ok. Above average 70s soft rock. At its best, it sounded a little like upbeat Grateful Dead. Uninspiring and inoffensive.

Elevator music for perverts.

I like everything going on except the vocals. They sound weak and winded. Like the guy just ran 6 flights of stairs to get to the studio. Big Muff is a good tune. I am really torn on this album, but I think there is enough here to merit me coming back to it.

Cool but SO BORING

So breezy, smooth, and creative. Loved it!

Pretty interesting. Prefer Solid Air. 6/10

This was really cool to find. I've never heard of this guy. Seems super ahead of its time and influential.

Rating: 6/10 Best songs: Dealer

For the first time in this project, I was very positively surprised by an artist I had never heard of before. This is very intriguing to listen to, with its wild mix of different styles and his very unique voice.

Dangerous, psychedelic yacht rock that morphs into early post-rock by the end? I'm a fan.

Never heard of this guy before. This is pretty low-key with some interesting arrangements and overall quite a fresh sound for 1977. Nice working from home background music, which I suppose both is and isn’t a compliment.

Didn’t really enjoy.

When his voice first came in, I hated it, and was preparing for an excruciating 40 minutes. But that was the only part where I noticed his voice stand out, and then in blended in to an ocean of excellence. This is the most surprising album I have had so far and is going on regular rotation.

This is definitely not my thing but but it was a pleasant listen.

Het grijpt me niet heel erg aan, maar als achtergrondmuziek is het prima

Fairly middle of the road to my ear. Not a bad record though… listen-able! Good last track!

Enjoyed this more as it went along actually! At first I thought he was a bit Paul Simon then I got into his own stlye. Particularly the last v low fi song

Not too bad but a bit repetitive in places.

Found this really dull, think it was his voice. very repetitive

Funky, a little psychedelic, jammy. I enjoyed this record, don't know if I'd ever revisit it but while it was on I was into it!

Nope. Yelling, atonal, and depressing. Pass.

I hadn't listened to John Martyn before, a really great discovery. Textured sound, many layers and influences, takes you to unexpected places, ahead of his time. Will definitely explore more of his work

Experimental ambient de pop - folk -rock- blues - rock. Agradable

Not great

ну хуй знает, три раза прослушал, вроде как и появляются иногда годные мотивы, и вокалер угарно хрипит, но все-таки в целой своей массе альбом какой-то никакой, почти нихуя и не запомнил по итогу. плюс последняя песня просто напросто напрягает шопиздец. наверное где-то 6/10, мб попробую вернуться как-то

Неплохой альбом, чтобы почилить. Но не настолько, чтобы запомниться и вдохновить на прослушивание опосля. Порой альбомы складываются так, чтобы продаваться первыми треками. У One World же первые треки довольно скучные, претендент на роль звуковых обоев. Грамотный чил - он всё же про залипание, а не про незаметность. Впрочем, в треке One World можно что-то найти, вокальная партия довольно харизматичная. А позалипать можно где-то начиная с Couldn't love you more. Вот в Dancing действительно захватывающий припев, который даже удивляет на фоне предыдущей умеренной невнятности. Small Hours - отличная арт-композиция, комплексная, мелодичная, разнообразная. Вот будь вместо 1-го, 3-го и 4-го треков что-то поинтереснее, можно было ставить 4. А так всё же не дотягивает.

smooooooooooooooth (great closer)

Not a great album. Surprised I've never heard of this guy though. All the songs are kind of boring and uninteresting. "Big Muff" was kinda funny. "Certain Surprise" had a croony, Dean Martin-y feel. "Dancing" had a 70s groove. Those were the only ok songs on the album.

Nice, Need to listen more

At times this sounds like someone doing a Louis Armstrong impersonation set to some new age music Chuck Mangione would approve of without the trumpet. None of this really bothers me. I'm just to the point where I have to wonder if it was completely necessary to hear this before dying. Oh well, at least I'm now aware of who John Martyn is, which might have been his goal all along. Some would say forcing me to look up the correct spelling of Mangione should affect the album's rating. I'll call it a push and give it an extra star since it's pleasant background music and I'd bad putting it in the 1 dustbin. Plus I also believe Martyn would have been a great hang, despite what impact this album had on me. I bet Sade really digs this album.