Martin Newnham
Title: CITY FOLK
Release date: August 10th 2009
Record Label: Isle of Wight Music
Catalogue number: IOWCD001
URBAN FOLK’S RISING STAR SET FOR SUMMER DEBUT SINGLE AND ALBUM RELEASES
On August 10th, 2009, urban-folk singer-songwriter Martin Newnham releases his debut album, ‘City Folk’, a superb eleven song collection about love, death, honour & betrayal from a man who moved ten years ago from the Isle of Wight to Hanwell, West London, armed with a guitar, a bag of clothes, a few quid in his pocket and a pair of Converse boots on his feet for transport.
Once settled amongst the urban chaos of London, Martin wasted no time in immersing himself in the capital’s underground music scene. It was here that Martin started to hone his naturally upbeat & charismatic live set, with his childhood diet of jazz, skiffle & folk gradually becoming infused with the city’s more urban sounds & styles. Since then, Martin has shared the bill with the likes of Nerina Pallot, Newton Faulkner, Seth Lakeman & Beth Rowley, as well as appearing at The Larmer Tree and Isle of Wight festivals.
Growing up on the Isle of Wight, Martin watched his Father play in the “infamous-on-the-Isle of Wight” trad-jazz band, The Goose Island Syncopaters. Several years later Martin found himself playing guitar alongside his Father in a skiffle group called The Spasm Band. However, Martin points towards a song his mother used to sing to him as a ‘lullaby’ when he was a toddler as having the biggest impact on his songwriting style, as he explains, “Mum used to sing the Fairport Convention song ‘Matty Groves’ to me, as it was the longest song she knew. I was spellbound and that song has always stayed with me. If you listen to songs on my album, such as ‘As NightFalls’ & ‘Whispers’, you’ll hear what I mean!”
In 2007 Martin returned to the Isle of Wight to record the tracks for his debut album, ‘City Folk’, ably assisted by a selection of the best musicians he’d worked with in London, with the aim to capture the infectious energy of his live shows.
Reflecting on his experiences since moving from the Isle of Wight, many of the songs on ‘City Folk’ carry dark undertones, cemented by a distinctive, street-wise lyrical delivery. Singing sweet laments with a smattering of regret (‘Ellie When’), or of betrayals of the heart (‘As Night Falls’), music industry sharks (‘No’) and the pain of despair whilst longing for reconciliation, (‘Come Back Gracey’, released as a single on June 29th, 2009) ‘City Folk’ is an assured debut album from a promising talent.
For further information please contact:
TV & Radio: Ron McCreight: 07775663537 / ronmcreight@btinternet.com
Press: Dave Clarke at Planet Earth Publicity – 07966 557774 & dave@planetearthpublicity.com