Carrie Martin

Born in Hull, Carrie Martin developed something of a local reputation while still in her teens, as an acoustic guitarist and singer/songwriter.

She fronted bands in the 90s before casting her music aside in order to raise her children, her guitar went untouched for some two decades until a chance meeting with guitar virtuoso Gordon Giltrap changed her life.

Close mentoring from Gordon saw her take a huge leap forward, attracting endorsements from Faith Guitars, G7th Capos and Martin Strings.

Never one to be pigeonholed as a mere ‘folkie’, as it were, Evergreen manages to be Carrie’s most eclectic and varied collection yet, featuring tracks ranging from the delicate folk of ‘Lost In The Right Time’, through the soul-blues of ‘Deep Blue Heaven’ and the poppier ‘Girl With A Feather’, all the way to the prog-rock influences displayed on the ambitious eight-minute ‘Keep In The Light’. Followers of Carrie’s career will be well aware of her classic ‘Maria And The Moon’, a haunting piece based on a remarkable book by author Louise Beech, and will no doubt be delighted to see that she has turned her inspiration to the work of Beech once again with ‘End Of Story’, which again ties in with another one of her books.

Illustrating the respect in which Carrie Martin is held is the line-up of guest musicians on the album. Oliver Wakeman (son, of course, of Rick, and like him a former member of Yes) plays on Keep In The Light as well as End Of Story, while guitarist Roger Fisher, formerly a key member of Heart, also appears on Keep In The Light, along with Jeremy Richardson and Wayne Proctor on bass and drums. Elsewhere ex-Argent guitarist John Verity provides some bluesy guitar on Deep Blue Heaven, and Karl Cassidy (brother of the late singer Eva Cassidy) contributes violin on She Doesn’t Know. There are also appearances from Sarah Dean (aka ‘The Incredible String Blonde’) on harp, Andy Banfield on percussion and Jamie Mallender and Jim Waltham on bass.

Finally, making it a ‘family affair’ of sorts, Carrie’s son Ben Martin himself chips in to record guitar, vocal and harp, as well as sharing production duties. The CD release features one extra bonus track not included on the vinyl; a version of Gordon Giltrap’s piece ‘Loren’, from his album The Last Of England.

The vinyl, not to be outdone, features Luna; the title track from one of Carrie’s earlier releases.

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