Martin Simpson - Live

St. Mary's Church, Twyford

13 April, 2024

I have to admit, folk doesn't usually do much for me. As music, it's rarely interesting or exciting enough to keep me listening for long, and as for the words - well, lyrics aren't really my thing and in any case, the subject matter of folk songs is rarely something that I find engaging. But when a friend mentioned this concert, it seemed like a good opportunity to re-examine my prejudices and, at the very least, see one of Britain's most accomplished and legendary acoustic guitarists, in a beautiful, atmospheric venue only ten minutes from my house.

A fine specimen

Well, I'm afraid I'm no more enthusiastic about folk music afterwards, but it says something that when the gig ended, I was impressed to find that almost two-and-a-half hours had passed. Martin Simpson is an amazing guitarist and a seasoned pro who can easily keep an audience entertained with stories between songs, and the time only started dragging right at the end. Simpson's playing on his gorgeous Taran Tirga Mhor fan-fret acoustic was stellar, and the sound in the church was wonderful: clear and balanced and just the right volume.

I was surprised that there weren't any instrumentals, as I think it would have varied the pacing and dynamics of the set (and my companions at the gig confirmed that he usually features two or three). I wasn't surprised at the political opinions: Simpson is predictably left wing and got a few predictable cheers from predictable comments. I'm broadly sympathetic to such positions but I feel that these sound-bites cheapen the discussion and are out of place - yes, even at a gig like this, which might contain protest songs. Thankfully there wasn't much of it.

Overall, I'm pleased I got to see such a distinguished guitarist in the flesh, as I'm unlikely to do so again and certainly not so conveniently!