Customer Reviews

The Apprentice

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Certain albums make your stomach tingle with warm nostalgia. This is one where I can almost remember every detail of that first listening period. It was great because I suddenly knew about a special musical talent. The songs on the album all seem to seamlessly merge into each other and there is a certain romance associated with them. Most touching is "Look at the girl", a tribute, I assume , to his (?) daughter (the deep affection in her youth, the dismay at her change as a teenager). "The river" brings back memories of the Springsteen epic. "income town" (live) suggests hard days making a pittance. "Upo" is indescribably beautiful. 'Patterns in the Rain" completes the story. It may not be his song but its a fine rendition.
Overall, this album is melody and sweetness and will remain with you at least 11 years after you first hear it.

The two reviews presented here are of the original studio LP/CD of around 1990, not this item. Based on the info supplied by Amazon and others, THIS item must be the audio for a 2006 videotape release of a concert with Mr. Gilmour, originally recorded around 1990. The original videotape had other songs besides those taken from THE APPRENTICE. But what is actually ON this Amazon-produced CD-R?
Another Amazon hash. Is this pure profit for the company as well? It's particularly disappointing to see JM's legacy misrepresented by a "professional organization." What is even more troubling is the long history of issues/reissues/ repackages of JM's live material, willy-nilly. Was someone looking after all and approving all this activity? Did JM and his colleagues (and now heirs) benefit financially, or were various loopholes jumped through, etc., to the benefit of those undeserving? JM is hardly the only victim of such procedures (for an even more depressing example, there's Jimi Hendrix, but at least his estate has gotten into the act in the last few decades).
I hope would-be purchasers either know what's on this, or have some way of hearing it. John, our Spencer the Rover, OBE, we miss you and will keep the profiteers honest. In the meantime, play that Echoplexed guitar loud and proud, wherever you be.

I'll state right off, that I am not the biggest John Martyn fan. I bought his 2 CD box set after hearing this CD, and find that I don't often listen to it.

On the other hand, I first listened to this CD 12 or 13 years ago, and it remains a favorite, always in rotation. The sound of this CD is a unique blend of jazz, pop, folk and even soul. The melodies are beautiful, the lyrics insightful, cutting, moving and authentic. Martyn's voice is really one of a kind and so is the music. There is an honest, soulful, simplicity here that is summed up on the song "The River". His love for his daughter is deeply evident in "Look At The Girl". "Patterns in The Rain" is incredibly moving.

The albums I like the most are those that transport me somewhere: to "The River" by Martyn, to "Hergest Ridge" by Mike Oldfied. There is a distinct sense of place and time and space in Martyn's music and I enjoy the trip every time I hear this CD. An essential disc.