In some ways every Martyn Joseph gig or set at Greenbelt is the same; I'm always with most of the same people; he always sings Liberal Backslider and One of Us; he always tells us how he got chucked off a tour with Shirley Bassy for wearing `denims'; some of the funny stories start to wear a bit on the fifth telling. But Decembers gig wasn't just a re-run of previous experiences, although much of the audience would probably have paid just for that.

Martyn sang for two hours, and roughly half of the songs I hadn't heard before, or not enough times to be able to sing along. His career has spanned about twenty years so far, so there is a lot of material to draw on, much of it good enough to be played again and again. However, new songs that have the potential to become old favourites were combined with older `classics' such as Working Mother and the haunting Ballad of Dic Penderyn.

Along with most of the audience, Martyn acknowledged that Fibbers is a far from perfect venue. We were brave enough to sit in the middle of the front row (good view of his knees!), but others had to peer round a corner to see the stage. Since the lasts concert there, Fibbers had erected a barrier at the front of the stage, which altered the atmosphere a lot, definitely separating audience and performer. It was noticeable how much more intimate and enthusiastic people felt when Martynunplugged his guitar and came out to sing in front of the barrier for a couple of songs.

Photo: PipeRecords.co.uk

A particular concern for Martyn since a trip to Brazil last year with Christian Aid is the Brazilian landless workers' movement or MST. He spent quite a time telling of his experiences in Brazil and the struggles of the landless in a country where the constitution states that they may take up land not being used and farm it, but where this is usually a process hampered by corruption and resisted by the ruling class.. Martyn has produced a CD with some collaborators to raise funds for the MST, and has promised to make their story heard wherever he can. He sang Till the End, which he wrote whilst in Brazil in an attempt to express solidarity with their struggle for justice. Martyn apologised for singing about depressing, miserable things (he thought the Shirley Bassey audience who wanted Hey Big Spender probably didn't appreciate his songs about redundant miners!) but it's good to hear someone singing about important things. S Club 7 is great for a dance at the Willow but we need more people singing about things that really matter. And Martyn's songs aren't universally pessimistic. There is more of an anguished questioning than a desperation. He even manages to mention having fun in Liberal Backslider. It appeared from the enthusiastic audience participation in this song that most of those present shared similar religious and political viewpoints; this made us feel like a community of people asking the same questions. Even if we don't get many answers we still sing together, "Here's to the bigger picture, here's to the bigger love".

Hilary Blake