Prodigal son's a Sheffield lad now

Which is high praise, indeed, for Sheffield.

For Martin’s music has taken him all over the world and has seen him live in some of America’s most iconic places.

“I might go as far as Fulwood, but Sheffield is home to me now,” said the musician. “There is a lot going on in this town. And it feels very familiar - as I was brought up in Scunthorpe which is another steel town.”

And it was here that he put together his outstanding new CD, Prodigal Son.

Though recording began at a friend’s studio in Robin Hood’s Bay, it was completed closer to home, in the recording complex developed by the family of Kate Rusby.

Said Martin: “Much of the work was carried out by Joe Rusby, Kate’s brother. This is the first time we have worked together. It was a delightful experience.”

Another first for Martin in the process of recording the album was to work with one of his musical heroes, singe songwriter Jackson Browne. Said Martin: “We met a long time ago when I was performing at McCabe’s in Santa Monica, California.

“I was on stage and looked up to see Jackson in the audience. I was in complete awe. After the show we met and I told him I liked his music - and he said he liked mine too! Apparently he had a set of instruction videos I had recorded and had been learning some of my guitar pieces. What a compliment!

“When I came to record this, I decided I would like some harmonies on my version of Randy Newman’s song, Louisiana, and rang Jackson. He agreed to do it.”

Busy touring schedules meant they couldn’t get together, so Martin recorded his part, emailed it to Jackson who added his harmonies at his studio in Santa Monica.

The album also brings together some of Martin’s other favourite musicians, from Kate Rusby and Kellie While to squeezebox ace Andy Cutting and double bass player Danny Thompson.

Martin’s love of music came from hours spent listening to his mother’s Paul Robeson records, his father’s light opera singing and the record collections of his two elder brothers.

He wanted a guitar so badly that he fashioned one out of a toy boat and some elastic bands and was found strumming away at it as a toddler. By the age of 12 his big brother Geoff and his Uncle had clubbed together to buy him his first guitar and he never looked back.

He has been recording regularly since his first solo album, Golden Vanity, was released in 1976, bringing him to the attention of a wider public. Within a year he was touring the world, supporting Steeleye Span and eventually recruited to accompany the great June Tabor

With Prodigal Son, he shows that his playing and performance skills have gone from strength to strength.