Martin Simpson

Singer & guitarist, Martin Simpson. Holder of the most BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards nominations, ever.

Martin Simpson: A Master of His Art

Martin Simpson has had the most nominations of any performer in the history of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. 32 nominations, 13 of those as Musician of the Year, winning that particular accolade twice.

The remarkable intimate solo performances of Martin Simpson go from strength to strength – every gig is a masterclass.

He travels the length and breadth of the UK and beyond, giving rapt audiences passion, sorrow, love, beauty, tragedy and majesty through his playing.

“What’s it like being the best guitar player in the world…?” Martin’s modesty and grace prevented him from answering this BBC Radio 4 interviewer’s question recently, but the facts speak for themselves:

40 years after he recorded his first album, Golden Vanity, in 1976, Martin is known as a guitarist of formidable talent.

Equally at home playing English traditional folk, American folk and blues and his own compositions, he is consistently named as one of the very finest fingerstyle guitar players in the world.

Universally acclaimed as one of the finest ever acoustic and slide guitar players, and a fine banjo-picker to boot, his solo shows bear witness to an artist at the very top of his game.

Martin continues to collaborate with a dazzling array of people from across the musical spectrum, including Jackson Browne, Martin Taylor, June Tabor, Richard Hawley, Bonnie Raitt, & Richard Thompson

In recent years, he has been a lynchpin in the award-winning Full English, and The Elizabethan Sessions.

Martin is genuinely thrilled to be back out on the road now – back where he loves to be – playing live.

A virtuoso player without question, but above all Martin Simpson conveys his diverse treasure trove of material from the heart, performing with rare subtlety, intensity and honesty.
A true master of his art.