BLACK VINYL - in MONO

Following an inauspicious first release for Island, John Martyn's unique brand of acoustic music began to take some sort of shape with the Al Stewart-produced The Tumbler. Martyn, whose debut was a solo acoustic offering, here employs a second guitar, bass and, most notably, jazz flautist Harold McNair to create his blend of folk, blues and jazz. While his songs show only marginal development from London Conversation, it's his arrangements and, especially, vocals which are the real differences, each becoming increasingly more idiosyncratic. Although nowhere near the caliber of his later recordings, The Tumbler is an important step in Martyn's varied career.

A1        Sing A Song Of Summer
A2        The River
A3        Goin' Down To Memphis
A4        The Gardeners
A5        A Day At The Sea
A6        Fishin' Blues
B1        Dusty
B2        Hello Train
B3        Winding Boy
B4        Fly On Home
B5        Knuckeldy Crunch & Slippledee-Slee Song
B6        Seven Black Roses