Martyn Joseph is equal parts socially conscious composer and up-close-and-personal singer-songwriter with more than 28 studio albums and 40 years as a travelling bard under his belt. With such a long career, you wouldn’t blame Joseph if he left the road for some leisurely golfing (as a lad, he was a trophy winning talent on the links). But when you experience one of his mesmerizing shows you understand why he tossed aside his putter decades ago for a guitar and the songwriter’s life.

He has a never-ending passion and commitment to poetry and music with songs that strike the mood of the times, including his newest recording Troubled Horses, a stripped-down guitar and harmonica affair. Joseph laments the current state of America – “there’s no country to ‘want back’ if we’ve all come from elsewhere” – and his plea for the U.S. to come home “before everything gives way.”

On a more personal note, he philosophizes about life in his ’60s “it’s not so bad / I’ve got a heart full of gratitude / for all I have.” Joseph’s performances continue to be energetic, compelling and passionate and he packs them in during his frequent tours of North America, the U.K. and everywhere else. It’s a musical road he’s been travelling for most of his life, and as he tells his audience, “You keep turning up and so will I.“

- Eric Rosenbaum