Martin learnt the piano and violin from aged 9 and started out on learning the dark art of reading music. The piano soon became a fixation along with the guitar from age 13 but the Bass guitar followed which became a very close second favourite after Piano. Having been lucky to go to a Comprehensive School where Music was highly supported, he joined the School Orchestra (on Violin) and School Wind Band (on percussion). By 14 he became the leader of the Orchestra which entered the National Festival of Music For Youth (NFMY) and after competing in regional heats they got to the finals at the Royal Festival Hall where they won the National School Orchestra category. The prize was to take part in the televised Schools Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in 1983 where he again led the orchestra.
Throughout this time he teamed up with his best buddy (of now 40 years) Graham Scambler who was percussionist in the orchestra and Drummer in the Wind Band. Martin moved from violin to Double Bass and also bought his first Bass Guitar which he then played in the school Wind Band. They also passed through their NFMY heats in 1985 and won the category nationally at the Royal Festival Hall and subsequently appeared at the Northern Schools prom at the Free Trade Hall, Manchester. Having achieved Grade 8 Double Bass, Martin joined the Staffordshire County Music Symphony Orchestra who also won their NFMY regional heats and final at the Royal Festival Hall and appeared at the same Schools prom in Manchester. This meant Martin opened the concert with the School Wind Band (with God Save The Queen amongst other items) and ended the concert with the Staffs Symphony Orchestra (with Land Of Hope And Glory amongst other items). And he had also joined the Staffordshire County Youth Big Band on Bass Guitar where he first experienced many Jazz standards whilst playing in a 17 piece band.
Martin joined his first Pop band Apollo which was made up of Martin (Piano, Bass, vocals), Graham Scambler (Lead vocals, Drums) and Mike Gething (Acoustic Guitar, Vocals) who all went to the same school and were in the Orchestra and Wind Band.
By this time Martin was studying A Level Music and had also received an unconditional offer from what was then the highest regarded Light Music (Pop and Jazz) course in the UK at Leeds College of Music to study Bass and Piano. However Martin’s mate Graham had different ideas and having put an advert in The Stage weekly paper offering “Bassist and Drummer for hire – can read music” were summoned to an audition to join a Cruise ship band – and they got the gig. Martin’s dad had to sign the contract as he was still 17 at the time.
So Martin and Graham joined the Silhouette Band which played aboard the Greek Epirotiki Lines ships Argonaut, Oceanos and Jupiter in the summer of 1986 around Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Israel.
While on the Jupiter the BBC filmed a Cruise documentary showing life on board featuring the Entertainment staff (including the Band) which was broadcast the next year.
On finishing that season, Martin joined the Flair band aboard the Jason and did a South American cruise from Brazil round Patagonia and Cape Horn to
Chile and up to the Caribbean (he’d repeat this cruise 3 years later with John Rutherford). Next season Martin was back with Flair on the Jason to do the St Lawrence River cruises for Thompson Canada and then down to the Bahamas.
After this, Flair joined the Ocean Islander for cruises in South America and the Caribbean before doing a trans-Atlantic cruise back to Europe. During the Summer of 1988 Martin was asked to join a band whose Bass Player was leaving early in the season and is when he became part of the legendary Tradewinds Band with Mike O’Hagan (Bandleader and Drums), Graham Taylor (Piano) and one John Rutherford (Lead Vocals and Guitar). They cruised around the UK and Northern Europe on the Neptune and then that winter were joined by John “Jaggy” Houston on Piano and went on the Orpheus to South America doing a trans-Atlantic cruise out (over Christmas and New Year) and also one back with no passengers (where poker was played for 11 days).
1989 saw Tradewinds do 6 weeks around the Med on the Jason and then the bulk of the summer on the Aegean Dolphin also around Europe. By this time at the ripe old age of 21 Martin decided to hang up his passport and stay in the UK. On moving to London he joined a Pop Band called Jump The Gap which he gigged and recorded with for 3 years. This included gigs at the famous Mean Fiddler and also supporting Les Gray’s Mud.
By this time Martin had bought and electric MIDI Piano and his own 4 track recorder and he dedicated the next 10 years to writing and home recording, especially when upgrading to Computer software and sound modules. The next 20 years were spent raising a family but also doing the occasional collaboration with Graham Scambler. Performance very much took a back seat (as Martin is the first to tell you, he was never keen) but he did the occasional Wedding and Party gig on bass and piano with legendary Somerset singer/songwriter and entertainer Keith Dennelly and his band Insomniac Jack.
In December 2020 Martin discovered that John Rutherford was recording and uploading his output to YouTube and it was through a message there that they got back in contact after 30 years. And then having both formed The John Martin Experience, Martin is delighted to be back in collaboration with John and finding a vehicle where his recording continues with purpose.