This show marks a very welcome return to Irish shores for Jeffrey Martin as he takes to the stage with just his acoustic guitar and an expectation of things to come. The enthusiastic audience greets his presence with great warmth and cheer, making the intimate setting all the more special over a set that includes a generous seventeen songs and much to digest and ponder in the words of wisdom shared.
The main focus of the show revolves around the most recent release THANK GOD WE LEFT THE GARDEN and seven songs are featured, including the sublime There Is A Treasure ‘And all the tools we use to feel important, They are useless as a sailboat in the sky, Where old bones and heartaches are forgotten, It's a place we don't have words to describe.’ A further three songs are performed from ONE GO AROUND, including the heartfelt Poor Man ‘ I'm not a bad man, I'm a poor man sinking.’
An earlier album DOGS IN THE DAYLIGHT provides yet another three songs, and another old favourite Galveston is also a request from the crowd. There is a cover version of a Richard Buckner song Surprise, AZ and this recounts the tragic deaths of a mother and daughter. Other songs, Checkers and Everybody Has A Broken Dream have yet to feature on albums, and a new song is tried in the shape of a fifth century tale in which a young boy goes off to a life of adventure on the ocean wave.
Coal Fire is a tale of trauma, where a firefighter watches a colleague die as they try to contain an underground inferno. Billy Burroughs recounts the life of the beat poet and a pivotal event that changed him and haunted his waking days thereafter. Red Station Wagon speaks to homophobic attitudes and the necessity to speak out in defence of others. Paper Crown views the perversity of chasing power to the detriment of all else, with the enduring force of nature always standing as the real teacher over the longer term.
These songs come from a place of lived experience and are constructed with compassion and humility. There is a deep humanism woven through the words, with a recognition of the fragility of life and in our struggles to find real meaning. There exists an innate sense of loving awareness where the character lines we carry are reflections of the mistakes we make and the perspective gained. Jeffrey Martin is in tune with the beauty inside, a garden that we all possess and can walk in as often as we choose. It’s an intimate place where contentment and peace are never far away.
There is a quiet dignity to be found, but also also a great sense of fun in the stories and tales that Martin relays between songs. It may be his admission to rollerblading in the small hours of morning in his local neighbourhood when the roads are all deserted and everyone is asleep. Or perhaps his decision to dabble in the stock market and the inevitable consequences of the stress levels experienced (referencing mud patches, dog parks, and mushrooms). Surely not the story of the deep shock visited upon a class of young students upon hearing his dark content on a songwriting visit.
Perhaps Jeffrey sums it up perfectly in his song The Middle when he sings ‘Don't go pointing your finger at me, You don't know where I've been or what I've seen, Closing your eyes is not the answer to the riddle, I found it in the middle.’ Indeed, a measure in all things, and a weather eye to keep our fellow man from harm, if we can. Our place in time is akin to drops of water into a vast ocean of life and we leave our own ripples behind when we go. How we choose to live is our choice but with the gentle wisdom of Jeffrey Martin to guide us along, then we are bound to find continued joy in these songs that are a balm for the soul. A quietly superb evening.
Review and photo by Paul McGee