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MARTIN SEXTON |
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A native of Syracuse, New
York, Martin Sexton grew up on the timeless sounds of
Seventies radio, from Stevie Wonder to Led Zeppelin (who
led him toward blues legends like Howlin Wolf and Willie
Dixon). Sexton eventually migrated to Boston, where he
began to build his following singing on the streets of
Harvard Square and gradually working his way into the
club scene. His 1992 collection of self-produced demo
recordings, IN THE JOURNEY, as well as his captivating
live appearances, led to a bounty of Boston Music
Awards, not to mention the National Academy of
Songwriters "Artist of the Year" award. 1996 saw Sexton release his first full-fledged studio recording, BLACK SHEEP, which remains an active favorite among the fans. While the acclaimed Atlantic debut, 1998s THE AMERICAN, was produced in collaboration with session guitarist/producer Danny Kortchmar, on the next record the songwriter opted to take the reins himself. On WONDER BAR (2000),
the highly-anticipated second Atlantic release, Martin
Sexton was able to fashion an extraordinary collection
of songs, reconstructing the spirited sound and
unpretentious attitude of that classic 1970s FM radio
for a new generation. "I wanted the record to sound natural and true," Sexton smiles, "a little sweaty with some fat on it, nothing too clean. There are a lot of little mistakes on there, which I think are beautiful." "It just seemed unnecessary to bring a producer in because I knew basically what I wanted to do," Sexton says. "I have been inspired by other artists, namely Ani diFranco, who had no problem producing themselves. I wanted to make a record where I had room to breathe. I did not want to waste someone else's time if I was going to go chase down some idea that might be completely unusable. I wanted to be up until 3am, messing around with the piano, tuning it funny, or trying to get the right sound on the guitar." While Sexton enjoyed the uncommon artistic freedom and the backing a major label can provide, he was still left wondering if that large corporate machinery was necessary... Happily independent, Martin Sexton launched his own label Kitchen Table Records (2002) with his first official live release, a double-cd set, LIVE WIDE OPEN. Mixed by John Alagia (Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer), the sound of the record manages to capture the energy of the artist connecting with the crowd, while at the same time highlighting the joy and skill of any Martin Sexton musical performance. Renowned as a full-stop road warrior, Sexton has traveled the globe with his guitar slung on his back and a heart full of soul. While his songs are intricate and fully fleshed, Sexton, who manages to play inventive guitar parts while also adding bass lines with his thumb, has no intentions of changing his idiosyncratic live persona. "I'm going to keep it stripped down on the road," he says, "I think there's a surprise element to one guy on stage sounding like three. The road and the records are two very different things. It's like a dual life."
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