BIRMINGHAM: Kitchen Garden Cafe

Thursday 15th December, 2022

7:30pm

Event information

2022 finally sees the re-emergence of British folk’s most enigmatic lost son. You may recognize Matt Deighton from his time fronting Acid Jazz heroes Mother Earth; you may remember him as Paul Weller’s guitarist in the late 90’s, or Noel Gallagher’s recommendation for who should replace him when he quit the European tour in 2000. Or maybe you don’t.

For almost two decades, the man they keep calling the natural successor to Nick Drake, Davey Graham and John Martyn has been himself more of a rumour – a murmur among musicians, songwriters and diehard music lovers who proudly display his rare vinyl releases like trophies. The list of articles in the press and online has continued unabated, forever asking the same question: Where is Matt Deighton?

As the Huffington Post discovered in their recent piece "The Resurrection of Matt Deighton": He’s back. He’s been back a couple of times, and you missed him. For those prospectors looking to pan the stream for a British Sugar Man, Matt’s discography shines like a diamond among the silt. Villager was the subject a few years back of a Mojo ‘Buried Treasure’ feature and is oft hailed as a British folk classic; The Common Good is strewn with British music glitterati such as Paul Weller, Steve White, Mick Talbot and Marco Nelson; and the stunning You Are The Healer features Brian Auger among others. Matt is one of those rare artists that musicians simply want to be associated with. Tom Cox, who reviewed Wake Up The Moths for the Observer Music Monthly recently remarked in the sleeve notes for the vinyl reissue that his only regret when reviewing the album was that he felt his ‘measly four out of five star rating did it a disservice’. Add to that the four stars from Q and Mojo for The Bench Connection, his collaboration with Chris Sheehan in 2007 and you start to get the picture. That’s to say nothing of collaborations with Chris Difford, Dr John and Mighty Baby.

Matt Deighton’s stunning discography is an undiscovered island inhabited by a human being everyone wants to love and protect from the world around him. Matt’s is a story of genuinely great musicianship and song writing; but most of all, of the beauty and fragility of one of Britain’s greatest lost talents and how life around him has sometimes shaped a fate beyond his control; but who has come back withsomething more beautiful every time the storm abated. Yes, Matt Deighton has returned and you probably never knew it. Well now you do; and as the Sunday Times declared “...it’s impossible to imagine fans of Nick Drake of John Martyn not falling in love with him...”.

“Sparkles like a cool sweet cider sipped in a gentle summer breeze” (NME).
“A mellow folk-soul gem, shamefully overlooked… there’s clearly a sharp, undervalued talent at work.” (Mojo 4/5).
“It is impossible to imagine fans of Nick Drake and John Martyn not falling in love…” (Sunday Times).
“One of this country’s best kept secrets… a sense of timelessness enshrouds Deighton… embrace the return of his unique talent” (The Huffington Post).
“Wake Up The Moths is the sound of a craftsman at work, as intricate as a room full of carriage clocks. Beautiful, really.” (Record Collector 4/5).

Support comes from Scottish singer-songwriter Samantha Whates. The Rough Trade Records recording artist is a hugely respected figure on the London folk & roots scene. Her beautifully crafted, poetic songs retain a strong affinity with her Scottish roots, cultivating a sound that is thoroughly contemporary, rooted in tradition, yet uniquely her own.