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5 Surprising Facts About John Martyn’s ‘One World’
Most people know ‘One World’ as the album that helped invent trip hop before anyone had a name for it. What they don’t know is how it actually got made. Speakers on a punt. Geese on the microphone. Opium at the farm. The story behind John Martyn’s 1977 masterpiece is as strange and beautiful as the record itself.
The Album Was Recorded Outdoors Across a Lake Using Speakers on a Punt
Producer Chris Blackwell didn’t just record ‘One World’ at his Berkshire farm. He put speakers on a punt, floated them into the middle of the surrounding lake, and ran a live feed half a mile from the main farmhouse. Microphones picked up the full ambience of the surroundings, including natural reverb, passing trains, and the farm’s resident geese. Martyn later recalled: “I remember thinking this is fucking wonderful, recording from a speaker a half a mile away across a load of water. That was real ambience.”
“Big Muff” Was Written at Breakfast Over Animal-Shaped Tea Cups
The song co-written with legendary dub producer Lee “Scratch” Perry didn’t emerge from a late-night studio session. It started at a breakfast table when Perry became fixated on tea cups shaped like animals. Martyn recalled Perry going: “Boy, look at the muff on that! Now put this with the pig, see? Now boy, this is one big muff!” The pair wrote the lyrics together on the spot while Martyn added the chords later. Vivien Goldman of Sounds described the result as resembling “a new musical form, jazz-dub.”
“Small Hours” Features a Passing Train That Nobody Planned
The album’s eight-and-a-half minute closing track was recorded outdoors in the early hours of the morning. Blackwell confirmed the sound of geese is audible in the background throughout. At the two-and-a-half minute mark, a train passes by and ends up on the recording. Neither was removed. Blackwell considers the track “one of the best I ever worked on. I think it’s just magical.” Folk musician Ralph McTell was more direct: “If that doesn’t move you, there’s something wrong with you.”
The Album Helped Invent Trip Hop, But Nobody Noticed at the Time
‘One World’ was released at the height of the British punk rock movement in 1977 and was, as Simon Reynolds of The Guardian put it, “gloriously out of step with the UK rock scene.” It took decades for critics to credit the album with helping originate trip hop, a genre that wouldn’t emerge in earnest until the 1990s with Portishead and Massive Attack. World music pioneer Jah Wobble called “Smiling Stranger” a forerunner to Massive Attack’s sound and “one of the great moments in dub.” Brian Boyd of The Irish Times considers it possibly the first album in the genre.
The Album Only Charted Because of a BBC Television Performance
‘One World’ was Martyn’s first album to chart in the UK, reaching number 54, but it needed a specific television moment to get there. On January 10, 1978, Martyn performed at the Collegiate Theatre in London for a special edition of the BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test dedicated entirely to introducing his music to a wider audience. Presenter Bob Harris introduced it the same night it aired. The album debuted on the chart that week and left after one week. Without that broadcast, it likely would have disappeared entirely.
5 Surprising Facts About Iggy Pop’s ‘The Idiot’
David Bowie called Iggy Pop a guinea pig. Pop called the album his “album of freedom.” One critic called it “a funky, robotic Hellhole.” Whoever was right, ‘The Idiot’ is one of the strangest, most influential debut solo albums ever made, and the story behind it is even wilder than the record itself.
Bowie Finished His Own Album First So Nobody Would Think He Stole From Iggy
‘The Idiot’ was completed by August 1976, but RCA didn’t release it until March 1977. Why the wait? Bowie wanted his own album, ‘Low,’ in stores first. The château’s former owner Laurent Thibault put it plainly: Bowie didn’t want people thinking he’d been inspired by Iggy’s record, even though, as Thibault noted, “it was all the same thing.” Bowie recorded ‘Low’ between September and October 1976, released it in January 1977, and only then did ‘The Idiot’ follow two months later.
The Drummer Thought He Was Playing on Demos
Michel Santangeli was hired to play drums at the Château d’Hérouville and was given minimal guidance. For two days, he played to what he assumed were rough demo tracks. He was wrong. Those first takes became part of the final mix. Bowie dismissed him at the end of the second day, leaving Santangeli convinced his playing had been rejected. He later expressed regret over the final drum sound, not knowing his work was already on the record.
“Nightclubbing” Was Built Around a Drum Machine Because Iggy Refused Real Drums
When Bowie finished the music for “Nightclubbing,” he insisted real drums were needed to complete it. Iggy Pop refused. Pop had written the lyrics on the spot in ten minutes, Bowie suggesting he write about “walking through the night like ghosts,” and he was done. He told Bowie the Roland drum machine “kicks ass, it’s better than a drummer.” The machine stayed. Nine Inch Nails later used a modified sample of that same Roland bass drum on their 1994 hit “Closer.”
“China Girl” Was Inspired by a Woman Who Didn’t Speak the Same Language as Iggy
During recording at the château, French actor and singer Jacques Higelin visited with his Vietnamese girlfriend Kuelan Nguyen. Pop had a brief affair with Nguyen despite the fact that the two did not share a common language, communicating only through gestures and expressions. Pop improvised the lyrics for “China Girl” while standing at the microphone, and the protagonist’s whispered “Shhh…” in the song was a direct quote from Nguyen after Pop confessed his feelings for her one night.
Ian Curtis Was Playing ‘The Idiot’ When He Died
Joy Division formed in the months between the releases of ‘Low’ and ‘The Idiot,’ and both records hit them hard. ‘The Idiot’ directly shaped the industrial soundscapes and relentless percussion of their debut album ‘Unknown Pleasures’ (1979). The connection runs deeper than influence though. When Joy Division singer Ian Curtis was found having died by suicide in May 1980, ‘The Idiot’ was still playing on the turntable.
5 Surprising Facts About Iggy Pop’s ‘Lust For Life’
If you know Iggy Pop’s “Lust for Life,” you probably know it from a cruise ship commercial, a Trainspotting montage, or that moment someone plays it at a party and everyone suddenly feels invincible. But the story behind the album is far stranger and more fascinating than the song’s second life as a motivational anthem suggests. Here are five facts about the 1977 classic that might genuinely surprise you.
The Whole Album Was Written, Recorded, and Mixed in Eight Days
Iggy Pop said it himself. Eight days. The entire record, done. Pop, David Bowie, and the band moved into Hansa Studio by the Wall in West Berlin in May 1977 and came out the other side with one of rock’s most enduring albums. They had money left over from the advance, which Pop and Bowie split.
The Famous Opening Drumbeat Was Inspired by a Morse Code Broadcast
That iconic driving rhythm on “Lust for Life,” the one Joy Division’s Stephen Morris said he “wanted to sound like, still do,” wasn’t born from pure rock instinct. Bowie based the riff on the Morse code opening of the American Forces Network news in Berlin, which the two caught while waiting for a broadcast of Starsky and Hutch.
“The Passenger” Was Written by the Guitarist, Not Bowie
Most people assume Bowie’s fingerprints are all over every corner of the album. But the music for “The Passenger” was composed entirely by guitarist Ricky Gardiner, who came up with the riff while wandering through the countryside “in the field beside an orchard, on one of those glorious spring days with the trees in full blossom.” Pop wrote the lyrics largely on the spot in the studio.
The Band Swapped Instruments for One Track
For the impromptu “Fall in Love with Me,” the band shuffled positions entirely. Hunt Sales moved from drums to bass, Tony Fox Sales moved from bass to guitar, and Ricky Gardiner, normally the lead guitarist, played drums. It started as a jam and Pop wrote the lyrics around it afterward.
RCA Buried the Album Because Elvis Presley Died
‘Lust for Life’ received almost no promotion from its own label. The reason? Elvis Presley died two weeks after the album’s September 9, 1977 release, and RCA was fixated on reissuing his catalog. Once the first pressing sold out, there were no more copies. Tony Sales recalled simply: “Lust for Life just disappeared from the shelves, and that was it.” It took a 1996 British film called Trainspotting to finally give the album the audience it always deserved.
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Engage Release New Single ‘Unbattered,’ A Triumphant Roots Rock Anthem From New Brunswick’s Most Compelling Band
New Brunswick folk-rock outfit Engage have released ‘Unbattered’, the lead North American single from their album ‘The Master Plan’. Written by vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Carla Bonnell – a SOCAN member and inductee into both the Minto Country Music Wall of Fame and the New Brunswick Country Music Hall of Fame – the track is a declaration of resilience delivered with the kind of craft and emotional authority that has defined Engage since their formation in 2020.
‘Unbattered’ moves with the unhurried confidence of a song that knows exactly what it wants to say. Bonnell’s vocal performance anchors the track as the band – Rick Bartlett on guitar and vocals, Vernon Daigle on bass, and Greg Mansfield on drums and percussion – builds a warm, grounded arrangement around it. The production, mixed and mastered by Jim Zolis of Zolis Audio, gives the track the kind of clarity and depth that lets every element breathe. It is roots rock at its most purposeful.
The lyric is direct and unflinching. “I’m not the girl you shattered / I’m not the one that you tore down / I am the one that remains unbattered / and I will rise for another round” – lines that land with the weight of lived experience and the warmth of hard-won clarity. Bonnell’s songwriting has always drawn from honesty and introspection, and ‘Unbattered’ is among her most immediate work.
Formed from a shared commitment to letting songs find their own shape, Engage have steadily built one of Atlantic Canada’s most distinctive catalogs – earning a Bronze Award for Band Album of the Year at the International Singer-Songwriters Association for their debut ‘The Time Has Come’, and multiple nominations for their follow-up ‘Master Plan: Side “EH”‘. ‘Unbattered’ makes clear that ‘The Master Plan’ is the next step in that evolution. Some songs arrive like a statement. This is one of them.
Collingwood’s Shjaane Glover Earns Honourable Mention At International Songwriters Day Song Contest With “Effervescence”
Southern Ontario singer-songwriter Shjaane Glover has earned an Honourable Mention at the 2026 International Songwriters Day Song Contest for his song “Effervescence,” as announced on April 9 – International Songwriters Day itself. The contest, which drew entries from Norway, Taiwan, Austria, the UK, New Zealand, Sweden, the US, and across Canada, celebrated the most inspirational works in songwriting, and placed Glover in distinguished international company. The recognition arrives at an especially charged moment: his vibrant new single “Conjure This” and the full six-song EP of the same name are both out now.
The timing feels like more than coincidence. “Effervescence” and “Conjure This” are, at their core, expressions of the same creative conviction – that music can hold complexity and joy simultaneously, that resilience has a sound, and that an honest song is always worth writing. To receive this international acknowledgement in the same week that his EP arrives is a testament to the momentum Glover has been quietly and purposefully building.
The contest, which runs annually from December 1 through April 2, is judged by a panel of music industry professionals and recognises works across the categories of song, lyric, and music video. This year’s panel included industry figures Mike Gormley, Martin Isherwood, Brent Backhus, David Eaton, and Diana Williamson – voices with the breadth of experience to understand that “inspirational” is not a genre but a quality of attention.
“Conjure This,” the EP’s title track and lead single, was written during a surf trip in Nicaragua – born from the striking emotional paradox of standing on a beautiful beach while navigating heavy news from home. That collision of sensation and circumstance became the song’s engine: a sun-drenched, rhythmic anthem to staying present when life feels most unpredictable. “The air you breathe it is real / Don’t try to change how you taste it / Or tell me how to feel / I’ll try a new vacation yeah,” Glover sings – lines that carry the same insistence on lived, immediate experience that earned “Effervescence” its recognition.
The production of “Conjure This” – helmed by collaborator Craig Smith and animated by drummer Jenna Applewhaite and Jay Stiles’ buoyant organ work – marks a dynamic evolution in Glover’s sonic palette, expanding his earlier introspective textures into a lush, full-band landscape that sits at the intersection of indie-alternative grit and folk-rock polish. The same warmth and emotional precision that characterise “Effervescence” are present here, now filtered through a fuller, more celebratory sound.
Based in Collingwood on the shores of Georgian Bay, Glover has built a reputation for music that lives at the junction of atmosphere and raw emotional clarity – songs shaped by geography, experience, and an unwillingness to look away from what is true. His high-energy live presence transforms studio recordings into immersive events, and audiences have come to expect performances that are as honest as they are galvanising.
Glover celebrated the EP’s release with a hometown show at Side Launch Brewing in Collingwood last week and will make a summer appearance at the Four Winds Music Festival on July 11.
Canadian Blues Music Award Winner OLLEE OWENS Announces New Album With Grammy-Winning Producer Colin Linden And Tour Dates
Ollee Owens is having a year. The Calgary-based blues and Americana artist has taken home the inaugural Canadian Blues Music Award for Emerging Blues Artist or Group of the Year – recognising her album Nowhere to Hide and cementing her place as one of the most vital new voices in Canadian blues. With over 2.5 million social media views in 2025, a Roots Music Report chart run that placed her album in the Canadian Top 10 for over 35 weeks including five at #1, and now a national award to her name, Owens is no longer an artist to watch. She has arrived.
And she is already looking ahead. Owens has announced that she will be recording her next album in Nashville with producer Colin Linden – a pairing that signals serious artistic ambition. Linden is one of the most decorated figures in Canadian and American roots music: a Grammy winner for producing Keb’ Mo’s Oklahoma, the recipient of nine Juno Awards from 25 nominations, a Maple Blues lifetime achievement award winner, and the musician whose guitar runs through the soundtracks of the Coen brothers’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Inside Llewyn Davis. He has produced and played alongside Bruce Cockburn, Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, Emmylou Harris, John Prine, and Gregg Allman, and served as musical director for the ABC series Nashville.
For Owens to enter the studio with Linden is to step into a lineage of blues and roots recording that runs deep – and the match of his soulful, genre-rooted instincts with her commanding voice and unflinching songwriting is one of the most exciting prospects in Canadian blues right now.
Owens’ journey from a small farming community in Manitoba to award-winning artist is extraordinary. Inspired by blues legends and gospel greats, she began writing songs at eight and picked up the guitar at twelve – before stepping back from music to raise her three daughters. The music never left her, and in 2022 she returned with Cannot Be Unheard, proving her voice was built to be felt. Since then, she has shared festival stages with Dawn Tyler Watson and Matt Andersen and performed at B.B. King’s Blues Club in Memphis. Nowhere to Hide, produced at Nashville’s Sweetbriar Studio with Bobby Blazier and an all-star lineup including guitarist Will McFarlane, bassist Tommy Sims, and keyboardist De Marco Johnson, earned praise from Blues Matters, Blues Music Magazine, and Americana Highways, which called it one of the strongest surprises of 2024.
The video for the title track – shot in a cavernous warehouse with a massive projection screen juxtaposing historic and contemporary struggles – made an immediate impact, and her previous video ‘Shivers and Butterflies’ amassed nearly 800,000 views in a single month. Draped in bold red to symbolise courage, Owens delivers a searing performance with the urgency of a woman who has walked through fire and come out stronger. “I wanted to create a visual bridge between history and the challenges we face now,” she explains. “The troubles we sense, see, and experience may change shape, but the fight remains.”
Owens brings her celebrated live show back to western Canadian stages this spring and summer. A vocal powerhouse whose passion for authentic connection is unmistakable in person, she will appear at Hard Knox Brewery in Diamond Valley on April 18, Kinfest in Millarville, AB on June 20, Summer in the Park in Lacombe on June 24, the Camrose Blues Festival on July 17, the Venue Summer Concert Series in High River on August 2 and Nanaimo Blues Festival on August 8.
The blues has always been about finding strength in the struggle. With a national award, a legendary producer, and a summer of stages ahead, Ollee Owens is making it clear she is just getting started.
Tour Dates:
June 20 at 7:45 PM – Kinfest – Millarville, AB
June 24, 2026 at 6:00 PM – Summer in the Park – Lacombe, AB
July 17, 2026 at 6:00 PM – Camrose Blues Festival – Camrose, AB
July 30, 2026 at 6:00 PM – Private Event – Calgary, AB
August 2, 2026 at 1:00 PM – The Venue Summer Concert Series – High River, AB
August 8 at 3:00 PM – Nanaimo Blues Festival – Nanaimo, BC
Howdytoons, The Toronto Band With 1.5 Billion YouTube Streams, Releases Ferocious New Single “Smilodon” And Debut Album ‘Megafauna Metal’
Howdytoons – the Toronto-based band behind the most-streamed dinosaur music on the planet, with over 1.5 billion YouTube streams and more than 50 million Spotify plays to their name – today release “Smilodon,” the lead single from their debut full-length album ‘Megafauna Metal,’ out now. Written by Mike Whitla and his son Jake, the track is a prowling, snarling portrait of the prehistoric sabre-toothed predator – delivered with the kind of riffing intensity that has earned Howdytoons a place on Spotify’s editorial Hard Rock playlist and the respect of some of the biggest names in metal.
“Smilodon” arrives as the culmination of a creative evolution that began with a one-man recording project and has grown into something far larger. “My eyes are burning bright / I’m the prowler in the night / Listen and you’ll hear my song / Sabertooth tiger, is the Smilodon,” the track opens – before the song builds through a chase sequence of escalating ferocity, each verse tightening the coil until the kill is complete. It is a master class in narrative heavy metal, and a showcase for Jake Whitla’s emergence as a formidable songwriting force in his own right. “Smilodon is Jake’s fantastic contribution to this album,” says Mike. “He’s a jazz prodigy now turning his talents to metal – and he relishes this chance to live out his boyhood dream of making rockin’ dinosaur music with his dad.”
‘Megafauna Metal’ is the first full-length album from the Prehistorica series, the Howdytoons project co-written since 2017 with guitar virtuoso James Reid. The album is a genuine all-star achievement: Marco Minnemann – the drummer of choice for Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Nuno Bettencourt – plays on every track from 2020 on, having first joined Howdytoons for the recording of “Megalodon.” Billy Sheehan, the legendary bassist from Mr. Big and David Lee Roth’s band, adds his unmistakable authority to “Mastodon.” And Rody Walker of Protest the Hero – who discovered Howdytoons while listening with his young son and reached out to collaborate – delivers a performance on “Quetzalcoatlus” that Sleeping Village Reviews describes as possessing “a certain pedigree,” noting that “the kinetic songwriting itself sucks you in.”
The album also functions as a tribute. “Mastodon” is an explicit homage to the metal band of the same name – a gesture of respect toward a group that has inspired Howdytoons deeply and that speaks to the seriousness with which this band approaches its craft. That seriousness is everywhere on ‘Megafauna Metal:’ in the scientific accuracy woven through every lyric, in the animation created in close collaboration with Kolkata-based artist Soujoy Kumar Bhowmick, and in the album’s ambition to deliver prehistoric natural history through the most electrifying vehicle available – heavy metal.
The Howdytoons story began in 2011 when Mike Whitla released Dinostory: The Ultimate Dinosaur Rock Opera, a song-cycle following Terri the Triceratops that would eventually spawn billions of streams and millions of subscribers across multiple YouTube channels. What started as a solo project has grown into a three-person songwriting ensemble – Mike Whitla, James Reid, and Jake Whitla – with a live debut planned for 2027 that will bring the full energy of these recordings to the stage for the first time. ‘Megafauna Metal’ is their most powerful statement yet: proof that kids’ music and genuine metal credibility are not opposites – and that the prehistoric world has never sounded this alive.
Mandy Faye Releases Joyful New Children’s Jazz Album ‘My Friends’ Celebrating Community
Mandy Faye (they/them), formerly Music With Mandy, the beloved Calgary-based children’s artist best described as “The Wiggles meets Diana Krall” – is thrilled to announce the release of their new album, ‘My Friends,’ out May 10. A richly layered journey through the many facets of friendship, the album travels across jazz, swing, bossa nova, and beyond, showcasing Mandy’s signature gift for crafting music that delights children while pulling grown-ups into the joy right alongside them.
Recorded with an all-star ensemble of Alberta’s finest jazz and children’s musicians – including Matt Morris on piano, Kodi Hutchinson on bass, Jim Johnston on drums, André Wickenheiser on cornet, Carsten Rubeling on trombone, Keith O’Rourke on clarinet, and even Bob Fenske on spoons – ‘My Friends’ is a genuine collaborative achievement. Each track is a carefully crafted invitation into a world where imagination, kindness, and togetherness take centre stage. From the rollicking energy of “Sugar Rush” to the tender warmth of “A Little Time,” the album pulses with authenticity and genuine musical sophistication – the kind that earns it a rightful place on grown-up playlists, too.
The heart of the album is community – the kind that forms across distances, across differences, and across kitchen tables laden with holiday food. The track “Celebrate Over Supper” captures this spirit with vivid warmth: “We’ll celebrate over supper / Laughin’, eatin’, talkin’ with friends / Celebrate over supper / Then we go play in the den.” The song was inspired by Mandy’s upbringing as a “Misplaced Manitoban” in Medicine Hat, Alberta – where their family, far from extended relatives, built a chosen family of friends who gathered each Christmas to share traditional foods, hot tub misadventures, and the particular magic of belonging. It is storytelling that resonates across generations.
That theme of connection across distance runs beautifully through “Travelling,” one of the album’s most tender moments. Drawn from Mandy’s own experience of a family scattered across Canada – with parents in Manitoba and a brother in the Yukon – the song captures the pull of the road trip and the joy waiting at the end of it: “I’d drive all day long / And some of the night / Cross the miles between us / So we can reunite.” It is a song that speaks to anyone who has ever counted the kilometres to someone they love – and it lands with resonance for young listeners navigating friendships across school transitions, neighbourhoods, and life changes.
Mandy Faye’s path to becoming one of Canada’s most distinctive children’s artists is as singular as their sound. Grounded in jazz studies at MacEwan University and honed through years of teaching music across Alberta – they are currently a vocal instructor with the Calgary Stampede’s Young Canadians School and an early childhood music instructor at Chinook School of Music – Mandy brings a rare educator’s intentionality to every song they write. Their performances have captivated audiences at the International Children’s Festival for the Arts, Red Deer Children’s Festival, JazzYYC, Calgary Pride, and the National Music Centre, earning multiple YYC Music Award nominations and a WCMA nod along the way. Beginning in early April, Mandy is also releasing weekly interdisciplinary lesson plans that are aligned with Alberta Curriculum on their YouTube channel to help Alberta teachers bring music curriculum alive – a testament to their belief that music education is not a supplement but a foundation.
“Kids’ music has the power to be nostalgic and innovative at the same time,” says Mandy. “I get to write songs that inspire the next generation, while also creating moments where adults can reconnect with joy and play alongside their kids. What could be better than that?” ‘My Friends’ is the fullest expression of that philosophy to date – an album conceived in the spirit of togetherness and built in collaboration with some of Alberta’s most gifted musicians. Songs like “Vacation in the Stars” and “Sugar Rush,” which grew out of songwriting sessions with young collaborators, have already inspired Mandy to launch a songwriting workshop that has been presented dozens of times across Canada, proving the music’s capacity to spark creativity in kids everywhere.
To celebrate the release, Mandy Faye will bring ‘My Friends’ to stages across Alberta this spring. The album release concert takes place May 3, 2026 at cSpace King Edward in Calgary, followed by performances at the International Children’s Festival of the Arts in St. Albert on May 29–30, and the inaugural Chestermere Children’s Festival on June 20. These shows promise to be everything Mandy Faye does best – high-energy, heartfelt, and utterly magnetic for audiences of all ages.
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ABOUT MANDY FAYE
Mandy Faye (they/them) is equal parts musician, educator, and coffee. Best described as The Wiggles meets Diana Krall, their high-energy stage presence and thoughtful songwriting have won the hearts of audiences across Canada. Nominated for multiple YYC Music Awards and a WCMA, Mandy performs as both a children’s entertainer and a jazz-rooted educator, with an ongoing commitment to making music accessible and transformative for young audiences and the teachers who guide them.
TOUR DATES
May 3, 2026 – Album Release Concert | cSpace King Edward | Calgary, Alberta. Tickets here.
May 4, 2026 – Album Release Concert I cSpace King Edward | Calgary, Alberta. Tickets here.
May 29–30, 2026 – International Children’s Festival of the Arts | St. Albert, Alberta
June 20, 2026 – Chestermere Children’s Festival | Chestermere, Alberta