Michael Marra
"To Dundonians, he's the troubador poet who has sculpted from the rhythms and accents of their city a songbook so comprehensive it should be required listening for anyone venturing over the Tay Bridge. To football fans he's the author of Hamish The Goalie, an ode in song to Hamish McAlpine, the legendary Dundee United stopper. And to connoisseurs of Scottish music he shares best kept secret status with people like Bert Jansch and Davy Graham.
"Marra's father had two musical heroes: Duke Ellington and Ludwig van Beethoven, and the house shook to the sounds of both. The only time Marra saw his father comb his hair was the night in the late 1960s when he went to see Ellington perform in Dundee. Marra's mother, meanwhile, sang with the city's Cecilian Choir and played piano, an old Bluthner upright that Marra still uses today.
"Distill those twin parental influences and you have the essence of Marra's own oeuvre: part jazz, part blues; drawn around piano and guitar; rooted in that tradition of Celtic eloquence and hewn out of his mother tongue."
(Barry Didcock, Sunday Herald)
Listen to
Michael Marra
- Angela Gunn [3.27Mb]
- Bob Dylan's Visit to Embra [1.92Mb]
- Botanic Endgame [4.22Mb]
- Frieda Kahlo's Visit To The Taybridge Bar [2.82Mb]
"We saw him as support to Loudon Wainwright III on Sunday. Absolutely phenomenal. I'd never even heard of Michael Marra. What a talented guy. He went down a storm, and I'm now looking to buy some CD's. If you have a mailing list for tour dates, please put me on it. I would love to see him play again. He had us laughing and almost crying, and then crying with laughter. 10 out of 10. No, 11 out of 10."
(Audience member, Salford Lowry; Oct 2003)
"Michael Marra is undoubtedly the most talented songwriter in Britain and the most entertaining performer. Michael, would you consider living in London please?"
(Ken Lees, former booker, Old Rose and Crown FC, London)
"Michael Marra's Visit to the Birnam Institute. It sounds like one of his own song titles but it was a rare live appearance in Highland Perthshire by this awesomely talented man."
(Alan Brown, Aberfeldy)
"Michael Marra is one of the most inspiring acts we have had here. His songs are finely crafted works of art, offering insightful observance into human behaviour tinged with wonderfully dark humour. Marra is a man for the people, so down to earth, but with a perception most of us mere mortals would die for! As a performer, his years of experience have given him the ability to put an audience instantly at ease, allowing them to fully enjoy his startling musicianship and spine tingling voice. There is a refreshing, rarely seen honesty and emotion to everything he does.
"Genius is not a word I use lightly, but Michael Marra falls comfortably into this category. Go see him as soon as you can."
(Mark Gordon, Scholars Notes, Scarborough, Yorkshire)
For more information visit
Michael Marra's Website
Michael Marra Myspace
Current Availability
Check availability with John Barrow
