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Since I brought up that the recently departed, late and great John Martyn was a fisher, I thought I'd add a bit of fishin' content I found in searching the Net.

From an April 2004 interview:

"...the keen fisherman [Martyn] aims to get back fishing. However, the River Nore which flows close by wouldn't be his first choice. "I actually prefer little small streams where I can catch sea trout, " he says..."

http://www.rteguide.ie/2009/0129/staroftheday.html

From his old comrade, bassist Danny Thompson:

"We were driving from Exeter to Bristol, just the two of us on the road, and he said, 'I fancy doing a bit of fishing'. So we pulled into this village and we found this fishing shop. Now I know nothing about fishing. And there was this unbelievable rod, which means nothing to me, a rod's a rod. So we both go into this shop, and he starts saying to this bloke, 'I want that rod, and this, and that'. And the bloke says, 'Sorry it's not for sale'.

He took an immediate dislike to us because he thought we were 'oiks'. So John says, 'You think I'm not a genuine fisherman or something! That is a so and so rod. If you like I'll tie you a Spring Mayfly!' And there and then he picks some dust up off the floor and makes this fly for the bloke in the shop, and then starts talking about stuff that means absolutely nothing to me. And the bloke is absolutely stunned. He ended up getting the rod out of the window, flogging it to him, cash. John bought the gear and said 'Where's the nearest bit of fishing round here?' The bloke says, 'There's this lake, go and see the Bailiff, his name's so and so'.

So we went up to this place and I thought, right I'll just sit here and watch him do this pathetic activity. So John started fishing, doing all this fly stuff. So I sat on the riverbank and said, 'That's so easy', John turned round and said 'You what!' 'It's so easy, all it is is timing, all it is is rhythm. It's so easy'. He said, 'Do you think you could do it?' I went charging down the riverbank and said 'give us it here', he said 'careful son, you don't know what you're doing'. I said, 'Just give me the rod!' I dragged it off him and he said, 'now be careful' and I said 'just go away!' I cast and the fly went rip, and it got stuck right in my cheek.

So there I am, standing there holding this rod with this fishing line stuck in my cheek. Now I thought nothing much about it and said 'John, get it out of me' and he said 'I can't! Because what you're supposed to do is to push the hook through, cut the barb off and then take it out, and I haven't got any tools with me.' So I said 'just pull it out', and he said 'It'll take half your face off.' So I said 'I can't drive with it sticking out of me face like this.' He said 'You'll have to do it.' So I thought right, and I went like that, but I knew I couldn't, as I knew when it was going to happen; but if John did it, then I wouldn't.

So I said 'I'll just look at that blackbird sitting up in that tree, and you do it when I'm not thinking about it.' So of course I didn't have to say anymore to John, he went 'alright'. BANG! And I went 'there you go, brilliant'. He said 'No, the hook's still in your face'. He broke the line and broke the top of the hook off. Then he said 'you'll be alright, it'll just get into your blood stream, go round your body, get to your heart and you'll die in about two years and you won't know anything about it'. The hook's still in there, when it gets cold you can see a blue hook in my cheek!" - Danny http://www.johnmartyn.com...0Notes%20-%20One%20World

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might as well put up one more John Martyn YouTube link- his live performances are extraordinarily well-represented there, compared to even top-selling artists. This one is perhaps his well-known tune, due to Eric Clapton covering it and having a pretty good radio play hit with it- "May You Never." This version features Martyn doing a vocal duet with Kathy Mattea, sidekick Thompson on bass and Jerry Douglas doing his usual 5-star turn on the dobro. If you've never witnessed "musical chemistry" before, here's your big chance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBPTuAl2Qyk