Mark Gillespie – Unplugged

Mark Gillespie has always been a quintessential street musician. Born in Stockport, UK, he continuously travels European streets and cities, performing live in public. Featuring only his voice, guitar and a “loop station“ recorder, he became known for his wonderful cover versions of famous tracks, but also for his authentic original compositions.

In the attempt to raise some money for his travels, he one day took the opportunity to assemble a small band and recorded a CD in Giessen/ Germany. Things went very well, and the musicians took great pleasure in playing together, finally making Mark stay in Giessen!

The resulting “Unplugged“ CD was issued in 2007. However, the term “unplugged“ may not reflect reality 100%, as 2 tracks feature an electric bass, and on another one an electric guitar can be heard. Thus the booklet even cautions the purists (tongue in cheek)!

4 out of 12 tracks are Gillespie‘s own brainchild, all other songs are cover versions. Very well known tracks, such as “Ain‘t no sunshine“ (Bill Withers), “Probably me“ (Sting), “Waiting in vain“ (Bob Marley) and “Crazy“ (Seal) are among them, and the way Mark Gillespie conveys the songs to his personal musical “language“ is remarkable. Cover-art art it’s best!

His meaty voice and his guitar playing skills, ranging from almost romantic to rock-driven, form the backbone of his performances, accompanied by additionaly guitars, bass (Peter Herrmann), flutes (Thomas Drost) and piano (Oliver Jaeger).

The sound quality of the recording is excellent throughout, with high level preformance at all audiophile criteria. Plus it’s really fun to listen to the entire album! For an initial listening you may give the tracks listed below a try. The recording (and more CDs and DVDs by the band) is available through the band’s online shop or at well-assorted record stores.

Recommended tracks: 1, 2, 5, 8, 9