If one were to relate the songs of Jeffrey Martin to great literature, they wouldn’t be totally out of bounds. The Portland singer-songwriter gathers most of his inspiration not just from his own reflections on life, but the literary structure employed by some of his favorite authors to develop their stories.
This unusually academic basis for his tunes may come from the fact that Martin used to work full-time as a high school teacher. Though he’s since quit his job to commit to his career as an artist full-time instead, his experiences with his past students have stuck with him, as have the works of the likes of John Steinbeck, Annie Proulx, and Raymond Carver.
Martin’s latest full-length album, One Go Around, is releasing via Fluff & Gravy on 13 October. Before its release, he’s dished out the song’s title track as its latest single. The emotional tune features graceful melodies courtesy of an electric guitar as Martin fills the rest of the soundscape with his emotive, storyteller’s vocals.
On the track, Martin says, “I think we only get one chance at this life and that means that our questions and our pursuits and our risks and our love and our effort should all be potent as hell.”