Martin McNeill is a guitarist and singer playing traditional blues with soul.

Martin hosts sessions every Wednesday at the Green Bottle jazz and blues bar, where he plays with guests, including some of the biggest names on the blues scene. It’s upstairs at the Greedy Breakfast, Rectory Grove, Leigh-on-Sea. Details here: https://bottleneck-blues.com/leigh-blues-nights/

He has received high praise for his live performances, recordings and online livestreams. Radio presenter and music promoter Stephen Foster calls him “one of the country’s finest bottleneck blues guitarists.”

Martin is steeped in vintage blues, drawing on slide guitar masters Fred McDowell, Tampa Red, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Earl Hooker and Ry Cooder. But it’s not all straight blues; his sets often include reworkings of classic soul hits from the likes of Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Sam Cooke and Ray Charles.

Martin’s long-running Bottleneck Blues Band often features West Weston on harmonica or Tim Huskisson on piano. The regular rhythm section is JJ Zarbo on upright bass and Roy Webber on drums.

Martin gained an international following though online sessions. The livestreams started as weekly performances during the pandemic and are now once a month from his Facebook page, usually on the last Thursday of the month.

Martin has regularly been cited in the UK Blues Awards, becoming an acoustic act finalist in 2024 (also nominated in this category in 2023 and 2025). He was nominated for record of year in 2020 and as traditional act of the year in 2025 and 2026.

He won instrumentalist of the year in the 2022 GSMC awards, organised by music promoter Graham Steel to recognise grassroots music acts. He was shortlisted again in 2023.

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