Robb Johnson’s songwriting acknowledges a spectrum of influences from folk to punk, Billie Holiday to The Velvet Underground, but he has an enduring affinity with the European tradition of literate song.
He organised a UK album of Brel songs in 1997 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Brel’s death, followed by an album of “English Chanson” songs by UK artists. His translations of Brel’s songs have been approved by The Brel Foundation in Brussels and commissioned by UK chanteuse Barb Jungr, who also includes several of Johnson’s own songs in her repertoire.
Tonight Robb performs a programme of his own songs located within the European experience, charting a journey that started 50 years ago when Robb fell in love with Paris, and has continued with regular tours of Belgium and Germany, and the recording of his latest album in Gent, featuring a guest appearance by Flemish Folk Diva Vera Coomans.
“An English original” – The Guardian
“A national treasure” – BBC Radio 2
