Welsh award winning singer songwriter Martyn Joseph releases a new song from his commission by BBC’s “21st Century Folk” project. This is an ambitious initiative aimed at capturing the essence of life in the North East of England today through the prism of folk songs, offering people from the North East of England the opportunity to have a song written about their life by acclaimed songwriters.
Albert’s Place chronicles the work of Andrea Bell, who, with her fellow volunteers, runs a soup kitchen and food bank called The Sunderland Community Soup Kitchen which serves free food to people in need four nights a week. They have witnessed a big increase in demand during recent times and welcome homeless people and any family or individual struggling to make ends meet.
The Radio 2 Folk Show special presented by Mark Radcliffe and featuring Martyn and Andrea aired on Jan 15th
You can listen to the episode here: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001h6g7
Andrea said: “It’s incredible to have a song written about us and be part of this time capsule encapsulating life in Sunderland.“It was great to meet Martyn and we actually went to see one of his concerts. He visited the kitchen and said he was humbled by what he saw. It’s called Albert’s Place after former owner Albert Gibbons who was a butcher and businessman in the city. He used to help families in need by giving them food. Hopefully we are following in his footsteps.”
Martyn said: “I’ve always felt that music is a big conduit of empathy and hope, and should come alongside us and remind us that we’re not alone in the world. And if you want to tell the story of a big issue, it’s best to find one person within that issue and tell that one person’s story.”
If you would like to make a donation please check out their facebook page here facebook.com/sunderlandcommunitysoupkitchen/
