New Solo Album The Beggar - Out now!
Some of you may know me as the singer on Beggars Opera’s early ’70s albums Act One, Waters of Change and Pathfinder. Leaving the group was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make. It was a period of uncertainty and change, but also of intense creativity, when I began writing my own songs... inspired by the music I have always felt close to, like the Eagles, the Beatles or Frank Sinatra. I'm over the moon that some of these songs I wrote then have now been brought to life on this album, more than fifty years later.
The Beggar tells a story with rock songs, pop songs, also some Latin rhythms... and of course love songs.
The music – professionally arranged and performed by Alias Eye, the band around my son Philip and winners of the SPH Music Masters 2019 – is brought to full expression by the outstanding musicians Vytas Lemke (keyboards, guitars, accordion), Matthias Richter (guitars), Frank Fischer (bass) und Ludwig Benedek (drums, percussion), together with my son Philip and my friend Maxi, who both contributed heartfelt harmonies.
As a little treat, the album also includes some of my own Revox recordings from the 1970s – just me and my guitar – giving a glimpse of those early years in Germany.
It feels like a dream to finally realise this album after so many years, especially as every single song means so much to me... and I hope you will enjoy The Beggar .
Years
New Songs
'70s Acoustic Bonus Tracks
% Love
Youtube
buy and listen
Coverage
It’s hardly to be believed that the voice of the Beggars Opera founder has lost neither power, timbre nor recognisability over five decades!
— Good Times
6/2025
Beautiful songs between rock and ballad. [...] One wants to stop time to fully immerse into the sounds. To really feel the emotions Martin sings about, which one knows oneself, has experienced oneself.
— Obliveon.de
Mario Wolski, 11.11.2025
The songs – written, after all, when Griffiths was just 23 – stand up really well. […] There is a pleasing 1970s singer-songwriter vibe in much of the material.
— The Herald
16.11.25
[The] band Alias Eye with his son Philip [...] accompanies him here with wholehearted dedication and expertise. The instrumentation and harmonies with his Filius and Maxi Sator are a dream!
— Good Times
6/2025
[...] the bonus tracks [...]. Four little gems, recorded in 1975, [...] acoustic guitar and vocals. And [...] incredibly intense. [...] Martin’s voice [...] sounds today just as young and fresh as it did 50 years ago.
— Obliveon.de
Mario Wolski, 11.11.2025
Martin Griffiths’ [...] solo album “The Beggar” now shows him as a versatile singer and songwriter beyond his progressive rock roots. The songs he wrote back in the ’70s carry the spirit of that era
— Just for Kicks
Nov/Dez 2025
[Griffiths] goes all out with “The Beggar”: a prog blast that manages to wink at both “Gypsy” and “Lady In Black”, while still standing as a song in its very own right."
— Good Times
6/2025
Hear Me Calling is here twice - once as a 1973 bonus track demo, with voice and finger-picked acoustic guitar, and as a power ballad, with a quicksilver guitar solo by Alias Eye’s Matthias Richter.
— The Herald
16.11.25
Griffith[s]: “The time was finally right. There are far too few love songs in the world. [...] In a world full of fast, autotune-heavy music and short-lived trends, I wanted to return to my roots."
— Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung
Hans-Joachim Of, 6. November 2025
[...] a solo album [...] together with the musicians from Alias Eye [...]. And what a bloody good choice that was, because this band manages to craft his songs into exactly the right form.
— Obliveon.de
Mario Wolski, 11.11.2025
[...] a majestic palette: "My My My" is delightful Latin pop that could have fitted on a Sinatra–Jobim LP [...]. "She She Woman" even rock ’n’ rolls! Among top ballads is "I’ll Tell Him"
— Good Times
6/2025
“The Beggar" [...] would have been a hit in 1973. "Four Seasons" also has great 70s rock power. [...] "Karey", with accordion in a tango rhythm, genuinely [has] classic qualities [...]. "Dream On/Fly Away" is [...] beautiful art rock.
