Robb Johnson
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Robb Johnson's Acoustic Irregulars (3 piece)
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Murder at the Grange
A festive whodunnit featuring a cast of Irregulars (5 piece) available throughout late November and December.
Robb Johnson says he’s just a bloke with a guitar. He is. But he’s one who has chronicled our times: painting the less-than-sunny political landscape in the moonlight of the personal. Just like a folk singer should.
"Britain's finest songwriter since Richard Thompson"- Venue / "Love songs as touching as the political material is sharp." - Red Pepper / "An English original" - Robin Denselow, The Guardian / "The real deal when it comes to songwriting" - Mike Harding / “One of this country’s most important songwriters (no argument!)” -(fRoots) / "One of the best" - Maverick
"There is no songwriter to compare with Robb Johnson operating in the UK" - R2
Robb Johnson - The Future Starts Here from Tony Judge on Vimeo.
Robb Johnson is widely recognised as one of the UK’s finest songwriters. “one of our best singer-songwriters ever” (Mike Harding). He gigs in the UK, Belgium, Germany & the USA, & his songs have been covered by many singers, from folk legend Roy Bailey to acclaimed cabaret diva Barb Jungr, & he enjoys a similarly diverse spectrum of critical acclaim – “a modern-day Dostoyevsky” said the USA’s Dirty Linen, Mojo made the double CD Gentle Men Folk Album Of The Month & Tony Benn said Johnson’s “Winter Turns To Spring” was his favourite song.
He has played pubs, clubs, pavements, pickets & benefits, arts centres & festivals, local radio, BBC Radio 3 & 4, Belgian Radio 1, Nicaraguan TV & Channel 4, the Albert Hole in Bristol &, the Albert Hall in London. In February 2006 Robb appeared at the Barbican as part of the prestigious BBC “Folk Britannia” series, where “for the encore, Robb Johnson leads all the artists (and the audience) in the World War I song ‘Hanging On The Old Barbed Wire’ in a concert that was screened on BBC4. Robb has been the featured guest on Andy Kershaw’s Radio 3 programme.
In autumn 2025 Robb released an album of new songs, recorded at Room 13 in Gent. Optimist Hotel consists of 9 songs (the CD has a bonus 10th song) that tell a variety of stories and a cast of characters that include a Big Issue vendor, the legendary guitarist Wizz Jones, and a woman who feeds the king of the foxes. They don’t all end happily, but the songs share a celebration of hopefulness in dark times.
Robb will be doing solo gigs to celebrate the release of this album through 2026.
Gentle Men and Ordinary Giants - details of Robb's 2 song suites about the First and the Second World war respectively, based on the experiences of his grandfather and his father
See Robb's own website for a full gig-list including those with the Irregulars.
2026
Sun 27th Sept
London, Green Note (Afternoon)
Green Note, 106 Parkway, London NW1 7AN Tickets
Thu 8 Oct
The Brunswick
1 Holland Rd, Hove, BN3 1JF
Album Launch with Roger Watson
Thu 12 Nov
Islington Folk Club
Fri 13 Nov
Potteries Folk Club
The Cafe, Fenton Town Hall, 1 Albert Square, Fenton, Stoke on Trent, ST4 3FA
Sun 22 Dec
Murder at the Grange, Ealing
Fri 11 Dec
Murder at the Grange - Steyning
Sat 12th Dec
Murder at the Grange @ Forest Arts, New Milton, Hants.
Sun 13 Dec
Murder at the Grange
Walthamstow
2027
11-18 Jan
Belgium
Thu 26 Jan
Uxbridge Folk Club
Uxbridge RNA, 388a Long Lane, Hillingdon, Middlesex UB10 9PG
Fri 29 Jan
Rising Sun, Reading
February
New album launch TBA
Thu 4 March
Black Swan Folk Club Black Swan, Peaseholme Green, York, YO1 7PR
Fri 5 March
Darlington
Sat 6 March
Middlesborough
Thur 11 March
Bowes Park London
Sun 21 March
Twickfolk
Cabbage Patch, London Road, Twickenham, TW1 3SZ
Fri 26 March
St Edith Folk, Kent
Thur 8 Apr
Bradford
Fri 9 Apr
Belper
Sun 11 Apr
Southport