Beverley Martyn, a British singer-songwriter known for her distinctive blues-inflected voice and contributions to the 1960s London folk scene, has died at the age of 79. Martyn, who gained recognition in the late 1960s and early 1970s, was best known for her collaborations with her then-husband John Martyn on the albums *Stormbringer!* and *The Road to Ruin*, both released in 1970. Following these releases, she stepped back from recording to focus on raising her family and navigating the challenges of a troubled marriage.

Born Beverley Kutner in Coventry in 1947, she moved to London as a teenager to study drama but quickly gravitated towards the burgeoning folk music clubs in Soho. Rejecting an offer from the Royal Shakespeare Company, Martyn pursued a career in music, performing in venues such as Les Cousins, a well-known all-night folk club on Greek Street. She honed her guitar skills under the guidance of guitarist Bert Jansch, with whom she was briefly romantically involved. Martyn appeared on the cover of Jansch’s album *It Don’t Bother Me* and released several singles through Decca’s Deram label, including "Happy New Year" (1966) and "Museum" (1967). Despite working with prominent session musicians like Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones, her early solo efforts did not achieve commercial success.

During a brief relationship with Paul Simon, Martyn performed at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 alongside major acts such as Simon & Garfunkel, Jimi Hendrix, and The Who. She also contributed a spoken section to the track "Fakin’ It" on Simon & Garfunkel’s 1968 album *Bookends* and spent time living in San Francisco before returning to London in 1969.

Martyn’s marriage to John Martyn led to their joint recording projects, with *Stormbringer!* produced by Joe Boyd and recorded in Woodstock, New York, featuring musicians including Levon Helm of The Band. Although these albums are now regarded as folk-rock classics, they failed to achieve significant commercial impact at the time. Critics have noted the lack of true duets on the albums, which were dominated by John Martyn’s compositions, though Beverley contributed several songs.

The years following the recordings were marked by personal difficulties for Beverley Martyn. She experienced increasing abuse during her marriage to John Martyn, who struggled with substance misuse. In her 2011 memoir, she detailed episodes of physical violence, including injuries sustained during the marriage. The marriage ended by 1980, after which she relocated to Brighton and lived largely away from the music industry, relying on social support and assistance from friends.

Martyn gradually returned to performing and recording in the 1990s, collaborating once again with Jansch and touring with Loudon Wainwright III. She released her solo album *No Frills* in 1998 and later recorded *The Phoenix and the Turtle* in 2014, which featured the song "Reckless Jane," co-written decades earlier with the late Nick Drake. In 2018, she released *Where the Good Times Are*, a collection including previously unreleased tracks from her 1960s recordings. Most recently, in 2024, she was featured on the compilation album *Les Cousins*, highlighting artists associated with the historic folk club.

Beverley Martyn is survived by her children Wesley and Mhairi.