Today’s FAN man was Bobby Long, a British crooner with a sparse acoustic style. Singing from his self-released, lo-fi Dirty Pond Songs EP, Long charmed both the concert-goers and the listeners from the radio.
If his music and his stage presence are any indication, this is one guy with his guitar will be building his fan base for quite a while.

Long was musically inclined from the start. He learned to play the cello and guitar, and started writing songs at the age of 18. He fronted a grunge band in college, wrote his senior thesis on the impact of American folk music, and started making the open-mic circuit in London full-time. That’s where he met Robert Pattinson. (Think Twilight, if you don’t recognize the name immediately.)

Pattinson’s acting career took off, and when he got his vampire role in the teen flick, he sang a song penned by Long for the Twilight soundtrack. Interest began to grow in the young, rugged folk musician from across the pond. Long began to travel and perform internationally, and demand for his sparse ballads is growing. Case in point, he’s here in Philadelphia today at the World Cafe, giving shout-outs to cab-driver fans and entrancing the audience with his heartfelt acoustics. Like I said, this guy is not going to remain unknown for long.

Bekah Larsen
UPenn Intern

Set List:
1. A Happy Winter
2. The Bounty of Mary Jane
3. In the Frost
4. A Stranger Song
5. Who Have You Been Loving?
6. Penance Fire Blues
7. Dead and Done
8. Two Years Old

Blog Entry:

Playing at South by Southwest. Album release in the Summer.