02 November 2025
Andy Snipper
Last October one of Britain’s finest young guitar talents, Matt Long of Catfish fame, died of bowel cancer after 18 months with the disease.
Over the 18 months there had been many benefit concerts to try and raise funds for radical treatment, only for Matt to pass.
Out of that sadness has come a remarkable tribute album, the proceeds from which will go to the cancer ward at Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford which cared for Matt, to be used for equipment to specifically help cancer patients.
Shortly after he died, a music friend, Dudley Ross, suggested to the family that Matt’s musical hero Joe Bonamassa could be asked to record one of Matt’s original songs as a tribute to him. Matt and his family had been lucky enough to meet Joe several times through Matt’s dad Paul who was the producer of the Paul Jones Blues Show for several years and had recorded Joe on a number of occasions, and they were delighted when Joe agreed.
Matt’s mother, Fiona, then had the idea of maybe making this project as a fundraiser for the cancer ward at Royal Surrey County Hospital where Matt was treated. She wondered about turning it into an album featuring other original songs written by Matt, featuring some of the other artists who had been kind enough to support Matt during his illness by performing at the various benefit gigs held for Matt across the country last summer. There was phenomenal support for this from Matt’s many friends in the music world. It quickly grew into a double vinyl, with 16 incredible tracks including guitar solos from Joe Bonamassa and Walter Trout on two tracks, which both retain Matt’s vocal. There are also tracks from Elles Bailey, The Cinelli Brothers, Blue Nation, Sean Webster, When Rivers Meet, Brave Rival, Will Wilde, Zac Schulze, Alice Armstrong, Dom Martin, Chantel McGregor, Katie Bradley and his best friend from music college who is now a vocalist with metal band Avantasia, Adrienne Cowan. There are also guitar solos from two of Matt’s guitar tutors from the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford, Nic Meier and Nat Martin. Each artist has put their own spin on Matt’s songs, which makes each track unique and very special.
The album also includes the encore from the benefit gig for Matt at the Stables in Wavendon last summer featuring many of the artists who are on the album, and from which the tribute album will take its name - the wonderful live version of the Joe Cocker version of a Beatles classic ‘With a little Help from my Friends’. This seems a very apt title for an album created by many of Matt’s music friends to honour his memory.
Special mention to Dan Lucas of Joplin House Studios in Kent who allowed the artists to use his studios free of charge and also mixed much of the album. Also, a special mention to Matt’s close friend and former writing partner Alice Armstrong who has produced a very special album cover.
The album will go on pre-sale on what would have been Matt’s 31st birthday, Friday 7 November. The first single will also be released on the same date, and others will follow over the following couple of months before the album is officially released in the Spring.
As Matt’s mother Fiona says, ‘Matt would have been overwhelmed with the amount of love that has gone into this project from his friends in the music community. Being able to use the money raised from the sale of this album to help other cancer patients in some small way makes his loss a little easier to bear. We are so immensely grateful to every single person who has contributed their time and talent to producing this album, and hope it will be a fitting tribute to Matt.’
