Mark Robinson was born into a musical family, and commenced his own journey of playing and writing at the age of 13 when his mother, a jazz violinist, ‘conned’ him into learning the guitar. He describes the experience as “like learning to speak for the first time, as if I’d been in a world of silence all my life and suddenly I had a means to articulate what was inside of me.” Early musical influences included The Beatles, James Taylor and Neil Young (it was the 70s, after all) but it didn’t take long before it was all Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. When punk and new wave hit Elvis Costello and The Police became his staples. The most significant influences however, were Bruce Springsteen, Peter Gabriel and The Blue Nile. Though very different musically he saw a raw honesty and emotive power in their music that made him want to express what they expressed. If you listen closely, you will hear echoes of all of these influences in the music Mark writes and performs. During the 70s and 80s, Mark played with a number of bands, including The Noise Toys, Auto De Fé, White as Red, Mice and Men and Funnybone, among others. During these years he gained experience in writing, playing, touring and recording. In his spare time, he also studied English and Drama at University, and worked as a high school teacher. Another significant influence on Mark’s music and life has been his Christian faith. His relationship with God has never been a straightforward thing and over the years he spent a lot of time questioning and wrestling with it, seeking clarity in all kinds of philosophies and beliefs. Although Mark has lived with depressive illness from an early age, during the 90s his struggle with manic depression became overwhelming and placed an immense strain on his capacity for work, relationships and life generally. For a number of years he isolated himself, merely surviving in a deep,dark place where he says he deliberately walked away from God, his marriage and his music. Sanity was touch and go. Most of his time in this period was spent either sleeping or weeping over a life he couldn't understand. In the 2000s Mark gradually clawed his way back to reclaim his life and ‘get his head straight’ (with the love and support of some significant others), and during the past five years has started to play and write music again as part of the healing process. He also discovered that throughout his wandering in the wilderness that God was always there, waiting patiently for him like a loving Father to come home. In 2009 he re-embraced his Christian faith in a new and life-giving way. At the beginning of 2011, at the age of 50, Mark is a proud grandfather, (and the father of three adult children), and is generally happier than he’s been for a long time. Mark’s solo album, Up Until Recently, grew out of his desire to share his music with the world. “I don’t have any expectations or dreams about it,” he says, “it’s just a gift God gave me which I’m reclaiming again after putting it down for so long.” This album has been a long time coming. Mark promises the next one won’t take quite so long.