Bobby Long

Bobby Long, a British singer and songwriter from Manchester with a taste for fusing English folk elements alongside Americana and country influences, first surfaced in 2009 through a series of independent releases whose raw textures called to mind the work of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen. Later projects such as A Winter Tale (2011), Ode to Thinking (2015), and Sultans (2019) found him shifting toward greater vitality, incorporating sharper pop construction and a measure of juke-joint energy.

Raised in England yet long based in New York, Long gained his initial major exposure in 2008 when “Let Me Sign” appeared on the digital edition of the Twilight soundtrack. Though Robert Pattinson, his close friend and the lead actor in the blockbuster vampire series, supplied the vocals on that recording, the placement drew attention to Long’s own spare acoustic style, which he patterned after kindred spirits including Elliott Smith and the Felice Brothers. Further self-released material followed, culminating in a signing with ATO Records in April 2010 and the subsequent arrival of the Stranger Songs EP that same year.

His first proper studio album, A Winter Tale, arrived in 2011 and expanded beyond acoustic foundations into electric country, folk, and bar-band rock & roll. Long promoted the record with shows across the United States and Europe while also performing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and the CBS Early Show. In 2013 he released the Ted Hutt-produced Wishbone, then followed it in 2015 with the Mark Hallman-produced Ode to Thinking, a crowd-funded effort issued through Compass Records. Sultans, a ten-song collection partly shaped by Long’s admiration for the Beatles, appeared in 2019.