Deaf Fret would like to introduce you to a remarkable talent who is, sadly, no longer with us. I met Mark around 2015 and, despite his significant struggles, his playfulness, humour and talent were still vividly apparent and it was my pleasure – and honour – to bring some of his ideas to life and to be told off when I got it wrong! I have been prone to saying, having met him later in his life, that I didn’t get enough of Mark. But as time has passed and I’ve been introduced to his family and friends, that feeling has developed into gratitude for what he did give me. I would love to have met Mark when we were both young men – I think we would have gotten into a lot of trouble together and laughed until it hurt. But, somewhere, somehow, it feels like we are both doing that. Such is Mark – one of the most golden people I have ever encountered and I am blessed to have met him at any point on my life. His songs were all recorded before his injury and are old and bumpy lo-fi casual live recordings but that voice is impossible to hide behind old technology. That talent just glows. Ross Merrin