Steve was born in Liverpool and raised in Birmingham. Tilston was a graphic designer before taking up music in 1971. In the early eighties he ran a folk club with Bert Jansch in New Kings Road, London. "In For A Penny - In For A Pound" was a rock album, but he soon reverted to quieter music. In 1985 he has toured with Ballet Rambert. It was his skill as a guitarist and mandolin player, not as a dancer, that brought this about. In 1987 he formed his own record label, called "Run River". He was a member of John Renbourn's group "Ship of Fools" (1988), who released one album on his label. In 1990 he was a session musician on Peter Bellamy's album "Soldiers Three". By the 1990s he performed frequently with Maggie Boyle, his parter (on and off stage) at that time. His 1992 album "Of Moor and Mesa" got very positive reviews in the States. This contained his compositions "Slip Jigs and Reels" and "Naked Highwayman", which were later recorded by Fairport Convention. In 1995 he formed another record label, "Hubris Records". Maartin Allcock has a very eccentric spelling of the word "Martin". It is reassuring to know that he originally used the normal spelling. He was a member of Jethro Tull in the late eighties, and recorded "All Under The Sun" with Tilston in 1996. By 1999 he had separated from Maggie Boyle.

He then joined "WAZ" with Pete Zorn and Maartin Allcock. In 2003 there was a slight change of direction as he moved towards melodic jazz with "Such And Such", and album with saxophonist Andy Sheppard. "Live Hemistry" is not a mis-spelling for "Chemistry" but a live album with many of his best songs. The Tom Paine Society selected his song "Here's to Tom Paine" as their theme song. His song "Night Owl" was not only recorded by Dolores Keane, but was the title of her 1998 album. His songs have been recorded by The House Band, Peter Bellamy Bob Fox and others. His instrumental styles crosses classical music with Irish and English folk. He also plays a medieval instrument called an Arpeggione (bowed guitar). His daughter Martha Tilston is also a professional singer. He has been a tutor at summer camps. In 2007 "Reaching Back" was released. This is a box set of 5 CDs of his songs, with rarities and contributions from Wizz Jones, Ralph McTell and Coope Boyes and Simpson.