Marc Ford
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Marc Ford (born April 13, 1966 in Los Angeles, CA), is the former lead guitarist of the rock and roll jam band The Black Crowes.
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[edit] History
Guitarist Marc Ford began his career with the blues-rock outfit Burning Tree in the late 1980s. A power trio featuring Ford on guitars and vocals, Mark Dutton on bass and Doni Gray on drums, Burning Tree released their self-titled debut album on Epic Records in 1990. A commercial failure but a critical success, Burning Tree allowed Ford and Co. to tour extensively throughout most of 1990 and 1991. Despite opening slots for such notable acts as The Black Crowes, the band failed to gain the attention Epic Records was looking for and was dropped from the media giant soon after.
In late 1991, Marc Ford sat in several times with The Black Crowes in-concert, performing The Allman Brothers Band's classic hit, "Dreams." When The Black Crowes severed their relationship with their original guitarist Jeff Cease, Ford was asked to fill the vacancy. Ford agreed and he was quickly tossed into the mix for the band's 1992 second album, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion, which hit Number 1 on the Billboard charts and earned a double platinum certificate for sales. Ford would go on to perform on the next two Black Crowes releases (1994's amorica. and 1996's Three Snakes and One Charm), two unreleased albums (1993's Tall and 1997's The Band) and a slew of concert tours. His addition to the Black Crowes sound, which features a healthy dose of slide guitar and southern twang, helped define the band as one of rock music's premiere acts. His fluid and soulful technique connected with Black Crowes fans worldwide, and his lead playing resonated up and down the Black Crowes song catalog. Ford's ability to adapt to core songwriter Rich Robinson's music and crunchy rhythm guitar sound, solidified him and Robinson as a preeminent guitar duo of the 1990s.[1]
Ford was dismissed from the Black Crowes in the fall of 1997, following the band's stint on the summer-long Further Festival tour, leaving fans wondering what direction the Crowes might be headed. Black Crowes leaders Chris and Rich Robinson cited Ford's excessive drug use as the reason for his firing, but Ford himself was quick to note that he was not the only one with a drug problem. His absence from the Black Crowes was noticed with the band's 1999 release By Your Side, which lacked his guitar flourishes that defined a large part of their overall sound.
After his departure from The Black Crowes, Ford formed a solo band, Marc Ford and the Uninvited, and continued to make live appearances in the United States for the rest of the year. In 1998, Ford sat in numerous times with renowned jam band Gov't Mule before joining the Chris Stills Band for a summer tour. Upon the conclusion of that tour, Ford quit the Chris Stills Band to form Federale, a joint venture between himself and Luther Russell. The band gained attention from minor label Interscope Records, and a record deal was almost immediately in the works. Federale toured briefly, opening for acts like Gov't Mule, but disbanded after Interscope Records was bought out by Universal Music Group and their commercial viability was called into question.
During 2000, Ford joined the Pink Floyd blues tribute band Blue Floyd, which originally featured Allen Woody (guitar, bass), Matt Abts (drums), Johnny Neel (keyboards) and Berry Oakley Jr. (bass). Providing their own bluesy take on Pink Floyd standards, Blue Floyd was a great success and allowed Ford to remain the public eye while he contemplated his next move.
Ford left Blue Floyd at the close of 2001, opting to again to go solo. In January of 2002, during one of his many regular appearances at the Malibu Inn in Malibu, CA, Ford welcomed Chris Robinson to the stage for a set of obscure-yet-memorable covers. This performance marked the first time Ford and Robinson had performed with one another since Ford's dismissal from The Black Crowes nearly five years prior. Robinson again joined Ford at the Malibu Inn two weeks later, confirming that they had made amends. Ford even co-wrote "Sunday Sound," a track featured on Robinson's solo debut, New Earth Mud.
Following his acoustic-based stint at the Malibu Inn, Ford decided to form a full-fledged electric band. Featuring fellow Blue Floyd member Berry Oakley Jr. (bass) and newcomers Gootch (drums) and Chris Joyner (keys), Marc Ford and The Sinners hit the road in early 2002. During the tour, Ford would often take time out (with and without The Sinners) to record tracks for his then-unnamed solo debut. In 2003, Marc Ford and The Sinners gained some helpful attention from country/rock singer Lucinda Williams, who became somewhat of an ambassador for the group. She secured the band a deal with Lost Highway Records and Ford began finalizing his material for the sessions.
The Lost Highway deal did not come to be, however, as the band's representative at the label was fired and things subsequently fell through. The Sinners still had an opening slot on Lucinda Williams' ongoing tour, a slot that was fairly open-ended. Without a label backing them up, however, it was almost financially impossible for The Sinners to hit the road. Instead, Ford accepted an invitation to join Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, relegating The Sinners to an indefinite hiatus.
Ford toured with Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals for the majority of 2003, from which their live EP Live at the Hollywood Bowl was drawn from. Ford continued his association with Ben Harper and his band through the close of 2004, when he was called to rejoin The Black Crowes for their "All Join Hands" reunion run. This reunion would serve as the platform for one of the greatest rock and roll comebacks in recent years. It would be the first time Ford would take the stage again with the band and Black Crowes fans were beyond ecstatic when the news broke in March 2005. Ford never severed his ties with Harper, however, appearing on his 2006 album Both Sides of the Gun and performing a handful of shows in support.
[edit] Recent
On Sept. 5, 2006, two days before he was due to hit the road for the fall leg of the ongoing Black Crowes reunion tour, Ford's lawyer notified the Black Crowes management via fax that, effective immediately, the guitarist would no longer be a member of the band.[2] The following day, Ford put out a press release announcing that he had left the Crowes in order to protect his hard-fought sobriety and that he had recently produced albums for emerging artists The Pawnshop Kings and Ryan Bingham.
Shortly after his sudden departure from The Black Crowes, Ford reunited with his Burning Tree bandmates for three gigs at The King King in Hollywood, CA. Following the impromptu dates, Ford enlisted Doni Gray to be his bandmate, along with Muddy and his son Elijah Ford, for a new studio album he had begun preproduction on. Touted by the guitarist as a more guitar-based recording, Weary and Wired was released March 13, 2007 on Shrapnel Records subdivision Blues Bureau. Coinciding with the release of Weary and Wired was Ford's feature interview on the cover of jam-band oriented music magazine Hittin' the Note (Issue #52).
Throughout 2007 Marc Ford hit the road in support of his new album, with bandmates Mark "Muddy" Dutton, Elijah Ford and new drummer Dennis Morehouse in tow. The tour found the band performing across the United States, as well as select dates in Spain, Germany, Russia and at a handful of European festivals. During later dates on the tour, Ford unveiled as many as six new songs, hinting at another album on the way. The tour continued through the end of 2007, upon which Ford took a short break.
Early in 2008, Ford played sporadic shows on the West Coast, some with his Fuzz Machine band and some with a new venture, Jefferson Steelflex. In addition, Ford and son Elijah joined Ryan Bingham for several dates on his tour, performing songs from the Ford-produced album Mescalito.
Ford is currently producing The Steepwater Band's next studio effort, an LP tentatively titled "Grace & Melody" slated for release in late summer or early fall 2008, at Compound Studios in Sugar Hill, CA (recording began the first week of May 2008). Marc first met the Chicago-based power trio when their bands shared a festival bill in Bilbao, Spain (summer 2007). Ford joined the band on stage to jam on a pair of songs including a cover of Neil Young's "Cortez the Killer", following a sit-in by his bandmate/son Elijah. The Steepwater Band subsequently provided support for Ford's headlining gig at the Double Door in Chicago on July 26th 2007; this time Jeff Massey and Tod Bowers (of Steepwater) joined Ford's band for their encore. Soon after Ford approached the trio about producing their next effort.
[edit] Discography
The Scarecrows Featuring Marc Ford with The Scarecrows (David Pedroza Music, 1988; released 2005)
Burning Tree with Burning Tree (Epic Records, 1990)
The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion with The Black Crowes (American Recordings, 1992)
Tall with The Black Crowes (Unreleased Album, 1993)
amorica. with The Black Crowes (American Recordings, 1994)
The Very Crystal Speed Machine with Thee Hypnotics (American Recordings, 1994)
Three Snakes and One Charm with The Black Crowes (American Recordings, 1996)
The Band with The Black Crowes (Unreleased Album, 1997)
Live...with a Little Help From Our Friends with Gov't Mule (Sanctuary Records, 1999)
Live...with a Little Help From Our Friends, Volume 2 with Gov't Mule (Sanctuary Records, 2002)
It's About Time (Anko Records, 2003)
Live at the Hollywood Bowl EP with Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals (Virgin Records, 2003)
Lovers and Thieves with Scott Thomas (Halfpipe Records, 2003)
Songs From the Material World: A Tribute to George Harrison with Various Artists (Koch Records, 2003)
There Will Be a Light with Ben Harper and the Blind Boys of Alabama (Virgin Records, 2004)
Live At The Apollo (DVD) with Ben Harper and the Blind Boys Of Alabama (Virgin Records 2004)
Both Sides of the Gun with Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals (Virgin Records, 2006)
Freak n' Roll...Into the Fog (DVD) with The Black Crowes (Eagle Vision, 2006)
Freak 'n' Roll...Into the Fog (CD) with The Black Crowes (Eagle Records, 2006)
The Lost Crowes with The Black Crowes (Rhino, 2006)
Weary and Wired (Blues Bureau, 2007)
Let's Rock with Ariel Belont (Dreamland Music, 2007)
Locksley with PawnShop Kings (producer, Owen Brothers Publishing, 2007)
Mescalito with Ryan Bingham (producer, Lost Highway, 2007)
[edit] References
Marc Ford Interview on Guitar Jam Daily Guitar Jam Daily
[edit] External links
- Marc Ford's Official Website
- Marc Ford's myspace page
- Archived set lists of Marc's live performances
- Blue Floyd's Official Website
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