Robben Ford

Robben Ford (born December 16, 1951)^[1] is an American blues, jazz and rock guitarist. He was a member of the L.A. Express and has collaborated with Miles Davis, Joni Mitchell, George Harrison and KISS. He was named one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century" by Musician magazine.

Early life

Robben Ford was born in Woodlake, California and raised in Ukiah, California. He began playing the saxophone at age 10 and the guitar at age 14. Robben and his brothers created the Charles Ford Blues Band in honor of their father.^[2]

Career

At age 18, Ford's band was hired to play with Charlie Musselwhite.^[1] and recorded two albums The Charles Ford Band and Discovering the Blues. He recorded two albums with Jimmy Witherspoon ^[3] called Live and Spoonful. In the 1970s, Ford joined the jazz fusion band, L.A. Express, ^[1] led by saxophonist Tom Scott. In 1974 the band supported George Harrison on his American tour and played on the Joni Mitchell albums, Court and Spark, Hissing of Summer Lawns and Miles of Aisles.^[1]

After leaving the L.A. Express in 1976, Robben Ford recorded his solo album, The Inside Story with a band that later became the Yellowjackets.^[1] In 1982, Ford was one of several guitarists who appeared on the KISS album Creatures of the Night, playing lead guitar on the songs "Rock And Roll Hell" and "I Still Love You".

Ford worked briefly with Miles Davis in 1986;^[1] and can be heard on Davis' Montreux box set. Ford released his album, Talk to Your Daughter in 1988. He joined Philippe Saisse, Marcus Miller and J.T. Lewis in the cast of The Sunday Night Band for the second and final season of the late-night NBC television program, Sunday Night in 1989.^[4] In the 1990s he released the albums, Robben Ford and the Blue Line, and Tiger Walk.

Robben Ford has received four Grammy Award nominations and was named one of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century" by Musician magazine.^[5] He credits pianist and arranger Roger Kellaway and saxophonist and arranger Tom Scott as a major influence on his musical development, who he met while playing for Joni Mitchell.^[6]

Equipment

Robben Ford uses Dumble Amplifiers and Celestion G12-65 speakers. When traveling abroad he uses Fender Super Reverb amplifiers along with a Zendrive overdrive pedal by Hermida Audio. Ford sometimes plays a vintage 1960 Fender Telecaster, Gibson Les Pauls or a guitar custom-made by Taku Sakashta.^[7]

Personal life

Ford is married to the cabaret singer Anne Kerry Ford.

See on: http://www.annekerryford.com/bio.htm

Discography

Solo albums

• Discovering the Blues Live (1972)
• Jimmy Witherspoon & Robben Ford Live (1976)
• Schizophonic (1976)
• The Inside Story (1979)
• Love's A Heartache (1983)
• Keep on Running (1983)
• Talk to Your Daughter (1988)
• Robben Ford and the Blue Line (1992)
• Mystic Mile (1993)
• Handful of Blues (1995)
• Blues Connotation (1996)
• Tiger Walk (1997)
• Supernatural (1999)
• Sunrise (1999)
• A Tribute to Paul Butterfield (2001)
• Blue Moon (2002)
• Keep on Running (2003)
• Truth (2007)
• Bringing it Back Home (February 18, 2013)

Live albums

• Discovering the Blues Live (1972)
• The Authorized Bootleg (1998)
• Soul on Ten (2009) (contains two studio tracks)

Compilations

• Blues Collection (1997)
• Anthology: The Early Years (2001)

With Ford Blues Band

• The Charles Ford Band (1972)
• Reunion Live (1984)
• As Real As It Gets(1996)
• Hotshots (1994)
• Fords and Friends (1996)
• Ford Blues Band (1999)
• Tribute to Paul Butterfield (2001)
• In Memory of Michael Bloomfield (2002)
• Another Fine Day (2003)
• Centre Stage (2004)

With Mark Ford

• Mark Ford and the Robben Ford Band (1990)
• Mark Ford and the Blue Line

Collaborations

• Minor Elegance (1990) with Joe Diorio, Gary Willis and Peter Erskine
• Jing Chi (2001) with Vinnie Colaiuta, Jimmy Haslip
• Jing Chi Live (2003)
• Jing Chi 3D (2004)
• Charlie Haden - Helium Tears (2006)
• Live In Tokyo - Larry Carlton & Robben Ford (2007)
• Unplugged - Larry Carlton & Robben Ford (February 2013)
• Sonny Landreth - From the Reach (2008)
• With Michael Landau, Jimmy Haslip, Gary Novak - Renegade Creation (2010)

Albums played on

• F-Zero Jazz Album (1992)
• Voodoo Crossing: A Tribute To Jimi Hendrix (2003) Message To Love
• Viva Carlos - A Supernatural Marathon Celebration (2004) Blues For Salvador
• A Guitar Supreme - A Giant Step In Fusion Guitar (2006) Village Blues
• Come Together: Guitar Tribute to the Beatles, Vol. 2 (1995) Golden Slumbers
• An All Star Lineup Performing The Songs Of Pink Floyd (2002) Any Colour You Like
• Gypsy Blood: A Tribute To Jimi Hendrix, Vol. 2 (xxxx) Bold As Love
• Lucky Man: Dave Koz (1993) Shakin' The Shack
• Luck of the Draw: Bonnie Raitt (1991) Slow Ride

As sideman

With Charlie Musselwhite

• Takin' My Time (Arhoolie 1056) (1973)
• Going Back Down South (Arhoolie 1074) (1975)

With Joni Mitchell

• Miles of Aisles (1974)
• The Hissing of Summer Lawns (1975)

With Tom Scott and the LA Express

• Tom Cat (1974)

With Dizzy Gillespie

• Rhythmstick (1990)

With Charlie Musselwhite

• Where Have All The Good Times Gone (1984)

With Jimmy Witherspoon

• Live at Monterey Jazz Festival (1972)
• Live (1976)
• Live at Notodden Blues Festival (1992)
• Ain't Nothing New About The Blues (1995)

With Kiss

• Creatures of the Night (1982)

With Georgie Fame

• Cool Cat Blues (1991)

With Rickie Lee Jones

• Pop Pop (1991)

With Bob Malach

• Mood Swing (1991)
• The Searcher (1997)

With Miles Davis

• The Complete Miles Davis at Montreux (2002)

Instructional DVDs

• The Robben Ford Clinic: The Art of Blues Solos (February 2009)
• The Robben Ford Clinic: The Art of Blues Rhythm (December 2007)
• Playing the Blues (October 2002)
• The Blues and Beyond (2002)

References

External links

• Official website
• 2007 Modern Guitars interview by Brian D. Holland
• Interview at Digital Interviews
• 'Worried Life Blues' Performed Live in Germany 1994
• Blue Rock It