Marc Ford - 2 albums: The Neptune Blues Club / Weary And Wired

Album: The Neptune Blues Club
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 68:54
Size: 157.8 MB
Styles: Blues rock
Year: 2008
Art: Front

[4:00] 1. Main Drain
[6:06] 2. Looked Down Tight
[6:21] 3. Freedom Fighter
[2:40] 4. Go Too Soon
[5:48] 5. Don't Get Me Killed
[4:08] 6. Last Time Around Again
[8:11] 7. Spaceman
[6:45] 8. Pay For My Mistakes
[3:48] 9. Shame On Me
[7:37] 10. Mother's Day
[8:26] 11. Smilin'
[4:59] 12. Keep Holdin' On

Antoine Arvizu - drums; Bill Barrett - harmonica; John Bazz - bass; Marc Ford - guitars, vocals; Stephen Hodges - percussion; Mike Malone - keys, vocals.

If you know Ford’s back story in full, you know it’s about a multi-faceted reputation forged on the frontline as the fabled lead guitarist with the Black Crowes; at the helm of his own bands such as the Neptune Blues Club and the Sinners; as a vital component of key records and/or tours by acts from Govt. Mule to Izzy Stradlin, from Booker T to Ben Harper; and as the producer of choice for artists such as the great roots-rocker Ryan Bingham and English country-soul talents Phantom Limb.

Therein lies the transatlantic connection. Ford produced the Bristol-based Phantom Limb’s second album ‘The Pines,’ released in 2012, and when it was time to give life to the songs he’d collected for ‘Holy Ghost,’ the inspirational thought occurred to him to offer the return job to the band’s Stew Jackson, aka Robot Club, in sessions at Rockfield in Wales and the Shed in Bath. Jackson plays on the album along with his fellow Limbs, so to speak, while Marc’s son Elijah adds guitars, and his wife Kirsten contributes vocals. Elijah, himself a fine new talent, has also been working with Jackson on his own album project.

The Neptune Blues Club mc
The Neptune Blues Club zippy

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Album: Weary And Wired
Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 64:43
Size: 148.2 MB
Styles: Blues Rock
Year: 2007
Art: Front

[3:12] 1. Featherweight Dreamland
[3:37] 2. Don't Come Around
[3:02] 3. It'll Be Over Soon
[3:03] 4. Dirty Girl
[2:44] 5. The Other Side
[4:02] 6. 1000 Ways
[8:23] 7. Smoke Signals
[5:54] 8. Greazy Chicken
[6:02] 9. Currents
[2:50] 10. Just Take The Money
[4:03] 11. Medicine Time
[8:43] 12. The Same Thing
[2:43] 13. Running Man Blues
[2:51] 14. Bye Bye Suzy
[3:28] 15. The Big Callback

The ex-Black Crowes guitarist's first solo album in five years is far more wired than weary, which is certainly a good thing. Rejoining musicians from his pre-Crows years in the band Burning Tree (bassist Mark "Muddy" Dutton and drummer Doni Gray), Ford strips down to a basic trio format, although one loose enough to allow horns, keyboards, and background singers to flesh out the sound as needed. Ford generally discards the country that informed his first disc for a deceptively simple, bluesy rocking attack that growls and roars. The opening "Featherweight Dreamland" sounds like '70s-era Stones, just over three minutes of gnarly chords meshed with tough maracas and piano driving the trashy overdubbed guitars. The disc then shifts to a Southern rock-blues sensibility (the rugged "1000 Ways") combined with a substantial Neil Young influence. The latter is particularly noticeable on the eight-and-a-half minute "Smoke Signals," a thinly veiled rewrite of "Cowgirl in the Sand," right down to the loping bass and dramatically taut guitar solo. The following "Greazy Chicken" lays on the funk with horns and B-3 slathered over the slow-boil swampy instrumental and Ford's wah-wah pedal and slide in full flower. The similarly styled "The Big Callback" closes the disc. Things calm down for a few mid-album ballads, the David Crosby-ish "Currents" being the most notable. Ford rearranges Willie Dixon's "The Same Thing" into a lengthy, ominous showstopper, somewhat similar to the music his friends in Gov't Mule are known for. The diverse styles on the album are threaded together by Ford's meaty guitar lines, although less so by his rather ordinary vocals. Still, despite each track sounding similar to one of his influences, Ford acquits himself as a frills-free guitarist with more chops than imagination and a whole lotta passion. At over an hour, the disc runs a little long and some judicious editing would have made it a stronger listen, but there is enough quality material played with fire and enthusiasm to justify Ford stepping back into the spotlight. One hopes he doesn't wait another five years for the follow-up. ~Hal Horowitz

Weary And Wired mc
Weary And Wired zippy

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