ERIC FORD
ERIC FORD
PROFESSIONAL DRUMMER / PERCUSSIONIST
F E A T U R E D R E V I E W S
"Eric Ford's drumming is far more than just a rhythmic foundation ; he creates melodic lines of his own, rich with dynamic shifts. His playing offers a modern jazz-fusion approach while also nodding to classic swing and rock. Ford's style is tight, ensuring that every hit accentuates the mood of the song, and his synergy with Naylor's guitar gives the album its deep, full-bodied sound."
Anastasia Bogomelets, All About Jazz (reviewing "Organza" by Patrick Naylor)
" ...strong and creative"
Julian Joseph, Jazz Line-Up, BBC Radio 3
"...exquisitely subtle drumming, superbly delicate here and throughout the album.''
Roger Farbey, All About Jazz (reviewing "String Theory" by Partikel)
" Ford excels on drums throughout - bold, crisp, creative,in total command of a seemingly endless range of techniques.''
Eddie Myer, jazzviews.net (reviewing "Counteraction" by Partikel)
"Ford's hi-hat snaps and fills, and the precision with which he plays complex patterns...are constantly striking features of this engaging debut.''
John Fordham, The Guardian (reviewing "Next Beginning" by Samuel Eagles)
EVENTS
November 23rd :
London Jazz Festival gig at Grow, Hackney Wick with the Williams Cumberbache Latin Jazz Quintet. 1-4pm, free entry
London Jazz Festival gig at Highams Park Jazz Club, London E4 9QZ with Alex Clarke, Soner Ersen, Dave Manington. 5-8pm incl. jam session.
November 28th :
Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden, Essex with J P Muir's "Home Now" feat. George Crowley, Brigitte Beraha, Jakub Cywinski.
N E W S
Hello and welcome.
November is relatively tranquil in terms of concerts, the main ones being for London Jazz Festival at Grow in Hackney Wick and Highams Park Jazz Club on the 23rd, in Dorking with Janette Mason on the 11th, in Slough with Marta Radwan on the 7th and in Saffron Walden with J.P. Muir's "Home Now" project on the 28th. Duncan Eagles is starting a Monday night jam in Peckham (near Queen's Road station) from the 17th, which should be fun.
Here's a link to a track from J P Muir's "Home Now," released a year ago (and recorded 2 years ago) :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2Eq7dQXfCM
Janette Mason's album "Re:Wired" is at last released, two years after we recorded it! The launch was at Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho on May 14th (featuring Richard Beesley, Claire Martin, Juliet Kelly and Tom Mason), and then there's a sprinkling of remaining dates this year (eg. at Watermill Jazz in Dorking on November 11th and Reading Jazz on December 5th). The album has been very favourably reviewed in the May edition of Jazzwise (4 stars) and in UK Jazz News.
Pianist Adam Dyer has FINALLY released his debut album for which Jakub Cywinski, Duncan Eagles and I recorded a couple of sessions at Red Gables in west London back in 2019 and 2021! Featuring excellent and varied compositions by Adam and some swinging arrangements of choice standards, it's called River Spirit and currently only available via https://adamdyer.co.uk I particularly like the group improv on "The Potting Shed" and the interplay during the piano solos on "In With The New" and "Battersea Blues." Patrick Hadfield gave the album a very positive review in London Jazz News, describing my playing as "totemic"!! Please do tell me if you know what he meant by that.
I've released a couple of albums on Bandcamp! (With much assistance from David Beebee and my very patient brother-in-law, Ali.) They're both other people's projects that I was involved in and both recorded at David's Beeboss Studios. From 2018 comes "What Can I Do" (without a question mark), the only album of pianist Paolo Losi's own compositions. Paolo died suddenly within 6 months of recording aged just 46, so bassist Dave Jones and I wanted to share this music in remembrance of him. There's a written tribute by our mutual friend Paolo Muraro, too. Please check it out HERE.
The other album is by a short-lived trio of trumpet / double bass / drums that I enjoyed very much and which contrasts markedly with the Paolo release. It's with a couple of my Polish friends (Jakub Cywinski and Dawyd Frydryk) recorded in July 2019. You can give that a listen HERE.
There's more detail on many other albums I've had the good fortune to play on in the "Albums" section.
Imogen Ryall's re-imagining of Joni Mitchell's "Mingus" album was officially released in late September last year on the Rubicon Jazz label and made it onto the "best albums of 2023" lists of several critics in the UK and US. It's also been nominated for a Parliamentary Jazz Award this year. We're playing at a festival near Calais in France in March! Album link HERE.
I'm in a book ! David Harvey - father of cool cat bassist Jon Harvey - photographed 90 musicians in London and interviewed some of them, including me. It's called "The Look Of Jazz" and provides an interesting snapshot (sorry) of a part of the London scene around now and the opinions and backgrounds of some of those in it.
