Interview with David Ford

• 6th Dec 2007

Former Easyworld front man David Ford (DF) has had quite the successful solo career since his old pals disbanded in 2004, even if it has been spent predominantly out of the spotlight. 2005 saw his 1st self recorded solo LP ‘I Sincerely Apologise for all the Trouble I've Caused’, from which his 1st debut single ‘State of the Union’ was taken in the same year. Much to the delight of his fans, 2007 saw DF getting back to the live circuit again, as well as releasing his 2nd LP ‘Songs for the Road’. So, with 2 LPs and 4 singles under his belt, we catch up with him on the verge of his December release of his next single ‘I’m Alright Now’. DF kindly took some time out to answer a few questions.

AS: Who has shaped your sound the most?
DF: I have.

AS: You've covered Madonna‚s 'Like a Prayer', Outkast's 'Roses' and Abba’s 'Dancing Queen'. Why those particular choices?
DF: These are all songs from last year’s ‘Milk & Cookies’ benefit show. I tend to play 10 covers a night at these events and so my usual strict track selection tends to go out the window. Songs are also chosen by a random number generator so often choices of songs to cover come more from luck than judgement.

AS: Milk & Cookies, care to elaborate?
DF: I sing songs for as long as I/the audience can take it and people pay money to see this nonsense. We give all the money away. This is the 7th year we have done this and it’s starting to get out of hand with this years event being a 5 date tour. I play a lot of poorly chosen cover versions and milk and cookies are consumed in a spirit of youthful innocence. Always my favourite shows of the year.

AS: What is it that makes the world go round?
DF: 4.5 million years ago a rock the size of mars collided with the earth, impacting slightly off-centre and sending the planet into a perpetual spin and the resulting debris into the earth’s orbit where it would eventually fuse together forming our moon.

AS: Richard Ashcroft, Suzanne Vega and Aimee Mann, Gomez and other support slots must’ve been nice, right?
DF: That’s right.

AS: Where’s the place to be?
DF: Home

AS: Who would you most like to collaborate with?
DF: Gary Lineker in a classic English striking partnership.

AS: When you take aim with your sniper rifle, who or what are you aiming at?
DF: My tonsils

AS: What does 2008 hold for you?
DF: I really have no idea. You get used to not knowing these things.

AS: What was the highlight of your summer?
DF: Was there a summer?

AS: Where do you go when it all gets too much?
DF: To bed

AS: Any career highs or lows or rock n‚ roll moments you care to share?
DF: I drove from San Diego to Los Angeles in a ford mustang convertible in the early hours of the morning with an upright piano on the back seats…that felt pretty rock n roll.

AS: Do you enjoy playing live or are you more at home in a studio?
DF: I’m not really into studios. They are often quite a sterile environment in which to attempt something special. I do like the recording process though. Playing live and to tape are very different, very wonderful parts of the process and I would not have one without the other

AS: Where do you sit in the grand scheme of things?
DF: Romantic atheist militant liberal.

AS: What are you doing when you're not making music?
DF: Mostly the non-glamorous tasks at the fringe of music making. In attempting to maintain a fierce sense of self-determination, I end up doing a lot of jobs which would usually be delegated. Most weeks I spend more time with a soldering iron than a guitar. When possible I do like to kick a football.

AS: Will Karma be cruel or kind to you?
DF: That is for karma to decide and I look forward to finding out… I’d like to think I’ve done enough to get a good deal out of it but others might say I had been an utter shit. We shall see.

AS: Have you got an epitaph or a few words for your headstone?
DF: What was the point of that?

AS: Has leaving Easyworld left any scars?
DF: Not at all.

AS: Thanks for that David, all the best.

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