Marc Ford: Holy Ghost

Marc Ford
Holy Ghost
(Naim Edge)
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

“Maybe people still want me to be a guitar hero and that’s it. I’m determined to change that,” says Marc Ford in the press release for his first solo album since 2008. That explains the subtly structured nature of these tracks which consciously avoid the tough, rocking guitar work he is best known for due to his contributions to the Black Crowes and more recently Ben Harper. Some of those solos crop up within the context of the predominantly downbeat roots tunes that populate this introspective, wonderfully heartfelt release, but they are brief and always serve the song.

There are echoes of Neil Young’s country side with his Harvest and Harvest Moon albums, along with Poco and most obviously the Band. Certainly you can hear strains of Ryan Bingham’s rootsy Americana, especially since Ford produced two of his releases. Ford doesn’t have a great voice but he has a convincing one that works well with this somewhat austere, dusky, mid-tempo, lyric and melody oriented style. He says the music arose after he got off the treadmill of gigging and traveling, settling down in the relatively sleepy town of San Clemente, CA. While there is a relaxed feel to most of this, brought about partially by a backing band that includes his son and wife, there is also an underlying sense of a guy who has experienced his share of personal turmoil (Ford was famously fired from the Crowes due to his drug use) and sees better days ahead, particularly in the hopeful lyrics to “Blue Sky.” There is a laconic, not lazy feel to songs such as “Dream #26” and “Turquoise Blue” that’s inviting enough to want to stick around for the next one and more importantly, return to the previous track after the disc closes.

The grainy, shadowy images of Ford on the cover and inner panels of the disc reflect the music within. This is the work of a mature artist, comfortable in his skin, creating insightful, brilliantly recorded and performed reflective music he knows will never find favor on the radio. It exudes a timeless quality that you can easily get lost in which, it seems, is just the way he wants it.