#19 – Robben Ford

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00:00:29: Robben Ford, welcome to Zurich. Thank you! You came here on a train because you live in Paris

00:00:34: these days. When did you move there? Well uh, Kelly and I arrived in Paris on April 11th

00:00:45: and um this is having spent a month the whole  month of December we spent in in France looking

00:00:51: around because we wanted to before we moved  here we wanted to make sure we were doing the

00:00:55: right thing. So uh we spent the month of December,  absolutely felt great about it, uh, April 11th we

00:01:04: arrived and um spent a month looking for  an apartment that we would be happy in,

00:01:11: found a place and moved in on May 11th coincidentally enough. And so we've

00:01:18: we've been we've been here since April, mid April. Which is about half a year. Do you like it so far?

00:01:24: Well, we love being in Europe and we've  already gotten around, done some traveling,

00:01:30: you know, been up to the north of France, we've been to Ireland, we've been to Italy,

00:01:37: we've been to Iceland, of course that's not  Europe, is it? I don't think it's considered Europe.

00:01:45: And now Zurich you know, for four nights in Zurich. Very happy about this, you know, to be here for the Jazz Orchestra.

00:01:52: So glad to have you. Thank you. What is the main difference between living

00:01:57: in Europe as a musician and living in Nashville, where you used to live?

00:02:01: Well, as a musician

00:02:05: I sort of didn't come here as a musician,  you know. I mean, the choice to move to Europe

00:02:12: had nothing to do with being a musician in a  way. Other than Europe has always been

00:02:21: a very important place for me as a musician  and, you know, I'm kind of backing off, you know.

00:02:29: I don't want to tour, I don't want to work very  much at all, just do occasionally beautiful things

00:02:35: like this, you know, or take a train to Zurich for  four days and have a blast, you know, playing with

00:02:41: a great band in a city that I don't really know and then go back to Paris, you know. So this is

00:02:50: this is good. So far the plan is working. The next question might be a bit awkward then.

00:02:58: I was going to ask you: You seem to feel at home  in almost any kind of music. And I was going to

00:03:04: ask: Is there a genre that you really like  but you haven't played yet that you would

00:03:09: love to? But maybe you're gonna tell me "I don't  want to play that much anymore anyhow",

00:03:13: Oh no, no I love to play that's you know it's talking  about this is kind of wild because I haven't

00:03:19: talked about it very much since I got here but  I love to play, I just don't want to work. So

00:03:29: Europe fits very well into that plan for me  because of the lifestyle and also, you know, there's

00:03:36: there's a lot to do here if one wants  to, you know. But anyway I'm not exactly

00:03:44: comfortable in all styles. I'm comfortable in  myself as a musician, you know, so whatever I have

00:03:52: whatever the musical situation, I'll bring what I have to bring, you know. So

00:04:00: to me it's like going to potluck, you know, and  I'll bring the, you know, the mashed potatoes

00:04:10: and so at least it's something to eat and you  know you may or may not like it but it fits on  

00:04:16: the table and it's really just kind of: I'm able to be the musician that I am wherever I am.

00:04:27: So I'm no master of, you know, styles or anything, you know. Well, that's what you say. It's not what  

00:04:32: I think. But anyhow, well I was I was trying to  think: If you play in a small formation, let's say in a  

00:04:38: trio or in a four piece band as opposed to a big  band: What is more relaxed? I mean, I was thinking:  

00:04:45: Maybe if you play with a big band, maybe it's  more relaxed because you don't have that much  

00:04:49: to do but maybe it's just the other way around.  What is it really like?

00:04:53: Well um..

00:04:55: the opportunity to be able to...you know, playing with a big band is  so different than playing with a different type  

00:05:05: of ensemble, right? Obviously. So it's a new world  and, you know, I've only done... I've probably played  

00:05:14: with a big band in this way maybe six times, you  know, in my entire career. So every time it's new  

00:05:24: and I'm like, you know, I have to be very alert  and I have to pay a lot of attention and I

00:05:31: always got my eye on the conductor. If it's my  trio or my quartet or quintet, you know, it's  

00:05:37: just like straight ahead, you know. I just do my  thing. So in this case it's almost more stressful  

00:05:45: but if, you know, given some time, you know, I did a  series actually I've done it more than six. I did  

00:05:53: a series of dates. I think four actually, yeah. So  I've done more. In New Zealand we did four cities  

00:06:01: in New Zealand with a big band there and by  that fourth show I started feeling like "yeah", you  

00:06:11: know, and I don't have to play and with my band, you  know, I'm playing constantly, right, supporting the  

00:06:20: thing. So you're right, the opportunity for relaxation is high in the big band situation  

00:06:27: but you just have to know the lay of the land,  you know, you just have to know what's coming  

00:06:35: and with the big band I'm like "now? okay".  I'll zip it, "play? okay I'll play." It's like that.

00:06:44: I read some plans that you started at as a  saxophone player long time ago. This plan

00:06:51: with a big band ever make you want to  want to pick up the saxophone again?

00:06:56: Well, I was never that good on the  instrument and , you know, finding  

00:07:02: the guitar was probably auspicious for  me and I found it at a pretty early age  

00:07:09: but I continued to play the saxophone and the  guitar, you know, all the way into my early 20s and  

00:07:15: with my own bands I was playing saxophone  and guitar and writing instrumental music  

00:07:22: for what, you know, was kind of a jazz blues  group sort of like what I do now. And  

00:07:29: So once I started being hired to play the  guitar and no one was interested in my saxophone  

00:07:39: playing, you know, it was easy for me really to let  go of the saxophone.

00:07:44: Do you still own one? No.

00:07:47: And I actually, you know, I have always had  some interest, you know. I know how the horn  

00:07:51: works, you know, so I can talk to saxophone  players and I know what what's going on  

00:07:57: the transposition and things like that.  So I actually borrowed a saxophone from  

00:08:03: Tom Scott. I don't know if you've ever heard of  Tom Scott, a great read(???) player and writer, arranger.

00:08:12: I borrowed an alto from him and, you know, he's  been given a million horns so he didn't care if  

00:08:17: he ever got it back but I picked it up, put it  together and played it one day at my house and  

00:08:23: I lasted about 15 minutes and I just went: "This  isn't gonna happen" you know. Because of this.

00:08:31: It's the embouchure. You're biting your lower  lip, you know. I mean that's how you're taught to  

00:08:38: play the horn. So you get a callus back there, you  know, and the wind the wind thing is just a  

00:08:49: whole other kettle of fish, you know. You have to  practice breathing and, you know, really to be good.

00:08:55: So it's just like "nah". So it's not exactly like riding a bicycle.

00:09:00: It would be a waste of my time, you know. So Ed has arranged some of your music for Big Band. What's that feel like,

00:09:09: hearing an ensemble that size play your  songs and what I assume is quite a different sound,  

00:09:17: what's that feel like for you? It's very exciting. I mean playing, you know, with the big band  

00:09:24: it's a rare and a great treat for me,  absolutely you know. I call it BB King for a Day.

00:09:35: So I'm King for, hey I'm BB King for a  day. And it's just such a blast because  

00:09:42: wow what a setting, you know, like you are meant to  be surrounded and uplifted and presented, you know,  

00:09:51: with a big band like that, you know, the soloists,  you know. It's a just a privilege, you know,  

00:09:58: to have this kind of a situation and yeah I'm very grateful, you know. So are we. Hey, thanks so much  

00:10:05: for taking the time. We really do appreciate it  Thank you, my pleasure. And take good care of yourself. Thank you, I'll try.