ROBBEN FORD infos concerts

Latest News From Robben

Been awhile since we’ve been in touch and hope everyone is doing well!

We have been spending these past months settling into our new life in London, hanging with friends and getting to know the neighborhoods – it’s official – we love it here!

Kelly and I were in India for two weeks, in October. This was my first trip to India and was prompted by a Buddhist event that took place under the Bodhi Tree in Bodhgaya, where it is said that the Buddha attained enlightenment. We spent ten days there and then three in Varanasi, a six hour drive from Bodhgaya. The poverty in India is stunning and unavoidable. But, the history and magic of the country is still in tact and profound, and I hope to return next year.

Two weeks later we were off to Helsinki to rehearse for three days with the UMO Jazz Orchestra under conductor and arranger, Ed Partyka. Then played the concert in Helsinki which was sold out and a blast for me. (I call it BB King for a Day!) Ed and I have worked together several times in the past and I look forward to the next.

Playing with the Umo Jazz Orchestro In Helsinki, Finland

Playing with the Umo Jazz Orchestra in Helsinki, Finland.
Click to watch a clip of the show.
(Photo by Milam Kelly)

Coming up on December 8th is a show in Athens, Greece which I’ll play with the organ and drums duo I’ve been working with in London – Jonny Henderson and Evan Jenkins. I love the way these guys play my music and I’m sure the show will be great! Also, my first trip to Athens. I did play in Thessalonika many years ago with the Blue Line, but haven’t been back to Greece since. Really looking forward two a couple of days exploring the city after the show.

NEW RELEASE!

My latest record, “Night in the City”
JUST released December 1st!
Get your copy HERE
(remember… streaming is for kids!

)

“I want to say, that I’m really loving the Dojo. Robben’s approach is so tangible for me and I find a lot of what I play, is strongly influenced by his style. ~ Tyler

NEW VIDEO UP in the
SONGWRITING SECTION!
PEOPLE LIKE ME

JOIN US IN THE DOJO!

Heads up! Kelly is having a site-wide sale of her photos starting TODAY, December 6-9! I
f you’ve got your eye on her artwork
as a gift for the holidays, please place your order ASAP to receive it in time.

Use code ARTGIFT20
when placing your order
to get 20% OFF

SALE ENDS DECEMBER 9th!

Contact her directly (kelly@milamphotoarts.com) if you want to place an order from Europe and she will have it printed and sent from London to save you expensive international shipping costs.

Thank you for supporting her amazing photography

SHOP MILAM PHOTO ARTS

That’s all for now and thank you!

Latest News From Robben

Been awhile since we’ve been in touch and hope everyone is doing well!

We have been spending these past months settling into our new life in London, hanging with friends and getting to know the neighborhoods – it’s official – we love it here!

Playing with the Umo Jazz Orchestra in Helsinki, Finland.
Click to watch a clip of the show.
(Photo by Milam Kelly)

NEW RELEASE!

My latest record, “Night in the City”
JUST released December 1st!
Get your copy HERE
(remember… streaming is for kids!

)

“I want to say, that I’m really loving the Dojo. Robben’s approach is so tangible for me and I find a lot of what I play, is strongly influenced by his style. ~ Tyler

NEW VIDEO UP in the
SONGWRITING SECTION!
PEOPLE LIKE ME

JOIN US IN THE DOJO!

Use code ARTGIFT20
when placing your order
to get 20% OFF

SALE ENDS DECEMBER 9th!

Contact her directly (kelly@milamphotoarts.com) if you want to place an order from Europe and she will have it printed and sent from London to save you expensive international shipping costs.

Thank you for supporting her amazing photography

SHOP MILAM PHOTO ARTS

That’s all for now and thank you!

https://www.facebook.com/thrillbluesfestival/

JUNE NEWS from Robben

Hi there – Hope everyone is well. Here’s a little bit of what’s up lately:

I finally received my Global Talent Visa, and we have arrived in London!…Whew!… Currently in an AirBnB and its gonna take some time to get settled, but, really happy to be here.

I’ve already made some nice connections with people in music. Had a beer with Eric Clapton’s guitar tech, luthier Dan Dearnley, whom I met opening for Eric last November. He’s an excellent guitar builder. He’s done a beautiful 12 string for Eric which was used in a live studio setting with a small group during the COVID days, which you can find on YouTube.

Also connected with legendary, British producer Chris Kimsey who now runs, and I believe owns Olympic Studios where Hendrix recorded Are You Experienced.

I have a few festival dates coming up – the first on July 1, the Thrill Blues Festival, in Trilj, Croatia and another, Festival Guitaralde in French Basque July 7th (links on my TOUR page.) These I’ll do with the Honnet Brothers, the duo I’ve worked with several times while living in France – B3 organ and drums. Should be fun, as I’ve not been playing a lot since leaving Paris last March.

AND….we’ve just finished mixing and mastering a LIVE recording done in 2021 at the City Winery in Nashville, Tn.

The tentative title is LIVE In The City and, if I may say, presents a great band, has a great vibe, and stellar performances by everyone involved. We hope to have this released by late November if not sooner and will keep you posted.

“The Zoom chats are great. For any guitar player who is looking to improve, being able to listen to and speak with the one of the greatest electric blues guitar players is invaluable. And way too much fun!” ~ Brian

NEW VIDEO UP!
RIFF #91:
Tritone Pentatonic / Altered Scale Pt 2

ZOOM HANG
This coming Sunday
11AM London time for those in
Australia and Europe – join us!

JOIN US!

That’s all for now and thank you!

Looking forward to a great show at the Thrill Blues Festival in Croatia, July 1st – such a beautiful country.

Thrill Blues Festival

Anthony Honnet

Davy Honnet

The Honnet Brothers

Latest NEWS from Robben

Hi there – here’s a little of what I’ve been up to this past month:

Kelly and I are currently in Woodstock, NY in a great house on a creek in the woods. Such a welcome retreat from all of the activity of the past couple of months.

We just returned from a trip to Tokyo playing four nights at the Blue Note with Bill Evans, Darryle Jones and Keith Carlock. It’s my favorite club to play on the planet – a great room, great staff, amazing kitchen…And we’ve made many good friends playing there over the years and it’s always a blast to reconnect with them.

We also spent two weeks in Brooklyn before Japan waiting to hear more about our UK visa situation….Still waiting… This is taking a long time. But, being in Woodstock now is relaxing and rejuvenating, just what the doctor ordered.

I recently went into Dreamland Recording Studios here in Woodstock to do some finishing touches on a LIVE recording done at City Winery in Nashville in 2021. This should be released in early 2024 and features music from my PURE album. Very cool to have found such a wonderful place to work just a few miles away from where we’re staying.

The purpose was to clean up some mistakes here and there in my performance, but, the result will be 95% live recording and I think people will love it as much as I do. Great energy from a great band, including Nate Smith on drums, Anton Nesbitt on bass and Jovan Quallo and Jeff Coffin (Jeff is from The Dave Mathews band) on saxophones and bass clarinet.

We will keep you posted on the release date…I personally can’t wait!

In the studio.

Some of you may have seen that I will be doing a Guitar Camp in South Africa August 24 thru 30. It’s limited to TEN people, very intimate, with a lot of one on one time between the participants and me, including jamming around the campfire!

Only a couple spaces left, so, jump on it if you want to join us. You can learn all about it HERE.

“Just want to thank you for this wonderful resource you’ve built. It’s really opened up my ears over the last few months and I’m playing the best I’ve ever played and it’s just so rewarding.
…Thanks for giving all a glimpse into your world, that’s a lot of fun!” ~ John B.

NEW VIDEO UP!
RENEGADE CREATION
Check it out:
“Stories – My Life in Music” SECTION:

JOIN US!

In this video I’m letting people know of photographs of my ‘60 Telecaster, as well as some of my other guitars, found at MilamPhotoArts.com.
Milam Kelly Roberts is a graphic artist and photographer in the Miksong style of photography meant to capture the living quality of the moment. Her photographs are stunning and should be hanging on your wall.

That’s all for now and thank you!

Latest NEWS from Robben

Hello it’s been a while

AND THERE IS A LOT GOING ON: Kelly and I will be moving from Paris to the UK soon. We’re taking a couple of weeks in the country after we leave our flat on March 5th to have a little space to ourselves after all the packing, etc.

Then a trip to Norway where I’m playing the Larvik Guitar Festival; then back for a club date in Paris on March 25th with my friend Ludovic Biere. (He’s a great gypsy jazz accordionist who can actually play in all styles of music.)

After that on March 25th, we’ll fly back to the US and start the visa process for our entry to the UK. Two weeks later we fly to Japan where I’ll be playing with Bill Evans, Keith Carlock and Darryl Jones at the Tokyo Blue Note. This is always a blast, especially with a band of musicians like that!

Something pretty special happening in August, certainly for us: The « Robben Ford Blues Safari » outside of Johannesburg, SA. I have been only once to Johannesburg years ago with the Blue Line band. It was great, but, we never got into the wild. I’m so looking forward to this exclusive event, and you can learn all about it HERE.

“The Zoom chats are great. For any guitar player who is looking to improve, being able to listen to and speak with the one of the greatest electric blues guitar players is invaluable.
And way too much fun!” ~ Brian

NEW VIDEO UP!
Robben talks about his
Signature Paul Reed Smith Guitar

JOIN US!

Kelly and I are both very excited about making her photographs of my guitars available again on her brand new photography website: MILAM PHOTO ARTS. Kelly’s work is very unique and can be displayed in a variety of environments which you will see in her website. I’m personally knocked out by the way she has captured my guitars and she does the same with so many differenthttps://www.milamphotoarts.com/ subjects…Fantastic!
Please do check it out.

Use the SAVE30ROBBEN for a 30% OFF on Ground. Path. Fruition.
Good thru April1, 2023

TrueFire’s Play With Fire is a curated video series of music education documentaries that examine today’s most influential artists and their unique contributions to our musical heritage. In this 9-Hour Masterclass edition of Play With Fire, Robben Ford maps the evolution of his extraordinary musicality, across 90 highly insightful video lessons.

Organized by the three main stages of his career, Ground, Path and Fruition covers everything from Robben’s key influences, rhythm and comping techniques, chord voicings, soloing approaches, songwriting, and 19 full-length performance studies.

Check it out.

So…a big transition to the UK with lot’s of travel in between. It’s a bit much, as you can imagine. But, after a year in Paris we’ve found that there are things we need which we can’t quite find here in Paris.

Wishing everyone a great 2023.
We celebrated the Tibetan New Year of the Water Rabbit also known as “Losar” on February 21st. And we are looking forward to our new journey to the UK.

Cheers!

Check out where I’ll be this month! Tickets and more details can be found at RobbenFord.com

2022

CHECK IT OUT FOR 3 DAYS FREE

October NEWS from Robben

Hello from Paris

Some exciting news: I will be opening three sold-out shows for Eric Clapton in Italy this October – Bologna the 10th and 11th, then Milan on the 12th. If you have tickets, make sure to be there by 8 to catch my show. I’ll be playing with my French band, Davy and Anthony Honnet (drums and organ).

This should be a blast and must admit, I’m hoping I’m invited to sit in with him. I’ve met Eric on two occasions and he was very complimentary. He is, of course, one of my early and biggest influences on the guitar. (Had the pleasure of seeing him with Cream in the 60s).

Had a great little run in California recently. Got to play at what I think is my favorite place on Earth – The Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. In addition, it was great to play with my old friend and music teacher, Tom Scott at Steely Jazz in San Diego.

Head over to my YouTube page to see a few videos of these performances.

Also Had a great visit with my brothers (AKA Ford Blues Band) and family in Ukiah along the way.

Pat, Mark and Me – Ukiah CA

IN OTHER NEWS

Looking forward to playing in Iceland in November. Be great to see my old friend Bjossi again – apparently I’m going to be receiving a “Golden Pick Award.”
(check out my TOUR page for dates).

Also I’ll be playing with a Big Band in Zurich, Switzerland in December. This kind of gig something very special for me – I call it “BB King for a Day” If your in Zurich – come on out – going to be a great night!

GUITAR DOJO UPDATE

GUITAR THE WAY I LEARNED IT

“Find Your Mojo in The Dojo!”

“Remember, you are always serving the music – always” ~ RF

Always working on adding new content to the Dojo and we’ve also just completed a new introduction video for to robbenfordguitardojo.com.

We’ve been having a blast in our weekly ZOOM meetings with the students which often turn into spontaneous guitar lessons. Really appreciate the energy of these Hangs.’

We just started an official RobbenFordGuitarDojo Instagram (FB page coming) pages! Posts coming – make sure to tune in there for news and updates.

The Dojo is our main concern these days with a lot of energy going into it. So please, come join us in the Dojo!

New lesson on my song “Earthquake” is up on the new SONGWRITING section of the Dojo. Check it out.

NEXT LIVE ZOOM
WITH ROBBEN:
Saturday October 8th from
Bologna, Italy
6pm (GMT +1:00)

TRUEFIRE UPDATE

Deep Grooves: Modern Blues
(Pre-Order)

How To Craft Guitar Solos & Rhythm Parts for Modern Blues

For this Modern Blues edition, I dug a little deeper to select slower grooves that we felt had a broader emotional spectrum.

Each soloing performance is an improvisation presented in an arc, beginning with the pentatonic scale, moving into the major scale that runs through the chord, into arpeggios, and then I combine them all.

I also show you chord voicings and the approach I would use for comping over these grooves and supporting the soloist.

PRE-ORDER save 25% before October 26th! Use the code OFFORD25OCT at check out

Check it out

https://www.palaceoffinearts.org/…/robben-ford-with…

There are a bunch of new videos from my last tour in California – make sure to check them out.

If you haven’t SUBSCRIBED yet – make sure to do so to have instant access to all my latest vids.

NEW MERCH!

(And stay tuned for Milam’s (Kelly Roberts’)
RF Guitar photos coming soon!)

ROBBEN FORD 13J T

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Thank you for listening and if you are interested in playing guitar please check out the Robben Ford Guitar Dojo. You’ll find a lot of content and we do live Zoom Hangs every other week. Please say hello.

Cheers!

The new records

Hope you can come out and see what might be my last show in San Francisco @palaceoffineartstheatre in San Francisco.

@joe_robinson will be joining me along with

@jquallo

@lowendhess on bass

@dougbelote

@omniconcerts

Hope you can make it out – going to be a great night!

TICKETS

CHECK IT OUT FOR 3 DAYS FREE

August NEWS from Robben

Hello from Paris

Things have been going pretty much as we’d hoped here in Europe – playing a few shows now and then and developing the Dojo further.

The trip in July to the US Pacific North West was great. Particularly the show in Portland where I was able to hang and play with my dear friend and guitarist, Michael Osborn. Mike was with John Lee Hooker for many years and is one of the great, true-blue, blues guitarist of the last few decades. He’s still a blast and you can find him in Portland if you want to hear some great blues guitar.

Robben and his best friend from High School, Mike Osborne

We were in Finland at the beginning of the month for a festival in Iisalmi (beautiful little town, surrounded by countless lakes) and a show at Koko Jazz, a performing arts center in Helsinki. The following weekend was a guitar festival in Normandy where we had been just a month before.

Koko Jazz Club Helsinki

We’ll be taking some time off with a vacation in Ireland, traveling with a couple of good friends living here in France.
Kelly and I will be back to the US in September to visit family, do some final packing up in Nashville, and I’ll be playing three shows in California:San Francisco on September 16th, a private event in Mission Viejo on the 17th and then guesting with Steel Jazz in San Diego on the 18th. This is a makeup date for the one I had to cancel last July. Check out my TOUR page for tickets.

GUITAR DOJO UPDATE

GUITAR THE WAY I LEARNED IT

“Find Your Mojo in The Dojo!”

“Very grateful to Robben, Kelly and Co for the Guitar Dojo. It offers a holistic treatment of the instrument’s role within the wonderful world of music. It’s a rich resource, supported by a community with good-vibes, that doesn’t take itself too seriously.” ~ Joe

THE SONGWRITING COURSE HAS LAUNCHED!

We’ve added a new songwriting series to the Dojo as there have been a lot of requests for something like this. And, as always, we are posting fresh content every week. We’ve also added a live ZOOM Hang each alternate week for those who’ve not been able to attend due to the time zone difference. We are bringing it to you in the Dojo!
Please do subscribe for a ton of great instructional content a great Live Zoom Hang! The Dojo is at the heart of all that I am doing now.

NEXT LIVE ZOOM WITH ROBBEN: Sunday August 21st from
Dublin, Ireland – 6pm (GMT +1:00)

TRUEFIRE UPDATE

Deep Grooves: Modern Blues
(Pre-Order)

How To Craft Guitar Solos & Rhythm Parts for Modern Blues

PRE-ORDER – SUBSCRIBERS ONLY:
20% OFF my latest TrueFire course.
The code DEEPGROOVES20 has been extended thru SEPT 1

For this Modern Blues edition, I dug a little deeper to select slower grooves that we felt had a broader emotional spectrum.

I also show you chord voicings and the approach I would use for comping over these grooves and supporting the soloist.

Check it out.

NEW VIDEO up on YouTube from my MINI COURSE:
Chicago Blues Guitar: Lesson #5:G9 VOICINGIf you haven’t SUBSCRIBED yet – make sure to do so to have instant access to all my latest vids.

Cheers!

CHECK IT OUT FOR 7 DAYS FREE

Latest NEWS

Bonjour from Normandy!

Hope everyone is having a pleasant enough summer. Paris has had some lovely weather after a hot spell that kept us in. The last couple of weeks have been all about preparing for a very busy July. Writing this now from Normandy where I will be playing the Archeo Jazz Fest tonight.

We had a great trip to Australia in May. Andy Hess, Doug Belote, Jovan Quallo and I played six shows “down-under” and had the pleasure of spending four days in Melbourne. I must say, that city feels so good to me: super chill, super green and on coastal Australia. A rejuvenating place for me.

It was great to see everyone – thanks for coming out.

I’m off to the US on the 8th to begin a west coast tour starting in San Diego. As a guest with “Steely Dan Jazz”, I’ll be happy to reconnect with the music director, an old friend and mentor, Tom Scott. We met when I was invited to join the LA Express, the band that recorded and toured with Joni Mitchell in 1974, which was an incredible learning platform for me, as well as giving a big boost to my career as a young guitarist. I learned a lot from Tom.

From there I’ll go up to Portland, Vancouver and Seattle with my own group. (All of the dates can be found on my TOUR page.) Be great to see you if you can make it out for any of the shows.

GUITAR DOJO UPDATE

FIND YOUR MOJO IN THE GUITAR DOJO

“I joined the Dojo 6 months ago, looking to spice up my playing and broaden my knowledge. Well, it has done that and much more! The content on the site it excellent and Robben’s approach to teaching and sharing his knowledge is outstanding. It’s already changed the way I play and see the fretboard. The Zoom chats are great. For any guitar player who is looking to improve, being able to listen to and speak with the one of the greatest electric blues guitar players is invaluable. And way too much fun!”
~ Brian

We’ve decided to offer a song writing course on the Dojo, beginning the second week of July.

A lot of people have been requesting this and it is a favorite subject for me as well. The first offering will focus on a recent session I did for a gentleman who hired me to co-write three songs with him and produce the tracks here in Paris. (He’s from Dubai.)

Producing the tracks was easy. Writing lyrics for three songs in a couple of days was the challenge! I’m happy to say that things turned out very well and I start the course discussing one of the songs in developement called, “Make My Own Weather”.

Recording session in Paris for the first Song Writing Course lesson.

NEXT LIVE ZOOM WITH ROBBEN: Sunday July 10, 12PM PST
from San Diego, CA

TRUEFIRE UPDATE

Deep Grooves: Modern Blues
(Pre-Order)

How To Craft Guitar Solos & Rhythm Parts for Modern Blues

PRE-ORDER – SUBSCRIBERS ONLY:
20% OFF my latest TrueFire course.
Use the code DEEPGROOVES20
thru JULY 31

For this Modern Blues edition, I dug a little deeper to select slower grooves that we felt had a broader emotional spectrum.

I also show you chord voicings and the approach I would use for comping over these grooves and supporting the soloist.

Check it out.

Blainville-crevon, France

NEW VIDEO up on YouTube from my MINI COURSE:
Chicago Blues Guitar: Lesson #4: NEW G7 VOICINGIf you haven’t SUBSCRIBED yet – make sure to do so to have instant access to all my latest vids.

Cheers!

2021

JUL 2 SAT

Festival Archéo Jazz édition @ 9:00pm

San Diego, CA, United States

JUL 10 SUN

Music Box @ 7:00pm

Tom Scott

Portland, OR, United States

JUL 13 WED

Aladdin Theater @ 8:00pm

JUL 15 FRI

Vancouver Folk Music Festival 2022 @ 8:00pm

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Seattle, WA, United States

JUL 16 SAT

The Triple Door (1st set) @ 6:30pm

Seattle, WA, United States

JUL 16 SAT

The Triple Door (2st set) @ 8:30pm

AUG 2 TUE

IISALMI Jazz Festival @ 7:00pm

Iisalmi, Finland