Chris wrote the majority of the songs for Good Morning America in the summer of 2015. The political element of the album was in part as a reaction against what he sees as the inertia and complacency shown by many in the current music fraternity. Chris was originally inspired and encouraged to pick up the guitar and to write his own songs after a chance meeting in New York with John Cale of The Velvet Underground. In an afternoon, over a beer or two, they got talking and John advised Chris to go to Greenwich Village and start playing in front of a crowd. Chris took the plunge and that same evening he did his first ever live performance. Chris is primarily based in London but in the past twelve months, he has been gaining ground in the US where the song A Little Rain Must Fall, has been played on over 170 Triple A radio stations and featured on several US syndicated radio shows. Chris spent six weeks in the States last year playing over 40 gigs and gaining a growing but loyal army of fans. His previous two albums This Atlantic Low and All Caught Up have had really good critical reaction. All Caught Up which is essentially a live acoustic album gave rise to Chris undertaking over 40 live sessions for BBC radio stations around the UK. Chris often begins the writing process with a title. He then develops the melody line and if he is lucky the lyrics come along as a stream of consciousness coupled with a little essential editing. His influences range from people he has big respect for such as Jamie T, Ryan Adams, James Blake and Elliot Smith and also to wider influences such as David Bowie, The Beatles and Bob Dylan and Damien Rice. ALBUM: Chris Ford ‘Good Morning America’ Rating: Inspired by a chance meeting with John Cale of The Velvet Underground, Chris Ford picked up a guitar and began writing songs. Since then Chris has released a couple of albums and has been making some inroads in the States, with radio airplay on over 100 stations. As the name suggests, new album Good Morning America is influenced by the land of the free with many of the songs a fusion of pysch-rock peppered with seeds of West Coast Americana, alongside a number of tracks reflecting on personal relationships. Album opener and title track ‘Good Morning America’ is a radio friendly comment on America’s political domination, although the tune falls on the ear like a dreamy breeze coming in from the Pacific, averting from the tense topic. With his delicate vocal Chris melts the airwaves as he sings “how are you gonna make us feel today?”. Despite the ominous title, ‘Digging Our Graves’ follows and has a bit more of an edge to it, as it penetrates the listener’s subconscious with its upbeat infectious chorus. The sound is familiar but enjoyable all the same. ‘Say Nothing’ is an all out attack on the corporate music industry and is one of the stand-out moments on the album. Lyrically the well-crafted and powerful song connects (“Rhianna says nothing… Coldplay nothing… Swift she says nothing”) although the delicate vocal lacks conviction and leaves the song begging for a more angry vocal. Contrastingly, ‘Hard To Believe’ ticks all the boxes with Ford’s gentle tone and reflection on society (“In London there is no place to live, the Russians came and bought it all”) gliding through the airwaves beautifully. ‘A Little Rain Must Fall’ is another highpoint, with the piano adding to the mesmeric song. ‘FYI’ has a somewhat hypnotic and melodic hook and as Chris sings repeatedly “but for your information” the temptation to sing along proves too great!