Martyn Ford (born 28 April 1944) is an English musician, best known for his

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

l contributions to

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

albums of the 1970s and 1980s. Born in

Rugby, Warwickshire Rugby is a market town in eastern Warwickshire, England, close to the River Avon. In the 2021 census its population was 78,125, making it the second-largest town in Warwickshire. It is the main settlement within the larger Borough of Rugby whi ...

,Lebanon, Ford was originally classically trained; he studied

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

at the Royal Academy of Music. While in his senior year there, he formed his own orchestra, which debuted at the Royal Albert Hall a few months after he graduated. He then found work as an arranger and conductor for releases by Caravan, Barclay James Harvest,

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry CBE (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established a distinctive image and sartorial style: according to ''The Independent'', Ferry an ...

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and African rhythms and pi ...

Johnny Nash John Lester Nash Jr. (August 19, 1940October 6, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter, best known in the United States for his 1972 hit " I Can See Clearly Now". Primarily a reggae and pop singer, he was one of the first non-Jamaican artists ...

, Three Man Army, Japan and Elton John, as well as for the soundtrack for the film ''

Tommy Tommy may refer to: People * Tommy (given name) * Tommy Atkins, or just Tommy, a slang term for a common soldier in the British Army Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Tommy'' (1931 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Tommy'' (1975 fil ...

''. He also played horn for the

Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numbe ...

early in the decade. He also recorded on his own as the Martyn Ford Orchestra; his 1976 album ''Smoovin'' featured Mike Moran, Ann Odell, Simon Phillips,

Morris Pert Morris David Brough Pert (8 September 1947 – 27 April 2010) was a Scottish composer, drummer/percussionist, and pianist who composed in the fields of both contemporary classical and jazz-rock music. His compositions include three symphonies, p ...

, John Gustafson and

Mel Collins Melvyn Desmond Collins (born 5 September 1947, Isle of Man) is a British saxophonist, flautist and session musician. Collins has played in several progressive rock groups, having been a member of King Crimson on two occasions (the first from ...

. It also spawned a hit in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, " Let Your Body Go Downtown", which peaked at No. 38 in 1977. The song was written by Lynsey de Paul and Moran, who also wrote the follow-up single " Going to a Disco", which failed to reach the UK chart in the summer of 1977. In the 1980s, he worked with

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single " Wuthering Heights", becoming the first female ...

, Phil Collins and

Dave Davies David Russell Gordon Davies (born 3 February 1947) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, which also featured his elder brother Ray Davies. He was in ...

, amongst others.

References

External links

Official website

The Deep Purple Podcast - Bonus Episode #1 – Interview with Martyn Ford
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Martyn 1944 births Living people English conductors (music) British male conductors (music) English classical musicians British music arrangers Eurovision Song Contest conductors Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music 21st-century British conductors (music) 21st-century British male musicians People from Rugby, Warwickshire