He was born in Woodlake, California and raised in Ukiah. He taught himself guitar when he was 13 and considered his first influence to be Mike Bloomfield. At 18 he moved to San Francisco to form the Charles Ford Blues Band (named after his father, who was also a guitarist) featuring his brothers Mark (mouth harp) and Patrick (drums).
Robben was soon hired to play with Charles Musselwhite for nine months. Robben Ford played with Jimmy Witherspoon (1972-1973), the L.A. Express with Tom Scott (1974), George Harrison and Joni Mitchell. In 1977 he was a founding member of the Yellowjackets, which he stayed with until 1983, simultaneously having a solo career and working as a session guitarist.
In 1986, Ford toured with Miles Davis and he had two separate periods (1985 and 1987) with Sadao Watanabe, but he seemed to really find himself in 1992 when he returned to his roots: the blues. Ford formed a new group, the Blue Line, and subsequently recorded a couple of blues-rock dates for Stretch that are among the finest of his career. In 1999, he released Sunrise on Rhino and Supernatural on Blue Thumb. Ford signed to the Concord Jazz label in 2002 and released Blue Moon that same year, followed by Keep on Running in 2003 and Truth in 2007. Robben Ford whilst continuing to record solo albums has been touring in 2007 with guitar legend Larry Carlton.
How Deep In The Blues
Robben Ford Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can take it or leave, you don't need to be nice
You're living through hard times and it's starting to show
How deep in the blues do you want to go?
It hasn't been easy living on your own
Got a house full of empty where there once was a home
Tomcats on your doorstep and you never say no
Just how far will you go down
Till you lift your head and look around?
You have friends to surround you, baby
And maybe someone who loves you, hey, hey
Taking prescriptions, hide from your pain
Come the next month, baby, it's come back again, oh yeah
Baby, so bad to see you down so low
How deep in the blues do you want to go?
Just how far will you fall
Till you see you just might lose it all?
You have so much to live for, baby
And I wanna show you how, hey, hey
None of my business how you choose to live
But sooner or later something's gonna give
You do what you want but I'd sure like to know
How deep in the blues do you want to go, want to go?
How deep in the blues do you want to go?
The lyrics to Robben Ford's "How Deep In The Blues" are a contemplative reflection on the consequences of living through hard times. The singer begins by recognizing that he has no business giving advice, but there's an urgency to his reflections and an overwhelming need to help. The singer questions the extent to which we can indulge in our sorrow and offers a warning before giving up too much without looking around. The house full of emptiness, the tomcats on the doorstep that get a "yes" without question, and the pain-numbing prescriptions reflect the attempt to move beyond sorrow by escaping into drugs or sex to keep up appearances.
But the singer acknowledges that all of this is temporary and that at some point, the pain and the sorrow will catch up. Nevertheless, in the face of such gloom, the song offers reassurance that, hard as it may be, there is still hope in the form of friends and loved ones who can surround us when things get tough. The chorus of "How deep in the blues do you want to go?" gently reminds the listener that they are in control, that they can take advice or leave it, but they should be aware of the potential for real consequences if they go too deep.
Line by Line Meaning
It's none of my business giving advice
I don't want to impose my views on you
You can take it or leave, you don't need to be nice
You don't have to follow my advice or fake being nice
You're living through hard times and it's starting to show
You're struggling with life and it's becoming evident
How deep in the blues do you want to go?
How much worse do you want things to get?
It hasn't been easy living on your own
Living alone has brought its own set of difficulties
Got a house full of empty where there once was a home
Your house is now devoid of the warmth and love it once had
Tomcats on your doorstep and you never say no
You're succumbing to things that you know aren't good for you
Just how far will you go down
How much worse will things get?
Till you lift your head and look around?
Until you finally recognize what's happening around you?
You have friends to surround you, baby
You have people who care about you and will support you
And maybe someone who loves you, hey, hey
And maybe there's someone who truly loves you
Taking prescriptions, hide from your pain
You're trying to escape from your problems by taking medication
Come the next month, baby, it's come back again, oh yeah
The pain will always come back, it's only temporary relief
Baby, so bad to see you down so low
It's painful to see you struggling so much
Just how far will you fall
How much worse will it get for you?
Till you see you just might lose it all?
Until you realize you could lose everything?
You have so much to live for, baby
You have so many reasons to keep on living
And I wanna show you how, hey, hey
And I want to help you find a way out of this darkness
None of my business how you choose to live
I don't want to intrude on your personal choices
But sooner or later something's gonna give
But eventually, something has to change
You do what you want but I'd sure like to know
You have the freedom to do as you please, but I'm curious
How deep in the blues do you want to go, want to go?
How much worse do you want things to get?
How deep in the blues do you want to go?
How much worse are you willing to let things get?
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: FORD, NICHOLSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sonny Cannon
what a nice groove,, nice chord changes, smooth,, Travis is a darn good bassist! Very smooth lines! Very tight overall, what a group, Robben is the only other blues/rock/jazz guitarist that delivers the shivers for me, thanks for posting this!
gibsonbradley
Great trio. Toss is one of the best, and this group plays the music as it should be played.
Sonny Cannon
Yes, Larry gave the 'paul to Robben a few years back. It's a shame that back in the early 1970's they didn't do some touring and do a few records together, when they both were the hottest trend setters around back in LA. Robben actually was playing incredible jazz/rock/fusion licks, saxophone based licks actually, as far back as 1971, and if you get a hold of his live recording from around 1972 or so, you'll see exactly what I mean,, I mean,,, MEAN!!!! WOW!!!!
Jeff N
Robben's trio is awesome, and that drummer kicks ass
Filippo Antonini Music
this trio is the bomb!
Robert Schmitt
Such non-traditional phrasing. Love it.
JX JZ
When he starts the main solo towards the end any soul is able to witness what mastery is about. He s performing saxophone on strings plus outside notes and rhythmuc sophistication. Anyone noodling down the blues scale better take a bow... kudos to Robben, THE genuine inspiration of my guitar fancy
kerranz
I admit I was a bit shocked at how loud Robben likes it...he sounds so clean...I saw these three just on their return that year and while I didn't mind, you CAN"T ignore them in any way. A serious 3-headed monster that show was!
mano a mano
Boy, that's some talent on that stage!
gruvintubin
Blues Deluxe showcased Robben Ford at least a decade ago. I recently rediscovered him listening to some old tapes. All three are fantastic musicians in this video.