A Quote by Ben Howard

I need some time and space to make sure I'm on the right track with myself and playing music I want to play. — © Ben Howard
I need some time and space to make sure I'm on the right track with myself and playing music I want to play.
When I'm playing, I play what I want, but I make sure that the crowd is going to love it at the same time. It's like a balancing act, a mix of two, a perfect circle... if you do it right.
I believe that the greatest music is storytelling anyway, in a heightened medium. So I write a lot of music, and I play a lot with my guitar, I still sing a lot, but now I'm more personal about it than public, in a way. I think there will be a time where I'd like to bring the singing back into some of my performances. It all depends if the material's right, if the story's right, if it's my kind of taste in music, as well. It means so much to me. We all know how affective music can be, I just want to make sure when I do it, I'm doing it because I actually feel it and I care about it.
When I really started liking music was when I could play some of it myself, and after a couple of years of playing folk music, I kinda rediscovered those hits that were on the radio all the time when I was a kid.
I take really good care of myself, and I make sure that my body's in tip-top condition, and I stay on top of everything - eat right and do everything else to make sure that I can play for a long time.
That's one of the things I haven't had time for in my personal life, is art, and I probably should make more time for it. I also don't have space where I'm living right now to set up a studio, but I'm sure at some point, I will.
Career-wise, there are so many things where you don't get what you think you want. I've had to make space for, 'Do I let that debilitate me and make me feel bad about myself? And make me feel like I need to change myself in some way?' Because I think changing myself is very different from growing and learning.
My wife has been incredibly supportive of me as a writer. Trying really hard to make sure I get the space and time I need to work as a writer and being willing to make some of the sacrifices that you have to make to live the life of an artist.
Sixties folk rock was my original muse and the folk audience-people who listen to music off the beaten track-fostered my career. I definitely don't want to abandon the genre but I also need to make sure I'm Dar Williams first.
I'm not working in football. Basically, I'm a father with two kids and taking some time for myself. I played for 25 years, and I believe I need some space for myself.
If you play music for the right reasons, the rest of the things will come. The right reason to play music is that you love it. That's why I play music. I never imagined that I was going to be doing this, especially because I never thought of myself as an instrumentalist.
My hope is to continue to make new music and go with the flow. I think I'll always be creative. I want to keep making good music, put myself into positions where I need to rise to the occasion of playing in front of an audience, and continually get better at what I'm doing.
Right now I'm not fitting into the coach's plans and so I just want to make sure I can do the best I can and improve myself and make sure I get picked.
You can read books on stuff all day long, but until you get out there and just do it, if you want to start playing, and you want to make some music, then go out and play. Go find yourself a venue and play, even if it's in your home. Just play every day. You win the fight by fighting.
I want to make the music that people remember, and it doesn't need a trend; it doesn't need to be constantly hyped. There's no time period for it. That's the type of music I want to make.
For me, on every project, I realize that I've boxed myself into a corner, or that the play necessitates some sort of theatrical convention that I realize I hate while I'm making it. So then the next play is always a rebellion. Or like, the thing I didn't even realize I was doing last time I will make sure I don't do this time. But there's always some other blind spot. And then that blind spot inspires the play that comes after.
You're about to walk on stage and play together for the next few hours so you want to feel connected and make sure that everyone is in the same head space; a good head space.
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