Ben Howard – Only Love (Glastonbury 2013)
Anyone lucky enough to catch the great documentary, Austin to Boston, would have noticed standout British folk singer, Ben Howard for his unique vocal style, finger-picking acoustic proficiency. and overall onstage charisma.
5 old VW camper vans. 4 bands. 3 thousand miles. 2 weeks. 1 gloriously backward tour. The adventure starts after a fire-fuelled final night at Austin’s SXSW Music Festival, where the bands (Ben Howard, The Staves, Nathaniel Rateliff, Bear’s Den) pile into their rides and head northeast. They play everywhere from bars to barns, rooms to rooftops, packing out tiny venues and wowing crowds with their unique sounds.
But heavy rainstorms, multiple breakdowns, and cramped conditions remind them that to push through sometimes you need to pull together. Featuring Mumford & Sons’ Ben Lovett and narrated by Gill Landry this documentary is about a modern tour, done the old-fashioned way.
[Chorus 1] While the faithful dispose of a generation
And all of the mountains rumble knowingly
I order a colada and sit to count my dollars
And watch eagles soar in circles
Perpetually
Such a beautiful thing [Chorus 2] Now I am older, I don’t look over my shoulder
I know what is there in front of me
Ten Marlboro cigarettes I’ve rolled the butts into the bottle tops
Today I will stare at the sea
Till my eyes have had enough [Outro] Enough, enough
Is that enough?
Ben Howard performs Towing The Line on Later… with Jools Holland on BBC Two (15 May 2018).
Martin D-28 (2017) Dreadnought Acoustic Guitar
