BAND SPOTLIGHT | Ben Bedford

A stalwart on the local scene while playing folk music on regional, national and international levels, Springfield-based singer-songwriter Ben Bedford writes songs and sings them for folks. The Chatham native has toured in Scotland, England, Western Europe plus New Berlin, Kansas, Idaho, Michigan and other points across the country, making friends and music along the way. Venerable folk DJ Rich Warren of Chicago’s legendary WFMT radio named Ben to a list of “50 most significant folk singer-songwriters of the past 50 years” in July of 2010. All three of Bedford’s albums charted high on the Folk DJ and Euro-Americana charts with his 2012 release, What We Lost, also scoring well on the Roots Music Report. Currently he’s in the throes of a Kickstarter project (deadline March 11) to help finance his latest venture, The Pilot and the Flying Machine, recorded in early January 2016 and set for a May 1 release. Ben asked Tom Irwin, his friend and cohort in folk music adventures, to join him for a Paris-Belle House concert. Admission to this event requires a request to the email above for information.