David Ford's Milk and Cookies at The Royal Hippodrome Theatre, Eastbourne

BobbySix.com braved the snow with camera in hand to attend David Ford's Milk and Cookies gig in Eastbourne last weekend. Check the video below:

Eastbourne resident David Ford has, for a decade, been finding time within his busy recording and touring schedule to orchestrate and perform a series of charity gigs, entitled Milk and Cookies. Having raised thousands upon thousands of pounds, Milk and Cookies turned ten-years-old on Saturday night. To celebrate, Ford played a show at the Royal Hippodrome Theatre in his home town.

While the event was sold-out, the fact that England's roads/trains seem to come to a complete standstill with the slightest peppering of snow means that a couple of hundred punters failed to make it. While this was a shame, the event was also live-streamed around the world, so those who were unable to attend could at least enjoy it from the warmth of their living room.

What they would have seen was the usual mix of Ford's solo songs and unexpected covers and rarer treats. Within three hours of terrific entertainment, highlights included a duet with former Easyworld band-mate Jo Taylor-Jones, a turn from Frances Law and a magnificent barber shop quartet featuring Max Arnold from The Late Greats, Neil Martin from Billy and the Fingers and Gary Page. As the gig drew to a close, certain representatives of BobbySix.com made up part of the choir that provided vocals on Bowie's Young Americans, Springsteen's Hungry Heart and John Farnham's You're The Voice.

Ford's music has yet to receive the recognition it deserves and so his life as a troubadour is hardly the most profitable. Therefore, for him to dedicate weeks and weeks of every year to work on this charity project illustrates what a fine chap he is. And the sheer entertainment that was on offer on this cold December evening in a dilapidated old theatre in Eastbourne cannot be argued with. A winning night all round.

This year's very good cause was the Tuesday O'Hara Fund.

David Ford at The Old Market, Brighton

Amid a credit-crunch and in an era when the music industry is haemorrhaging money, musicians are increasingly having to tighten their belts and go a bit DIY. Not a problem for Eastbourne troubadour David Ford who, with the help of some power-tools and a bit of elbow grease, built his own band for his latest, self-funded tour of the UK. Equally at home playing with just a guitar for company or filling a festival stage with a 14-piece ensemble, this time Ford supplemented a vocal and guitar/piano by utilising his trusty loop pedal and an ingenious remote control drum-kit. Not a drum machine. An actual drum kit, with sticks and everything. It played itself in the corner while Ford controlled it from centre-front.

In keeping with the unusual stage set-up, the evening took on a different dynamic too, with no support act but instead two intimate sets from Ford split by an interval. The old songs were as welcomingly familiar as a pair of comfy trousers. Of them, the vitriolic State of the Union was still as mind-blowing as ever, as Ford slowly and deliberately laid loop atop loop. Song For The Road was sweet, and there was even a surprise nod to his past, as he played a stripped-down version of old Easyworld favourite, Demons.

The two hour set was littered by new, unreleased tracks too and it was these, most notably the beautiful To Hell With The World, that stood out and certainly whetted the appetite for the release of some new material later this year.