{"id":136882,"date":"2026-06-16T13:41:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T18:41:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=136882"},"modified":"2026-06-16T13:43:07","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T18:43:07","slug":"john-ford-of-the-strawbs-to-release-new-album-between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place-music-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=136882","title":{"rendered":"John Ford Of The Strawbs To Release New Album Between A Rock And A Hard Place &#8211; Music News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1545664804358300\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display: block; text-align: center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1545664804358300\" data-ad-slot=\"8616314829\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=136882\" rel=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=136882\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-136883 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/John-Ford-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/John-Ford-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/John-Ford-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/John-Ford.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>John Ford\u2019s 50+ year career has traversed psychedelia with Elmer Gantry\u2019s Velvet Opera, progressive folk with The Strawbs, eclectic rock with Hudson-Ford, punky new wave with The Monks, and even \u201930s-style music hall with High Society. An Englishman in New York since the mid-\u201980s, Ford launched a solo career spotlighting his melodic gifts and multi-instrumental prowess in power pop and acoustic-based rock settings. For his latest album, the eternally youthful John Ford presents Between a Rock and a Hard Place, a lyrically reflective and musically energetic set.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a songwriter the subconscious can bring forth ideas that you may not even be thinking of day to day, but looking back on stages in my life, songs like \u2018The Last Goodnight\u2019 and \u2018Lilacs and Hollyhocks\u2019 certainly reflect that,\u201d Ford comments. \u201cI think everyone at some point in their lives have been between a rock and a hard place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>John Ford seamlessly integrates two cover songs into Between a Rock and a Hard Place, including the album\u2019s first single, the Tom Petty-written \u201cWalls.\u201d Ford: \u201cSomehow, even though a great Tom Petty fan, I had never heard his \u2018Walls\u2019 song until I heard the Glen Campbell version on the radio. I thought, I can do a decent job with that.\u201d The album\u2019s second non-original is a deep cut from another legend: \u201cGeorge Harrison\u2019s album Brainwashed had some great songs on it, and I hope I did \u2018The Rising Sun\u2019 justice.\u201d Uniting Petty, Harrison, and Ford is their mutual love for Jeff Lynne\u2019s productions, an influence heard throughout Between a Rock and a Hard Place.<\/p>\n<p>John Ford has been an on-and-off member of The Strawbs since writing and singing the band\u2019s biggest hit, 1973\u2019s \u201cPart of the Union.\u201d He rejoined the Dave Cousins-founded Strawbs for the band\u2019s final two albums in 2021 and 2023 before founder and leader Dave Cousins\u2019 passing in 2025. \u201cI dedicated this album to Dave Cousins because I was working with him and Blue Weaver right up to the time he was hospitalized. Dave and I had co-written songs on the last two Strawbs albums and I did send him \u2018Lilacs and Hollyhocks\u2019 for verses but had to finish the lyrics myself. We had our ups and downs over the years, but we fortunately ended on a good note.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Between a Rock and a Hard Place is John Ford\u2019s first solo album to be released through traditional, worldwide physical retail distribution. The CD format includes an exclusive bonus disc of 21 career highlights, introducing fans to songs they might have missed from Ford\u2019s self-released albums. \u201cI signed on to Iconoclassic Records because they surprisingly had a great knowledge of my previous work and suggested we have a best of bonus CD with my new release.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>John Ford\u2019s Between a Rock and a Hard Place drops July 24, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Between a Rock and a Hard Place (CD and Digital, Iconoclassic Records ICON 1096)<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>1. Between a Rock and a Hard Place<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>2. The Last Goodnight<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>3. Land of Dreams<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>4. Walls<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>5. Always<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>6. Lilacs and Hollyhocks<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>7. Since You\u2019ve Been Gone<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>8. The Ship and the Sea<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>9. Who Turned the Lights Out<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>10. In the Dead of Night<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>11. The Rising Sun<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>The Best of John Ford 1998-2026 (CD Exclusive Bonus Disc)<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>1. Poor Boy Running<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>2. Movin\u2019 On<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>3. Acoustic Sunrise<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>4. Strange Universe<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>5. I\u2019m a Chameleon<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>6. Kissed By the Sun<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>7. Don\u2019t Blame Me<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>8. Together Apart<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>9. Natural High<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>10. Another Tradition Broken<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>11. Bread and Fishes<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>12. Love Is a Highway<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>13. Big Hit in India<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>14. Life in a Foreign Town<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>15. What Am I Going to Do Without You<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>16. Back in England<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>17. When Did I Ever Let You Down<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>18. Christmas Rendezvous<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>19. Cry Me a River<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>20. Poor Man\u2019s Son<\/strong><\/em><br \/>\n<em><strong>21. You Can\u2019t Keep Me from Singing<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>To pre-order:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Label store: <a href=\"https:\/\/iconoclassicrecords.com\/album\/between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place\/\">https:\/\/iconoclassicrecords.com\/album\/between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place\/<\/a><br \/>\nIndependent <a href=\"retail: https:\/\/recordstoreday.com\/upc\/990481103140\">retail: https:\/\/recordstoreday.com\/upc\/990481103140<\/a><br \/>\nAmazon: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Between-Rock-Hard-Place-John\/dp\/B0H1SFSZHD\">https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Between-Rock-Hard-Place-John\/dp\/B0H1SFSZHD<\/a><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Welcome To The &quot;Bad&quot; Brad Berkwitt Show\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SI1AfkBrG3I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em><strong><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; 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An Englishman in New York since the mid-\u201980s, Ford launched a solo career spotlighting his melodic gifts and multi-instrumental [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":136883,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[35385],"class_list":["post-136882","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-boxing-news","tag-john-ford-of-the-strawbs-to-release-new-album-between-a-rock-and-a-hard-place-music-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136882","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=136882"}],"version-history":[{"count":-2,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136882\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/136883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=136882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=136882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=136882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}