Ben Taylor (musician)

Ben Taylor
Ben Taylor in concert in Mullingar, Ireland, July, 2007 Photo: Sean Rowe
Background information
Birth name	Benjamin Simon Taylor
Born	January 22, 1977 (1977-01-22)
Genres	Folk, Folk-Rock, Soft Rock, Pop, Funk
Occupations	Musician, Songwriter, Producer, Engineer, Drum Programming
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active	1997–present
Labels	Iris Records
Website	BenTaylorMusic.com

Benjamin Taylor (born on January 22, 1977) is a musician and actor. He is the son of folk rock artists James Taylor and Carly Simon. His sister, Sally Taylor, is also a musician. Ben Taylor bears a striking resemblance to his famous father and has a singing voice akin to him as well. Although he has made efforts to distance his career from that of his parents, there are inevitable comparisons because of this, and because his chosen genre of music is similar to that of Simon and Taylor. Taylor has also toured with his father.

Career

On his first released album Famous Among the Barns and his EP #1, Taylor collaborated with friends Adam MacDougall and Larry Ciancia to form "The Ben Taylor Band." Ultimately deciding that this path (which yielded music that Taylor describes as "neo-psychedelic folk funk") did not represent his true musical nature, Taylor released a follow-up solo album that is much more acoustic in nature and more in line with his family roots. That solo effort, Another Run Around the Sun, featured backing vocals by his sister and mother, with Taylor as vocalist and guitarist, Larry Ciancia as drummer, and bass guitar by Kevin Bacon who also produced the album.

Acting

Taylor's most recent role was that of Cal Cooper on American Dreams (2004). He has also appeared on the UK show Always and Everyone (1999).

Taylor's cover of Macy Gray's "I Try" was used in a Honey Nut Cheerios television commercial in Canada aired late 2008, early 2009.

Charitable work

Taylor appears on the CD Too Many Years contributing the original track "Listen to The Music" to benefit Clear Path International's work with land mine survivors.

Personal life

Ben Taylor attended high school at Tabor Academy, a college preparatory boarding school in Marion, Massachusetts.

Taylor has been training in martial arts since he was a teenager. According to the December 2008 issue of Black Belt Magazine, Taylor has trained extensively in qigong, t'ai chi ch'uan, wing chun kung fu, and recently Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Renzo Gracie. Taylor is the founder of his own hybrid style he refers to as Kung Folk.

Discography

Green Dragon, Name a Fox (Recorded circa 1997) (Unreleased)

1. ""
2. "Paradise"
3. "Revenge"
4. "Broken Tonight"
5. "It May Take Some Time"
6. "Lie Down My Love"
7. "Well Enough Alone"
8. "Surround Me"
9. "I'm Doing Something Bad"
10. "Losing My Resistance"
11. "I Can't Believe It"
12. "Tower For Fools (Just In Time To Fall Down)"
13. "Jamie Loves the Ocean"

Famous Among the Barns (2003)

1. "Island"
2. "Let It Grow"
3. "I Am the Sun"
4. "Day After Day"
5. "No More Running Away"
6. "Safe Enough To Wake Up"
7. "Time of the Season"
8. "Just Like Everyone Else"
9. "A Good Day To Be Alive"
10. "Mushroom Dance"
11. "Rain"
12. "Tonight"

EP #1 (2004, EP)

1. "Day After Day" (edit)
2. "Island" (acoustic with Carly Simon)
3. "I'll Be Fine" (super rough mix)
4. "Surround Me" (acoustic version)

Another Run Around the Sun (2005)

1. "Nothing I Can Do"
2. "You Must Have Fallen"
3. "Think a Man Would Know"
4. "Someday Soon"
5. "One Man Day"
6. "Always"
7. "Digest"
8. "I'll Be Fine"
9. "Surround Me"
10. "Love"
11. "More Beautiful"

Deeper Than Gravity (2006, EP)

1. "Nothing I Can Do"
2. "I Try"
3. "Digest"
4. "You Belong To Me"
5. "Lady Magic"
6. "Glory Box"

The Legend of Kung Folk [Part 1 (The Killing Bite)] 2008

1. "Wrong"
2. "She's Gone"
3. "Wicked Way"
4. "It's Only Love"
5. "Dangerous Girl"
6. "Something For Nothing"
7. "Wilderness"
8. "You're the One For Me"
9. "Space"
10. "After It's Over"

Bye Bye, Love: Original Soundtrack Album (1995, one track by Ben Taylor)

1. "I Will" (This song also available on "CD 6" from the Huh Music Service, 1995)

External links

Main sites

• Ben Taylor — official site
• Ben Taylor Band — official site
• Ben Taylor Online — unofficial site
• Ben Taylor discography at Discogs
• Ben Taylor on Myspace
• Ben Taylor at the Internet Movie Database

News

• Review of the new album March 2009
• BBC News Online: "Taylor steps out of family shadow" from October 2006
• The Son Also Rises: Ben Taylor's organic, romantic grooves have a kick, Charleston City paper