Having traveled across the Atlantic, British singer-songwriter David Ford was worried that no one would show up to his performance at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 in New York City on Thursday, May 3rd. Fortunately for us, David clearly underestimated his reach. Fans old and new crammed into Stage 2’s tight quarters to catch a glimpse of his set.

Opening up the show with his harmonica-guitar driven “Pour a Little Poison”, David captivated the crowd with powerful vocals and the cool, sensuous tune of “The Ballad of Miss Lily”. He followed it with the somber, economy-bashing song “Requiem”. Though he was mostly a one-man band for the night, it all changed when he playfully pulled a pair of overzealous fans on stage to harmonize with him on his piano version of AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long”.

As the master of ceremonies, he led the audience along emotional peaks and valleys with his personal ode to Philadelphia, “Philadelphia Boy”—apparently his favorite US city to perform in. (Sorry, New York.) Later on, the singer did his best Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde impersonation and transformed himself into a mad scientist as he looped from stage to play the crowd favorite, and some would say his magnum opus, “State of the Union”.

After an hour-and-a-half of harmonizing, David closed the show with the honest and self-reflecting ”Every Time”, a song about Ford’s own shortcomings in the music industry and how he’s “never made it.” Looking around the crowd enchanted with all things David Ford, I’d like to say, you’ve made it, David. You’ve clearly made it.