''Lifemask'' is the sixth album by English

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

/ rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper, and was first released in 1973 by

Harvest Records Harvest Records is a British-American record label belonging to Capitol Music Group, originally created by EMI in 1969. History Harvest Records was created by EMI in 1969 to market progressive rock music, and to compete with Philips' Vertigo ...

History

''Lifemask'' was written by Harper during a period of illness when HHT, which leads to

polycythemia Polycythemia (also known as polycythaemia) is a laboratory finding in which the hematocrit (the volume percentage of red blood cells in the blood) and/or hemoglobin concentration are increased in the blood. Polycythemia is sometimes called erythr ...

, threatened his health and incapacitated him. With thoughts of life and death upon his mind, side two of the album features a lengthy 23-minute track entitled "The Lord's Prayer" which Harper described as "my last will and testament". The

gatefold A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½ inch, or 32.7 centimetre square). The larger gatefo ...

album cover is a representation of Harper's '

death mask A death mask is a likeness (typically in wax or plaster cast) of a person's face after their death, usually made by taking a cast or impression from the corpse. Death masks may be mementos of the dead, or be used for creation of portraits. It ...

'. that opens centrally to reveal Harper, very much alive, "fixing the listener with one of his trademarked intense stares." As such it, in fact, shows Harper's 'life mask' as opposed to the

it could have been. Some of the songs were included in the soundtrack for the John Mackenzie-directed film ''

Made Made or MADE may refer to: Entertainment Film * ''Made'' (1972 film), United Kingdom * ''Made'' (2001 film), United States Music * ''Made'' (Big Bang album), 2016 * ''Made'' (Hawk Nelson album), 2013 * ''Made'' (Scarface album), 2007 *'' M.A.D.E. ...

'' which was on general release at the time, the story of a relationship between a young single mother, played by

Carol White Carole Joan White (1 April 1943 – 16 September 1991) was an English actress. She achieved a public profile with her performances in the television play ''Cathy Come Home'' (1966) and the films ''Poor Cow'' (1967) and '' I'll Never Forg ...

, and an insecure rock star, 'Mike Preston' played by Harper. An excerpt is taken from "The Lord's Prayer", a live excerpt from "Highway Blues" and a live session of "Little Lady" and "Bank of the Dead" (a.k.a. "The Social Casualty" and "Valerie's Song") sung with alternative lyrics are heard. The 1987 Awareness Records

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

release of ''Lifemask'' (AWT 1007) contained 4

bonus tracks An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

not included on any other ''Lifemask'' release.Fan site discography

Tracks on compilation albums

A retrospective

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

, '' A Breath of Fresh Air – A Harvest Records Anthology 1969–1974'', was released in 2007. This 3 disc compilation contained the album track "South Africa". This song had previously been released on a 1971 Harvest sampler
The Harvest Bag
', under the working title "Living Here Alone".

Track listing

All tracks credited to Roy Harper

Singles

7-inch single In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...

was released on the

Harvest Harvesting is the process of gathering a ripe crop from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper. On smaller farms with minimal mechanization, harvesting is the most labor-i ...

record label (HAR 5059). This single contained the alternate versions of the album tracks that appeared in the movie

. # Side 1. "Bank Of The Dead" # Side 2. "Little Lady"

Personnel

* Roy Harper – guitar, synthesizer, bass, harmonica, bells, and vocals *

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Page is prolific in creating guitar riffs. His style involves various alternative ...

– guitar on "Bank of the Dead" and "The Lord's Prayer" *

Laurie Allan Laurie Allan (born 19 February 1943, London) is an English drummer, best known for stints in Delivery and Gong. Biography Allan started drumming when he was 12. His professional career got going in the early 1960s. He was in The First Real Poe ...

– drums on "Highway Blues" * Steve Broughton –

bongos Bongos ( es, bongó) are an Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. They are struck with both hands, most commonly in an eight-stroke pattern called ''martillo'' (hammer). The ...

on "The Lord's Prayer" * Tony Carr –

on "The Lord's Prayer" and drums on "Bank of the Dead" * Brian Davison – drums on "The Lord's Prayer" * Brian Odgers – bass on "Bank of the Dead" and "The Lord's Prayer" * Ray Warleigh – flute on "The Lord's Prayer" ;Technical *

John Leckie John William Leckie (born 23 October 1949) is an English record producer and recording engineer. His production credits include Magazine's ''Real Life'' (1978), XTC's ''White Music'' (1978) and Dukes of Stratosphear's '' 25 O'Clock'' (1985), t ...

–

sound engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

* Phil McDonald –

* Nick Webb –

Peter Jenner Peter Julian Jenner (born 3 March 1943) is a British music manager and a record producer. Jenner, Andrew King and the original four members of Pink Floyd were partners in Blackhill Enterprises. Early career Peter Jenner is the son of Willia ...

– producer

References

External links

Roy Harper Official Site

Internet Movie Database Entry[ for Made (1972 film), Made

{{Authority control Roy Harper (singer) albums 1973 albums Chrysalis Records albums Harvest Records albums Albums with cover art by Hipgnosis Albums produced by Peter Jenner