Roy Harper (born 12 June 1941) is an English folk rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has released 22 studio albums (and 10 live ones) across a career that stretches back to 1966. As a musician, Harper is known for his distinctive
fingerstyle playing and lengthy, lyrical, complex compositions, reflecting his love of jazz and the poet
John Keats
John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tuberculo ...
. He was the lead vocalist on
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
’s “
Have a Cigar.”
His influence has been acknowledged by
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 ...
,
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...
,
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.
Townsh ...
,
Kate Bush,
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
, and
Ian Anderson
Ian Scott Anderson (born 10 August 1947) is a British musician, singer and songwriter best known for his work as the lead vocalist, flautist, acoustic guitarist and leader of the British rock band Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist w ...
of
Jethro Tull, who said Harper was his "...primary influence as an acoustic guitarist and songwriter."
Neil McCormick
Neil McCormick (born 31 March 1961) is a British music journalist, author and broadcaster. He has been Chief Music Critic for ''The Daily Telegraph'' since 1996, and presented a music interview show for Vintage TV in the UK, Neil McCormick's Nee ...
of ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' described him as "one of Britain's most complex and eloquent lyricists and genuinely original songwriters... much admired by his peers". Across the Atlantic his influence has been acknowledged by
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
-based acoustic band
Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes is an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backing vocals), Ch ...
, American musician and producer
Jonathan Wilson and Californian
harpist Joanna Newsom
Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Born and raised in Northern California, Newsom was classically trained on the harp in her youth and began her musical career as a keyboardist in the San Francisc ...
, with whom he has also
toured
''Toured (A Live Album)'' was a live album by Huntington Beach pop punk band Big Drill Car. The concert was recorded live at New York's CBGB's on September 3, 1991, at the beginning of a nineteen-week tour known as ''The Batch World Tour'', in su ...
.
In 2005, Harper was awarded the
MOJO
Mojo may refer to:
*Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* '' ...
Hero Award, and in 2013 a Lifetime Achievement Award at the
BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. His most recent album, ''
Man and Myth
''Man & Myth'' is the title of Roy Harper's 22nd studio album. Released 47 years after his debut album, ''Sophisticated Beggar'', it is his first studio release in 13 years.
Background
When questioned during a Reuters interview about the time ...
'', was released in 2013. In 2016, Harper celebrated his 75th birthday by performing concerts in Clonakilty, Birmingham, Manchester, London, and Edinburgh.
Early life
Harper was born in 1941 in
Rusholme, a suburb of
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. His mother, Muriel, died three weeks after he was born. From the age of 6, he lived in
St Annes-on-Sea
Lytham St Annes () is a seaside town in the Borough of Fylde in Lancashire, England. It is on the Fylde coast, directly south of Blackpool on the Ribble Estuary. The population at the 2011 census was 42,954. The town is almost contiguous with B ...
, a place he described as being "like a cemetery with bus stops". He was brought up by his father and stepmother, with whom he became disillusioned because of her religious beliefs, although they reconciled in 1980, just before her death. His
anti-religious
Antireligion is opposition to religion. It involves opposition to organized religion, religious practices or religious institutions. The term ''antireligion'' has also been used to describe opposition to specific forms of supernatural worship ...
views would later become a familiar theme within his music.
Harper began writing poems when he was 12. At the age of 13 he began playing
skiffle
Skiffle is a genre of folk music with influences from American folk music, blues, country, bluegrass, and jazz, generally performed with a mixture of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a form in the United States ...
music with his younger brother David ("Davey" on the album ''
Flat Baroque and Berserk
''Flat Baroque and Berserk'' is the fourth album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper, and was first released in 1970 by Harvest Records.
History
''Flat Baroque and Berserk'' was the first of Harper's recordings to ...
''), as well as becoming influenced by
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
music. At 14 he formed his first group (''De Boys'') with his brothers David and Harry. Harper was educated at
King Edward VII School,
Lytham St Annes
Lytham St Annes () is a seaside town in the Borough of Fylde in Lancashire, England. It is on the The Fylde, Fylde coast, directly south of Blackpool on the Ribble Estuary. The population at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 42,954 ...
, then a grammar school, and left at the age of 15 (1956) to join the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
to follow an ambition to be a pilot. After two years Harper rejected the rigid discipline and feigned madness to obtain a
military discharge, as a result receiving an
electroconvulsive therapy treatment at
Princess Mary's RAF Hospital
Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince.
Princess as a subst ...
, Wendover. After being discharged from there, he spent one day inside the former Lancaster Moor Mental Institute before escaping. These experiences would be recalled in "Committed", a song on Harper's debut album, ''
Sophisticated Beggar
''Sophisticated Beggar'' is English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper's debut album. It was released in 1966.
History
The album consists of Harper's poetry backed by acoustic guitar and recorded with a Revox tape machine ...
''. From around 1961 he
busked around North Africa, Europe and London for a few years.
Musically, Harper's earliest influences were American
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
musician
Lead Belly
Huddie William Ledbetter (; January 20, 1888 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk music, folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, Virtuoso, virtuosity on the twelve-string guita ...
and
folk singer Woody Guthrie
Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...
[1994 Roy Harper Interview](_blank)
. Dirtylinen.com (8 April 2011). Retrieved on 5 August 2011. and, in his teens, jazz musician
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...
. Of the blues musicians Lead Belly,
Big Bill Broonzy and
Josh White, Harper said they made music which "...seemed to be from a different planet ...We'd never heard anything like it. It changed our world overnight, a sledge hammer of a cultural change ...an equivalent would be to suddenly hear music from outer space". Harper was also exposed to classical music in his childhood and has pointed to the influence of
Jean Sibelius
Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest com ...
's ''
Karelia Suite
''Karelia Suite'', Op. 11 is a subset of pieces from the longer ''Karelia Music'' (named after the region of Karelia) written by Jean Sibelius in 1893 for the Viipuri Students' Association and premiered, with Sibelius conducting, at the Imper ...
''. Lyrical influences include the 19th century
Romantics, especially
Shelley, and Keats's poem "
Endymion Endymion primarily refers to:
* Endymion (mythology), an Ancient Greek shepherd
* ''Endymion'' (poem), by John Keats
Endymion may also refer to:
Fictional characters
* Prince Endymion, a character in the ''Sailor Moon'' anime franchise
* Raul ...
". Harper has also cited the
Beat poets
Beat, beats or beating may refer to:
Common uses
* Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area
** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols
** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men
* Battery ( ...
as being highly influential, particularly
Jack Kerouac
Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation.
Of French-Canadian a ...
. Harper played his first paid performance at a poetry reading in
Newcastle in 1960.
Returning to the UK in 1963 or 1964, Harper started to write more songs than poetry. He obtained a
residency
Residency may refer to:
* Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place
** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship
* Residency (medicine), a stage of postgrad ...
at London's famous
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.
The area was develop ...
folk music club
Les Cousins in 1965, having been introduced to it by
Peter Bellamy
Peter Franklyn Bellamy (8 September 1944 – 24 September 1991) was an English folk singer. He was a founding member of The Young Tradition and also had a long solo career, recording numerous albums and touring folk clubs and concert halls. He ...
of
The Young Tradition
The Young Tradition were an English folk group of the 1960s, formed by Peter Bellamy, Royston Wood and Heather Wood. They recorded three albums of mainly traditional British folk music, sung in arrangements for their three unaccompanied voices. ...
.
[ Roy Harper's tribute to Bert Jansch] Harper's first advertised performance was on 5 October 1965. Within his first week Harper saw
John Renbourn,
Alexis Korner,
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...
,
Alex Campbell and
Bert Jansch play,
and he would play and associate with other artists later, including
John Martyn,
Joni Mitchell
Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...
and
Nick Drake
Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter known for his acoustic guitar-based songs. He did not find a wide audience during his lifetime, but his work gradually achieved wider notice and recognit ...
.
Musical career
1966–69: The first record deals
Harper's first album, ''
Sophisticated Beggar
''Sophisticated Beggar'' is English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper's debut album. It was released in 1966.
History
The album consists of Harper's poetry backed by acoustic guitar and recorded with a Revox tape machine ...
'', was recorded in 1966 after he was spotted at Les Cousins and signed to Strike Records. The album consisted of Harper's songs and poetry backed by
acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
, recorded with a
Revox tape machine
An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present- ...
by
Pierre Tubbs and with contributions from English guitarist
Paul Brett
Paul Brett (born 20 June 1947 in Fulham, London) is an English classic rock guitarist. He played lead guitar with Strawbs (although he was never actually a member), The Overlanders, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Elmer Gantry's Velvet Opera, T ...
.
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
recognised Harper's potential and hired American producer
Shel Talmy to produce Harper's second album, ''
Come Out Fighting Ghengis Smith
''Come Out Fighting Ghengis Smith'' is English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper's second album and was released in 1967. The album was re-issued in 1977 as ''The Early Years'', re-issued once more on Compact disc in 1991 ...
'', which was released in 1968. The 11-minute track "Circle", "a soundscape of Harper's difficult youth",
was notable for marking a widening of his musical style away from the more traditional side of contemporary
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
heard at the time. Harper had an interest in
traditional folk
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has be ...
but did not consider himself a bona fide member of the folk scene. He later explained: Harper's record company had different expectations. "They wanted me to write commercial pop songs and when they heard the album I made for them, they didn't have a clue. They wanted hits. And I gave them "Circle"".
Bert Jansch contributed
sleeve notes
Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes.
Origin
Liner notes are descen ...
for the album and Harper paid tribute to Jansch with the song "Pretty Baby"; the B-Side non-album track of his first single (released in March 1966). During this period, Harper was managed by American music entrepreneur
Jo Lustig
Joseph George Lustig (October 21, 1925 – May 29, 1999) was an American music entrepreneur.
Early career
Jo was born on October 21, 1925 in Brooklyn, New York. At the age of 12 he saw Billie Holiday singing in a club and fell in love with musi ...
, manager of
The Pentangle and former agent to
Julie Felix
Julie Ann Felix (June 14, 1938 – March 22, 2020) was an American-British folk singer and recording artist who achieved success, particularly on British television, in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She later performed and released albums on h ...
.
In June 1968, Harper performed at the first free concert ever held at
Hyde Park
Hyde Park may refer to:
Places
England
* Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London
* Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds
* Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield
* Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester
Austra ...
, acting as compere and sharing the bill with
Jethro Tull,
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
and
Tyrannosaurus Rex. At the time, he spoke of co-writing a rock opera with Pink Floyd. No opera resulted, but it was the beginning of a musical relationship. Harper began to attract a following of fans from the
underground
Underground most commonly refers to:
* Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth
Underground may also refer to:
Places
* The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston
* The Underground (S ...
music scene and tour the UK, performing at numerous venues such as the
Lyceum Ballroom
The Lyceum Theatre ( ) is a West End theatre located in the City of Westminster, on Wellington Street, just off the Strand in central London. It has a seating capacity of 2,100. The origins of the theatre date to 1765. Managed by Samuel Arnol ...
,
Klooks Kleek and
Mothers
]
A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of gesta ...
; venues that would gradually gain recognition for the variety and quality of their musical acts. Mothers in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
was one such venue, and one to which Harper would frequently return.
Harper later told
Brum Beat magazine:
A track from ''Come Out Fighting Ghengis Smith'', "Nobody's Got Any Money in the Summer" also appeared on the first bargain-priced
sampler album
A sampler or promotional compilation is a type of compilation album generally offered at a reduced price to showcase an artist or a selection of artists signed to a particular record label. The format became popular in the late 1960s as record labe ...
, ''
The Rock Machine Turns You On
''The Rock Machine Turns You On'' was the first bargain priced sampler album. It was released in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, The Netherlands, Germany and a number of other European countries in 1968 as part of an internat ...
''. The album was released in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and a number of other European countries as part of an international marketing campaign by
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
(known in Europe as CBS).
In 1969 Harper undertook a short 6-venue tour with
Ron Geesin
Ronald Frederick Geesin (born 17 December 1943) is a Scottish musician, composer and writer known for his unusual creations and novel applications of sound, as well as for his collaborations with Pink Floyd and Roger Waters.
Career
Ron Geesin ...
and
Ralph McTell
Ralph McTell (born Ralph May, 3 December 1944) is an English singer-songwriter and acoustic guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s. McTell is best known for his song " Streets of London" (19 ...
. The tour programme contained the introductory paragraph:
That same year, Harper released his third album ''
Folkjokeopus
''Folkjokeopus'' is the third album issued by English folk/rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper. It was produced by Shel Talmy and was first released in 1969 by Liberty Records.
History
The album is notable for the lengthy track "McG ...
'' again produced by Shel Talmy, and released by
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...
. Side two included an extended 17-minute track, titled "McGoohan's Blues", which Harper referred to as the "main statement" within the album. Of his non-conformance to radio-friendly, standard, three-minute songs, Harper claimed it to be a revolt, and that he regarded the three-minute pop song as an anathema, a
jingle to sell a band.
(The title for "McGoohan's Blues" was a reference to actor
Patrick McGoohan
Patrick Joseph McGoohan (; March 19, 1928 – January 13, 2009) was an Irish-American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer of film and television.
Born in the United States to Irish emigrant parents, he was raised in Ireland and Engla ...
, who had starred in the UK TV series ''
The Prisoner'' two years earlier). The track "Sergeant Sunshine" would also appear on ''
Son of Gutbucket
''Son of Gutbucket'' is a 1969 sampler album released to promote artists on the Liberty Records label. It followed the earlier release in 1969 of '' Gutbucket'', (subtitled ''An Underworld Eruption'').
Track listing Side 1
# "Bootleg" - Creedenc ...
'', a 1969 sampler album released to promote artists on the
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...
label.
During this period Harper also visited the
Dolphin Club in Oslo, Norway, where he became acquainted with folk singer
Lillebjørn Nilsen. Nilsen learned one of Harper's songs, "On the First Day of April", which he translated to "Ravn Ferd" and recorded for his debut solo album ''Tilbake'' in 1971. Harper and Nilsen along with
Finn Kalvik
Finn Bjørn Kalvik (born 30 April 1947) is a Norwegian singer and composer.
Early career
He was born in Fåvang, but his family moved to the working class district of Grorud, Oslo in 1952. Early in his career Kalvik found success putting music t ...
performed together on 23 January 1970 at a concert held in the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
. Harper's visit coincided with the emergence of the Norwegian 'folk music wave' (
Visebølgen) and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (
NRK
NRK, an abbreviation of the Norwegian ''Norsk Rikskringkasting Aksjeselskap, AS'', generally expressed in English as the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, is the Norwegian government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company, and ...
) recorded Harper on the occasion of the concert. Kalvik would later go on to record Norwegian versions of two Harper songs; "I Hate the White Man" ("Den hvite mann") and "Don't You Grieve" ("Kjære ikke gråt").
1970–80: The Harvest years
With Harper's reputation growing,
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
's former manager
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 ...
signed him to a long-term (and at times confrontational) deal with
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
's 'underground' subsidiary,
Harvest Records. Over a ten-year period, Harper recorded eight albums at the
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...
for the Harvest label and for much of this period was
managed and produced by Jenner, initially acting for
Blackhill Enterprises
Blackhill Enterprises was a rock music management company, founded as a partnership by the four original members of Pink Floyd ( Syd Barrett, Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright), with Peter Jenner and Andrew King.
Blackhill were th ...
. According to Jenner,
Harper's first tour of the United States followed the release of his fourth studio album, ''
Flat Baroque and Berserk
''Flat Baroque and Berserk'' is the fourth album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper, and was first released in 1970 by Harvest Records.
History
''Flat Baroque and Berserk'' was the first of Harper's recordings to ...
''. The album included the track "
Another Day Another Day may refer to:
Albums
* ''Another Day'' (Steve Ashley album)
* ''Another Day'' (The Hurt Process album)
* ''Another Day'' (Lene Marlin album)
* ''Another Day'' (Oscar Peterson album)
* ''Another Day'' (Racoon album)
* ''Another ...
", a song destined to be performed live by Harper for many years to come, and covered by several other artists including
This Mortal Coil (featuring
Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser (born 29 August 1963), is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician. Hailing from Grangemouth, Scotland, she is best known as the vocalist for the pioneering dream pop band Cocteau Twins who achieved international ...
on vocals) and
Kate Bush. The album also featured
the Nice on the track "Hell's Angels"; its ethereal sound achieved by a
wah-wah pedal attached to Harper's
acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
.
After the
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
Festival of 1970,
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
paid tribute to Harper with their version of the traditional song "
Shake 'Em on Down
"Shake 'Em On Down" is a Delta blues song by American musician Bukka White. He recorded it in Chicago in 1937 around the beginning of his incarceration at the infamous Parchman Prison Farm in Mississippi.
It was his first recording for produce ...
". Retitled "
Hats Off to (Roy) Harper
''Led Zeppelin III'' is the third studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 5 October 1970. It was recorded in three locations. Much of the work was done at Headley Grange, a country house, using the Rolling Stones Mobil ...
", it appeared on the album ''
Led Zeppelin III''. According to
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 ...
, the band admired the way Harper stood by his principles and did not sell out to commercial pressures. In mutual appreciation of their work, Harper would often attend live performances by Led Zeppelin over the subsequent decade and contributed sleeve photography to the album ''
Physical Graffiti
''Physical Graffiti'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was released as a double album on 24 February 1975 by the group's new record label, Swan Song Records.
The band wrote and recorded eight new songs for the a ...
''.
Harper's critically acclaimed 1971 album was a four-song epic, ''
Stormcock''. The album featured
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 ...
on guitar (credited as "S. Flavius Mercurius" for contractual reasons) and
David Bedford's orchestral arrangements (Bedford would also collaborate on some of Harper's future releases). Harper felt the album to be not particularly well promoted by his record label at the time and later stated: Nevertheless, ''Stormcock'' would remain a favourite album of Harper's fans and influence musicians for decades to come. Thirty-five years later (in 2006) fellow
Mancunian Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr (born John Martin Maher, 31 October 1963) is an English musician, songwriter and singer. He first achieved fame as the guitarist and co-songwriter of the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. He has since performed with numerous ...
of English
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band
the Smiths said:
Joanna Newsom
Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Born and raised in Northern California, Newsom was classically trained on the harp in her youth and began her musical career as a keyboardist in the San Francisc ...
cited ''Stormcock'' as an influence upon her 2006 release ''
Ys'' and in 2011,
Robin Pecknold of
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Washington-based
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 ...
band
Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes is an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backing vocals), Ch ...
stated that he took inspiration from ''Stormcock'' when recording Fleet Foxes second album ''
Helplessness Blues
''Helplessness Blues'' is the second studio album by American band Fleet Foxes, released on May 3, 2011, by Sub Pop and Bella Union. The album received universal acclaim from critics, going on to be nominated for Best Folk Album for the 54th Gramm ...
''.
In 1972, Harper made his acting debut playing Mike Preston alongside
Carol White in the
John Mackenzie 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. ...
''. The film was chosen (along with ''
A Clockwork Orange
''A Clockwork Orange'' may refer to:
* ''A Clockwork Orange'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Anthony Burgess
** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (film), a 1971 film directed by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel
*** ''A Clockwork Orange'' (soundtrack), the film ...
'') to represent Britain at the
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...
.
Harper also recorded the soundtrack for the film, released the following year as ''
Lifemask
''Lifemask'' is the sixth album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper, and was first released in 1973 by Harvest Records.
History
''Lifemask'' was written by Harper during a period of illness when HHT, which lead ...
'', again with contributions from Jimmy Page. At the time, ''Lifemask'' was created as Harper's
final bow, as he had been diagnosed with the (then) little-known genetic condition
HHT, which caused
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 ...
, incapacitating him. The cover art shows Harper's life mask, as opposed to the '
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 ...
' it might have been.
After recovering (treatment involved frequent
venesection
In medicine, venipuncture or venepuncture is the process of obtaining intravenous access for the purpose of venous blood sampling (also called ''phlebotomy'') or intravenous therapy. In healthcare, this procedure is performed by medical labor ...
), his next album (''
Valentine
A valentine is a card or gift given on Valentine's Day, or one's sweetheart.
Valentine or Valentines may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Valentine (name), a given name and a surname, including a list of people and fictional char ...
'') was released on
Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, throu ...
, 14 February 1974, and featured contributions from Jimmy Page. A concert to mark its release was held on the same day at London's
Rainbow Theatre
The Rainbow Theatre, originally known as the Finsbury Park Astoria, is a Grade II*-listed building in Finsbury Park, London. The theatre was built in 1930 as a cinema. It later became a music venue. Today, the building is used by the Universa ...
, with Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page,
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...
, and
John Bonham; David Bedford,
Max Middleton,
Ronnie Lane
Ronald Frederick Lane (1 April 1946 – 4 June 1997) was an English musician and songwriter who is best known as the bass guitarist and founding member of Small Faces (1965–69) and subsequently Faces (1969–73).
Lane formed Small Faces in ...
, and
Keith Moon
Keith John Moon (23 August 19467 September 1978) was an English drummer for the rock band the Who. He was noted for his unique style of playing and his eccentric, often self-destructive behaviour and addiction to drugs and alcohol.
Moon grew ...
performing alongside Harper. His first live album ''
Flashes from the Archives of Oblivion'', featuring two tracks recorded at that concert, soon followed.
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
's 1975 release ''
Wish You Were Here Wish You Were Here may refer to:
Film, television, and theater Film
* Wish You Were Here (1987 film), ''Wish You Were Here'' (1987 film), a British comedy-drama film by David Leland
* Wish You Were Here (2012 film), ''Wish You Were Here'' (2012 ...
'' saw Harper sing lead vocals on the song "
Have a Cigar".
Roger Waters
George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. In 1965, he co-founded the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. Waters initially served as the bassist, but following the departure of singer-so ...
intended to record the part himself, but had strained his voice while recording "
Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
declined to sing. Harper was recording his album ''
HQ'' in Studio 2 of Abbey Road at the same time as Pink Floyd were working in Studio 3; learning of the band's dilemma, Harper offered to sing the lead. The song is one of only three songs by Pink Floyd not sung by one of their permanent members (the others being "
The Great Gig in the Sky" and "
Hey, Hey, Rise Up!
"Hey, Hey, Rise Up!" (also written "Hey Hey Rise Up") is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on digital platforms on . It is based on a 1914 Ukrainian anthem, " Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow", and features vocals in Ukrain ...
"). David Gilmour returned the favour by appearing on ''HQ'', along with Harper's occasional backing band, 'Trigger' (
Chris Spedding, Dave Cochran,
Bill Bruford and
John Paul Jones). The single "
When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease
"When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease" is a track on the Roy Harper album '' HQ'', a prominent example of cricket poetry. Released as a single twice, in 1975 and 1978, it is possibly Harper's best-known song. The song captures the atmosphere o ...
", taken from ''HQ'', is one of Harper's best known songs. Harper also co-wrote the song "Short and Sweet" with Gilmour for Gilmour's first solo record, ''
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
'' (released in 1978), and the song subsequently appeared on his own album ''
The Unknown Soldier'' (released in 1980).
Controversy followed the release of 1977's ''
Bullinamingvase
''Bullinamingvase'' (a wordplay on "Bull in a Ming vase") is the ninth studio album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper. It was first released in 1977 by Harvest Records. In the United States the album was released ...
''. The owners of
Watford Gap service station
Watford Gap services are motorway services on the M1 motorway in Northamptonshire, England. They opened on 2 November 1959, the same day as the M1, making them one of the oldest motorway services in Britain. The facilities were originally manag ...
objected to criticism of their food – "''Watford Gap, Watford Gap/A plate of grease and a load of crap...''" – in the lyrics of the song "Watford Gap", as did an
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
board member who was also a
non-executive director of Blue Boar (the owners of the service station). Harper was forced to drop it from future UK copies of the album, though it remained on the US LP and reappeared on a later CD reissues.
The album also featured the song "One of Those Days in England", with backing vocals by
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
and
Linda; the single from the album went to number 42 in the UK charts. During this period, Harper's band were renamed 'Chips' and included
Andy Roberts, Dave Lawson, Henry McCullough, John Halsey and Dave Cochran. In April 1978, Harper began writing lyrics for the next
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
album with
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 ...
, but the project was shelved when lead singer
Robert Plant
Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...
returned from a break after the death of his son, Karac Pendragon.
Following the success of ''Bullinamingvase'', Harper was asked "to write another record quickly". Demo recordings with Harper's newly formed backing band 'Black Sheep' (Andy Roberts, Dave Lawson, Henry McCullough, John Halsey and Dave Cochran, a.k.a. Dave C. Drill) were made, but Harper felt them to be rushed. The record company, who "were in the first stages of a collapse in sales",
were not interested in the recordings, nor were they prepared to provide studio time when requested, telling Harper to come back in six months. As a result, Harper withheld the
publishing rights A publishing contract is a legal contract between a publisher and a writer or author (or more than one), to publish original content by the writer(s) or author(s). This may involve a single written work, or a series of works.
In the case of music p ...
to that which had been recorded; an album provisionally entitled ''Commercial Breaks (doesn't it?)'' and was (in his own words) "outlawed"
by the record company.
From 1975 to 1980 Harper worked with English musician and 'Black Sheep' member
Andy Roberts sometimes performing as a duo. During this period, Harper spent considerable time in the United States and signed with the US division of
Chrysalis Records
Chrysalis Records () is a British record label that was founded in 1968. The name is both a reference to the pupal stage of a butterfly and a combination of its founders' names, Chris Wright and Terry Ellis. It started as the Ellis-Wright Ag ...
, who released ''HQ'' under a different title – ''When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease'' – and with alternative artwork. Chrysalis considered the original
Hipgnosis-designed album cover of Harper
walking on water to be too offensive for an American release. Harper disagreed, but was given no choice by the label. Chrysalis also changed the title of Harper's next album, ''
Bullinamingvase
''Bullinamingvase'' (a wordplay on "Bull in a Ming vase") is the ninth studio album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper. It was first released in 1977 by Harvest Records. In the United States the album was released ...
'', to ''One of Those Days in England''. In 1978, US Chrysalis reissued Harper's first five
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 ...
albums, only one of which (''Flat, Baroque and Berserk'') had been previously released in America.
On 28 December 1979, BBC TV aired the ''Kate Bush Christmas Special''. As well as playing songs from her first two albums, Bush and her guest,
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
, performed Harper's "
Another Day Another Day may refer to:
Albums
* ''Another Day'' (Steve Ashley album)
* ''Another Day'' (The Hurt Process album)
* ''Another Day'' (Lene Marlin album)
* ''Another Day'' (Oscar Peterson album)
* ''Another Day'' (Racoon album)
* ''Another ...
".
Their duet was discussed for release as a single, but never appeared.
Harper returned to the studio a few years after his dispute with EMI to record and prepare his next album ''The Unknown Soldier''. At the time, Harper knew it would be his last release on the label and it was these demos that ''"...were destined to gather dust on a shelf labelled 'Commercial Breaks'..."''.
(It was not until Harper's 1988 release ''
Loony on the Bus'' that some of these songs became officially available, and another six years until the album was finally released as ''
Commercial Breaks
''Commercial Breaks'', provisionally entitled Commercial Breaks' (doesn't it?)'', is the eighteenth studio album by Roy Harper. It was recorded in 1977, intended for release in 1978/79, but not officially released in its entirety until 1994.
...
(1994)).
In 1980 Harper released ''The Unknown Soldier'', which was indeed his final
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 ...
release. The album features David Gilmour both on guitar and as co-writer of half of its tracks. On one of those tracks, "You", Harper
duet
A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...
s with
Kate Bush. Harper later reciprocated by singing backing vocals on "
Breathing
Breathing (or ventilation) is the process of moving air into and from the lungs to facilitate gas exchange with the internal environment, mostly to flush out carbon dioxide and bring in oxygen.
All aerobic creatures need oxygen for cellular ...
" on Bush's album ''
Never For Ever''; Bush's first no. 1 album, the first ever album by a British female solo artist to top the UK album chart, and the first album by any female solo artist to enter the chart at no. 1. Bush thanked Harper on the album's cover for "holding onto the poet in his music".
During a BBC Radio interview by
Paul Gambaccini, Bush praised Harper, stating: Of Bush, Harper later said, A decade later, Harper and Bush would again collaborate on his 1990 release ''
Once
Once means a one-time occurrence.
Once may refer to:
Music
* ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten''
* ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper
* ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...
''.
1981–89: Recession and repossession
Harper's 1982 album ''
Work of Heart
''Work of Heart'' is the eleventh studio album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper and was first released in 1982.
History
The original album was released on Harper's own label, Public Records, formed with Mark T ...
'' was released on Public Records, a newly formed record label Harper created with Mark Thompson (son of English historian, socialist and peace campaigner
E.P. Thompson
Edward Palmer Thompson (3 February 1924 – 28 August 1993) was an English historian, writer, socialist and peace campaigner. He is best known today for his historical work on the radical movements in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, in ...
). During this period Harper toured with a band consisting of
Tony Franklin on Bass, Bob Wilson of
the Steve Gibbons Band, George Jackson on drums and Dave Morris on keyboards. The album was chosen by
Derek Jewell
Derek Jewell, (1927 – 21 November 1985) was a British journalist, newspaper executive, broadcaster and music critic. A music critic for the London ''Sunday Times'' for twenty-three years from 1963, Jewell wrote extensively about jazz, and als ...
of ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' as "Album of the Year" in 1982, but it did not sell well and the short-lived label went under.
During this period Harper lost his home, a farm in the village of
Marden, Herefordshire
Marden is a village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire.
Marden village is approximately due north of the city of Hereford, and is contiguous with the hamlets of Walker's Green and Paradise Green. The parish also includes ...
, to the bank. Of this period Harper stated:
The original demo version of ''Work of Heart'' was later released (in 1984) on a
limited edition
The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, or collector's edition, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints, r ...
(830 copies)
vinyl release entitled ''
Born in Captivity''.
Throughout 1984, Harper toured the United Kingdom with
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 ...
performing a predominantly acoustic set at folk festivals under various guises such as the MacGregors, and Themselves. In 1985, ''
Whatever Happened to Jugula?'' was released. The album caused a resurgence of interest in Harper and his music. (
Tony Franklin, bass player in Harper's group at this time, later joined
Page in
the Firm
The FIRM (stylized as The FIRM) is a brand of exercise videos and equipment currently owned by Gaiam. The original "The FIRM" videos are best known for popularizing a hybrid of aerobic exercise and weight training.
History
In 1979, Anna Bens ...
). In April 1984, Harper and Gilmour performed "Short and Sweet" (a song they co-wrote) during Gilmour's three-night run at the
Hammersmith Odeon
The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Palace. Located in Ha ...
. This version later appeared on the ''
David Gilmour Live 1984
''Pink Floyd's David Gilmour'' or simply ''David Gilmour'' is a film by David Gilmour from his 1984 tour from the album '' About Face'' for Europe.
The film is mainly a concert performance from The Hammersmith Odeon in London in April 1984, and ...
'' concert film. Harper also provided backing vocals on Gilmour's newly released album, ''
About Face''.
On 20 June 1984 Harper performed at the last
Stonehenge Free Festival
The Stonehenge Free Festival was a British free festival from 1974 to 1984 held at the prehistoric monument Stonehenge in England during the month of June, and culminating with the summer solstice on or near 21 June. It emerged as the major fre ...
, sharing the bill with
Hawkwind and
the Enid
The Enid are a British progressive rock band founded by keyboardist and composer Robert John Godfrey. Godfrey received his main musical education from The Royal College of Music. He is previously known for his work with Barclay James Harvest, ...
. The concert was videoed and released as
Stonehenge 84.
As a result of his continual touring and the popularity of ''Whatever Happened to Jugula?'', Harper re-signed to
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
and in 1986 released a live album, ''
In Between Every Line'' (containing recordings from his performances at the
Cambridge Folk Festival), and in 1988 the studio album, ''
Descendants of Smith
''Descendants of Smith'' is the fourteenth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1988. In 1994 it was re-issued under the title, ''Garden of Uranium'' with an identical track list but new cover artwork.
History
As a publicity stunt on the m ...
''. The renewed relationship between Harper and EMI did not last and from 1985 more of his earlier albums were becoming available on the newly formed
Awareness Records
Awareness Records was a record label founded in the mid-1980s by its owner, Andy Ware. The label was based in England and had Roy Harper and Michael Nesmith among its artists.
Artists
* Michael Nesmith
* Roy Harper
* Kurth & Taylor
* James ...
label.
1988 also saw the release of ''
Loony on the Bus'', a collection of tracks recorded a decade earlier and intended for release in 1977 as
''Commercial Breaks'' (with the sub-title, 'doesn't it?'). The original release having been held back because of disputes over funding and content between Harper and EMI. Sales of ''Loony on the Bus'' would fund Harper's 1990 release; ''
Once
Once means a one-time occurrence.
Once may refer to:
Music
* ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten''
* ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper
* ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...
''.
1990–99: Science Friction
In 1993 Harper established his own record label Science Friction and obtained the rights to all his previously released albums. As a result, from 1994 much of Harper's back catalogue became available on CD once more.
Harper was very productive during the decade, releasing five studio albums: ''Once'' (1990), ''
Death or Glory?'' (1992), ''
Commercial Breaks
''Commercial Breaks'', provisionally entitled Commercial Breaks' (doesn't it?)'', is the eighteenth studio album by Roy Harper. It was recorded in 1977, intended for release in 1978/79, but not officially released in its entirety until 1994.
...
'' (1994), ''
The Dream Society
''The Dream Society'' is the twentieth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1998.
History
The songs on the album revolve around events in Harper's life, from the early death of his mother to reaching the age of fifty. Other important events ...
'' (1998), a collection of poetry and
spoken word
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
tracks ''
Poems, Speeches, Thoughts and Doodles'' (1997); two live albums: ''
Unhinged'' (1993) and ''
Live at Les Cousins'' (1996; recorded in 1969) and six individual CDs of live concerts and
sessions
Sessions may refer to:
* Sessions (surname), a surname
* Sessions (clothing company), an American apparel company
* Sessions Clock Company, an American clock manufacturer in the early 20th century
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''The Sessions' ...
recorded by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
(1997). Two official
C90 cassette tapes of concerts at the Red Lion in Birmingham (1984 & 1985) were made available from Harper's agency (Acorn Entertainments).
In addition, Harper released a live
video
Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) syste ...
, ''
Once
Once means a one-time occurrence.
Once may refer to:
Music
* ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten''
* ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper
* ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...
'' (1990), an
EP ''
Burn the World
''Burn the World'' is the second album by the Swedish hardcore punk band AC4, released on Ny Våg (Ny Våg #133) in Sweden and Deathwish Inc. (DW145) in the United States, in March 2013.
The title track was written after guitarist Karl Backman's ...
'' (1990), a 4-track CD single ''Death or Glory?'' (1992), a
limited edition
The terms special edition, limited edition, and variants such as deluxe edition, or collector's edition, are used as a marketing incentive for various kinds of products, originally published products related to the arts, such as books, prints, r ...
live
Live may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film
* ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film
*'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD)
Music
*Live (band), American alternative rock band
* List of albums ...
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 ...
''
Born in Captivity II
''Born in Captivity II'' is a 1992 live album by English Folk music, folk/rock singer-songwriter Roy Harper (singer), Roy Harper.
History
The album was released as a special edition, limited edition (2,000) Compact cassette, cassette available ...
'' (1992) (featuring cricketer
Graeme Fowler
Graeme "Foxy" Fowler (born 20 April 1957) is an English former professional cricketer and cricket coach, who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club, England, and later for Durham. He appeared in 21 Test matches and 26 One Day Internationa ...
and a cricket poem written by Harper: "
Three Hundred Words"), a
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 ...
''
An Introduction to .....'' (1994), and a
reissue
In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or Single (music), single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions.
Reasons for reissue
New aud ...
of ''
Descendants of Smith
''Descendants of Smith'' is the fourteenth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1988. In 1994 it was re-issued under the title, ''Garden of Uranium'' with an identical track list but new cover artwork.
History
As a publicity stunt on the m ...
'' (his 1988 release) renamed ''
Garden of Uranium
''Descendants of Smith'' is the fourteenth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1988. In 1994 it was re-issued under the title, ''Garden of Uranium'' with an identical track list but new cover artwork.
History
As a publicity stunt on the m ...
'' (1994).
Once again Harper collaborated with
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
and
Kate Bush on his 1990 release, ''Once''. The album also featured contributions from
Nigel Mazlyn Jones,
Mark Feltham and
Tony Franklin. One of the album tracks, "The Black Cloud of Islam" a song written about Colonel Gaddafi,
the Lockerbie bombing, and a despairing castigation of
radical Islam
Islamic extremism, Islamist extremism, or radical Islam, is used in reference to extremist beliefs and behaviors which are associated with the Islamic religion. These are controversial terms with varying definitions, ranging from academic und ...
, provoked criticism from some of Harper's fans at the time. Whilst religion, Harper's "first and only enemy"
has always been a recurring theme in his music, he was '
red-carded by a lot of his 1990 following... who left in substantial numbers'.
In 1992, his second marriage ended and Harper released ''Death or Glory?'' an album that (upon its original release) contained a number of songs and
spoken word
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
pieces referencing his loss and pain. "She ran off with someone else" said Harper, "a violin player (
Nigel Kennedy) I’d been working on an adaptation of
Brahms's Violin Concerto with. I was really traumatised by that. Anybody who's been suddenly left like that will know it's very, very traumatic. I managed to come out of it, but it took about five years. It was like a death, a loss, like being told your child's been killed in a war. There's no other way to describe it. When you go through that, it changes your life forever, there's no point in not admitting it. I withdrew, retreated, became an exile".
Throughout the decade, Harper's musical influence began to be recognised by a younger generation of musicians, some of whom
covered
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
his songs or invited him to make guest appearances on their albums. In 1995 Harper contributed
spoken word
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
s on
the Tea Party
The Tea Party is a Canadian rock band with industrial rock, blues, progressive rock, and Middle Eastern music influences, dubbed " Moroccan roll" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s and up until 2005, the band re-formed in 2011. The Tea P ...
's 1995 album ''
The Edges of Twilight
''The Edges of Twilight'' is the third album by Canadian rock band The Tea Party, released in 1995. The album features many instruments from around the world, giving various songs a strong world music flavour in addition to the rock/ blues infl ...
'', and appeared on stage for their New Year concert in Montreal. In 1996 Roy recited "Bad Speech" from his album ''
Whatever Happened to Jugula?'' on
Anathema's album ''
Eternity'' (the album also contains a
cover version
In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
of "Hope" from the same album). The track "Time" from The Tea Party's 1996
multimedia
Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms such as text, audio, images, animations, or video into a single interactive presentation, in contrast to tradition ...
CD, ''
Alhambra
The Alhambra (, ; ar, الْحَمْرَاء, Al-Ḥamrāʾ, , ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the ...
'', was sung and co-written by Harper.
Harper contributed his version of
Jethro Tull's song, "Up the 'Pool" (from ''
Living in the Past'') for the 1996
tribute album
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 ...
, ''
To Cry You a Song – A Collection of Tull Tales'', a version Anderson liked so much he began to perform the ''"forgotten piece"'' again in concert and later described it as his favourite Jethro Tull cover song.
In 1998, Jethro Tull singer
Ian Anderson
Ian Scott Anderson (born 10 August 1947) is a British musician, singer and songwriter best known for his work as the lead vocalist, flautist, acoustic guitarist and leader of the British rock band Jethro Tull. He is a multi-instrumentalist w ...
contributed flute to the song, "These Fifty Years" on Harper's ''
The Dream Society
''The Dream Society'' is the twentieth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1998.
History
The songs on the album revolve around events in Harper's life, from the early death of his mother to reaching the age of fifty. Other important events ...
'', an album based on emotional, philosophical and actual events in Harper's life. Views of procreation, his mother's continued presence in him and something of his psychological impulses are punctuated by a couple of moments of satire, a love song and a lament, followed by the lengthy "These Fifty years", of which he has said, ''"In some ways its (anti-organised religion) theme is similar to 'The Same Old Rock', but in many others I think it's stronger"''.
Reportedly, Anderson said that the only reason he originally left Blackpool was because Harper did.
Other artists who
covered
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
Harper's songs (or songs on his albums) throughout the decade include Dean Carter, Ava Cherry & The Astronettes, Green Crown, The Kitchen Cynics,
the Levellers
The Levellers were a political movement active during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its popul ...
, Roydan Styles and
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.
Townsh ...
. Harper also undertook a short tour of the US, where some performances were supported by
Daevid Allen
Christopher David Allen (13 January 1938 – 13 March 2015), known professionally as Daevid Allen, sometimes credited as Divided Alien, was an Australian musician. He was co-founder of the psychedelic rock groups Soft Machine (in the UK, 1966 ...
, former
Soft Machine
Soft Machine are a British rock band from Canterbury formed in mid-1966 by Mike Ratledge (keyboards, 1966–1976), Robert Wyatt (drums, vocals, 1966–1971), Kevin Ayers (bass, guitar, vocals, 1966–1968) and Daevid Allen (guitar, 1966–196 ...
and
Gong band member.
2000–10: Into the new millennium
In 2000, Harper released an almost entirely acoustic album, ''
The Green Man'', accompanied by
The Tea Party
The Tea Party is a Canadian rock band with industrial rock, blues, progressive rock, and Middle Eastern music influences, dubbed " Moroccan roll" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s and up until 2005, the band re-formed in 2011. The Tea P ...
's
Jeff Martin Jeff Martin may refer to:
* Jeff Martin (American musician) (born 1957), lead vocalist for the bands Surgical Steel and Racer X; drummer for Badlands
*Jeff Martin (Canadian musician) (born 1969), guitarist, singer, and songwriter for the Tea Party
...
on guitar,
hurdy-gurdy and numerous other instruments. The following year (2001) Harper celebrated his 60th birthday with a concert performance at London's
Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...
and was joined by numerous guest artists including;
David Bedford,
Nick Harper
Nick Harper (born 22 June 1965) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the son of English folk musician Roy Harper.
Early life
Harper was born in London, England, to the folk singer-songwriter Roy Harper. Nick tells of how he ...
,
Jeff Martin Jeff Martin may refer to:
* Jeff Martin (American musician) (born 1957), lead vocalist for the bands Surgical Steel and Racer X; drummer for Badlands
*Jeff Martin (Canadian musician) (born 1969), guitarist, singer, and songwriter for the Tea Party
...
and
John Renbourn. The concert was recorded and released shortly after as a double CD, ''
Royal Festival Hall Live – 10 June 2001''.
In 2003, Harper published ''
The Passions of Great Fortune'', a large format book containing all the lyrics to his albums (and singles) to date, it also contained a wealth of photographs and commentary on his songs.
Harper released his second CD single in April 2005; "
The Death of God
''The Death of God'' is a 1961 book by Gabriel Vahanian, a part of the discussion of death of God theology during the period.
Contents
In the book, Vahanian observes that many people in his era regarded the Christian God to be irrelevant to t ...
". The 13-minute song, a critique of the
war in Iraq, featured guest guitarist Matt Churchill (who also performed live with Harper during this period). A video of the track, intermixing animation with a live performance, is . 2003 also saw the release of ''
Counter Culture'', a
double
A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another.
Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to:
Film and television
* Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character
* Th ...
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 ...
featuring songs from Harper's 35-year songwriting period. ''Counter Culture'' received a five-star review from ''
Uncut'' magazine. Harper also contributed a recital of "
Jabberwocky" for ''The Wildlife Album'', an 18-track compilation CD to benefit the
World Wide Fund for Nature
The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wor ...
and the
Ulster Wildlife Trust
Ulster Wildlife is a wildlife trust and a registered charity covering Northern Ireland. It was formed in 1978. Ulster Wildlife is one of 46 trusts working primarily by county or region to make the UK a better place for people and wildlife. The Wil ...
.
![Roy Harper](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Roy_Harper.jpg)
2005 saw Harper release his first DVD, ''
Beyond the Door''. Composed of live footage recorded in 2004 at Irish
folk club
A folk club is a regular event, permanent venue, or section of a venue devoted to folk music and traditional music. Folk clubs were primarily an urban phenomenon of 1960s and 1970s Great Britain and Ireland, and vital to the second British folk r ...
"De Barra's" in
Clonakilty,
Cork
Cork or CORK may refer to:
Materials
* Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product
** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container
***Wine cork
Places Ireland
* Cork (city)
** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
and "
The Death of God
''The Death of God'' is a 1961 book by Gabriel Vahanian, a part of the discussion of death of God theology during the period.
Contents
In the book, Vahanian observes that many people in his era regarded the Christian God to be irrelevant to t ...
" video. The package also includes an additional 10-track audio CD and received a 4-star review from ''
Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
*Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* '' ...
'', ''
Uncut'', and ''
Classic Rock
Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...
'' magazine, who made it their "DVD of the month".
In September 2007, Harper supported Californian harpist
Joanna Newsom
Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Born and raised in Northern California, Newsom was classically trained on the harp in her youth and began her musical career as a keyboardist in the San Francisc ...
at her
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
performance. Newsom, impressed by Harper's 1971 album ''Stormcock'' found it served as an inspiration for her similarly expansive second album, ''
Ys''.
[ During his Royal Albert Hall appearance with Newsom, Harper played ''Stormcock'' in its entirety. At the time, Harper made an announcement on his website that he was ''"...taking a break from the live scene... retired from gigging..."'' and just wanted ''"...the time and space to write..."''
During this period, Harper dedicated his time to collecting and compiling his life's work in various formats. One of the intended projects was to be the making of a documentary DVD to round off this process. However, as of 2016 this remains unreleased.]
In 2008, plans were announced for a Roy Harper tribute album
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 ...
. The album, ''What You Need Is What You Have, The Songs of Roy Harper'' was being compiled by Laurel Canyon 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 ...
singer, musician and producer Jonathan Wilson, and was to feature Chris Robinson (the Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1984. Their discography includes eight studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer Geo ...
), Gary Louris
Gary Louris (born March 10, 1955) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter of alternative country and pop music. He was a founding member of the Minneapolis-based band the Jayhawks and their principal songwriter and vocalist after the ...
( the Jayhawks), Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice (born May 27, 1983) is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. He used to frequently collaborate with Jenny Lewis. His first album, ''Trouble is Real'', was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow-up, ''Furthe ...
, Eric D. Johnson
Eric Donald Johnson (born June 7, 1976) is an American singer-songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the leader and sole permanent member of the influential folk-rock band Fruit Bats, and for his tenure as a member o ...
( Fruit Bats, the Shins), Benji Hughes
Benji Hughes is an American musical artist from Charlotte, North Carolina. His first album, '' A Love Extreme'', was released in 2008.
''A Love Extreme''
On July 22, 2008, Benji Hughes released his debut album, entitled '' A Love Extreme'' on Ne ...
, Will Oldham, Andy Cabic, Dawes
Dawes may refer to: Places
*Dawes (Parish), New South Wales, Australia
*Dawes Point, New South Wales, Australia
*Dawes Arboretum, in Newark, Ohio, U.S.
*Dawes County, Nebraska, U.S.
* Dawes Township, Thurston County, Nebraska, U.S.
Other uses
*Daw ...
, Jenny O.
Jennifer Ognibene, known by her stage name Jenny O., is an American singer-songwriter, based in Los Angeles, California.
Early life and education
Jenny O. grew up on Long Island, New York. She studied jazz at State University of New York at N ...
, Josh Tillman
Joshua Michael Tillman (born May 3, 1981), better known by his stage name Father John Misty, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He has also performed and released studio albums under the name J. Tillman.
Maintainin ...
and others. At present, the collection remains unfinished, having been delayed beyond its planned 2009 release date. Six of the tracks can be heard on the project's Myspace page.
In 2010, Newsom once again invited Harper to guest for her on several of her European Tour Dates.
Plans for Harper to star as Rodriguez El Toro in the film '' Rebel City Rumble'' were also announced. As of 2016 the project is still categorised as 'in development'.
2011–present: ''Man and Myth''
On 2 April 2011, Roy Harper played a concert for a small audience at Metropolis Studios
Metropolis Studios is a music production and entertainment industry company established in 1989 by Gary Langan, Carey Taylor and Karin Clayton.Donald Brackett It is located in the Powerhouse, a Grade II listed building, at 70 Chiswick High Roa ...
as part of the ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
Legends series.
The concert was recorded on video and released on DVD as ''Classic Rock Legends: Roy Harper – Live in Concert at Metropolis Studios''. The package also contains an audio CD of the concert. Through the summer of 2011, Harper made a number of appearances on broadcast media. On 24 July 2011, Harper appeared as the lunchtime guest on the British cricketing radio programme, Test Match Special. During the show Harper was interviewed and also performed "When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease
"When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease" is a track on the Roy Harper album '' HQ'', a prominent example of cricket poetry. Released as a single twice, in 1975 and 1978, it is possibly Harper's best-known song. The song captures the atmosphere o ...
". A televised interview followed on BBC Breakfast
''BBC Breakfast'' is the BBC television Breakfast television, breakfast news programme. Produced by BBC News, the programme is broadcast on BBC One and the BBC News (TV channel), BBC News channel. The simulcast is presented live, originally from ...
on 19 September 2011, and Harper was also interviewed by Robert Elms on his BBC London 94.9
BBC Radio London is the BBC's local radio station serving Greater London and its surrounding areas. The station broadcasts across the area and beyond, on the 94.9 FM frequency, DAB, Virgin Media channel 937, Sky channel 0152 (in the Lond ...
show on 20 September 2011. During the show, Harper performed "Another Day Another Day may refer to:
Albums
* ''Another Day'' (Steve Ashley album)
* ''Another Day'' (The Hurt Process album)
* ''Another Day'' (Lene Marlin album)
* ''Another Day'' (Oscar Peterson album)
* ''Another Day'' (Racoon album)
* ''Another ...
" (a song from his 1970 album ''Flat Baroque and Berserk'') live in the studio. A further interview took place on Mike Harding
Mike Harding (born 23 October 1944) is an English singer, songwriter, comedian, author, poet, broadcaster and multi-instrumentalist. Harding has also been a photographer, traveller, filmmaker and playwright.
Early life and education
Harding's ...
's BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
show on 21 September 2011.
On 23 September Harper was interviewed on Later... with Jools Holland. A segment of Harper performing "Commune" (from his 1974 album ''Valentine'') on ''The Old Grey Whistle Test
''The Old Grey Whistle Test'' (sometimes abbreviated to ''Whistle Test'' or ''OGWT'') is a British television music show. The show was devised by BBC producer Rowan Ayers, commissioned by David Attenborough and aired on BBC2 from 1971 to 1988. ...
'' in 1974 was shown. Harper performed "Another Day", an abbreviated version of "I Hate The White Man" (from his 1970 album ''Flat Baroque and Berserk'') and "The Green Man" (as part of a web exclusive performance).
The media appearances were to promote the release of a new compilation album, '' Songs of Love and Loss'', a compilation of Harper's love songs released as an introduction to the digital release of 19 of Harper's albums for the first time. The digital catalogue was to be released in batches of four over the forthcoming months. The album (and most of Harper's back catalogue) remain available to download on Harper's website in FLAC
FLAC (; Free Lossless Audio Codec) is an audio coding format for lossless compression of digital audio, developed by the Xiph.Org Foundation, and is also the name of the free software project producing the FLAC tools, the reference software p ...
and MP3 formats.
On 5 November 2011 Harper returned to London's Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...
to celebrate his 70th birthday and perform once again with special guests Jonathan Wilson, Nick Harper
Nick Harper (born 22 June 1965) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the son of English folk musician Roy Harper.
Early life
Harper was born in London, England, to the folk singer-songwriter Roy Harper. Nick tells of how he ...
, Joanna Newsom and Jimmy Page. The performance was described in ''The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' as "...an evening of devastating musical brilliance..." and by ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' as an "...historic concert".
In 2012, the Press Photographers Association of Ireland awarded third place in the Portraits section of their annual competition to a photographic portrait
Portrait photography, or portraiture, is a type of photography aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people by using effective lighting, backdrops, and poses. A portrait photograph may be artistic or clinical. Frequentl ...
of Harper by photographer Alan Place.
In December 2012 plans to release a new album, Harper's first studio release of newly recorded material for 13 years, were confirmed. The album, ''Man and Myth
''Man & Myth'' is the title of Roy Harper's 22nd studio album. Released 47 years after his debut album, ''Sophisticated Beggar'', it is his first studio release in 13 years.
Background
When questioned during a Reuters interview about the time ...
'', featured contributions from Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.
Townsh ...
and Jonathan Wilson, and was released 23 September 2013.
Harper performed live through August 2013, playing at Debarras Folk Club in Clonakilty, West Cork
West Cork ( ga, Iarthar Chorcaí) is a tourist region and municipal district in County Cork, Ireland. As a municipal district, West Cork falls within the administrative area of Cork County Council, and includes the towns of Bantry, Castletownbe ...
, Ireland (11 August), at the Green Man Festival in Glanusk, Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
(17 August) and at Beautiful Days in Escot Park
Escot in the parish of Talaton, near Ottery St Mary in Devon, is an historic estate. The present mansion house known as Escot House is a Listed building, grade II listed building built in 1837 by Sir John Kennaway, 3rd Baronet to the design of H ...
, Devon (18 August).
During this period Harper was interviewed by Laura Rawlings on her BBC Radio Bristol show on 15 August 2013, and also by Rob Hughes of the Telegraph Online who declared "Roy Harper has spent the past five decades crafting some of the most vivid, ravishingly beautiful music of our times...". Harper also performed at an in-store performance at Rough Trade East, London. A limited number of tickets were available to those who purchased the album in store that day, and the event was also streamed live to a limited number of fans who had pre-ordered the album.
On 25 September Sky Arts broadcast "Roy Harper: Man & Myth – The Documentary". An exclusive documentary film, shot mainly at Harper's home in Ireland, it traced Harper's career and examined his output. Included were interviews with fellow musicians Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and Johnny Marr.
In support of ''Man and Myth's'' release, Harper undertook a short, three-date, UK tour, performing at the Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...
, London (22 October), the Bridgewater Hall
The Bridgewater Hall is a concert venue in Manchester city centre, England. It cost around £42 million to build in the 1990s, and hosts over 250 performances a year. It is home to the 165-year-old Hallé Orchestra as well as to the Hallé ...
, Manchester (25 October) and the Colston Hall
Bristol Beacon, previously known as Colston Hall, is a concert hall and Grade II listed building on Colston Street, Bristol, England. It is owned by Bristol City Council. Since 2011, management of the hall has been the direct responsibility of ...
, Bristol (27 October). At each performance he was accompanied by Jonathan Wilson and supported by a string
String or strings may refer to:
*String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...
and brass
Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...
ensemble.
In November 2013 Uncut placed ''Man & Myth'' at 6 in their top 50 Albums of 2013. ''Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
*Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* '' ...
'' also placed ''Man and Myth'' at 39 in their list of the top 50 Albums of 2013.
In April 2016, to celebrate his 75th Birthday, Harper announced four concerts in September with string and brass ensemble, in Birmingham, Manchester, London and Edinburgh. He kicked off the tour at De Barra's pub in Clonakilty, Co. Cork, Ireland.
In March 2019 Roy toured the UK again, with concerts in Birmingham, Bexhill-on-Sea, London (The London Palladium
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
), Liverpool, Gateshead, Leeds and Edinburgh. He kicked off the tour at De Barra's pub in Clonakilty, Co. Cork, Ireland.
Awards
'' HQ'' was awarded Record of the Year in Portugal in 1975. That year Harper also received a similar award in Finland for the same record.
''Work of Heart
''Work of Heart'' is the eleventh studio album by English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper and was first released in 1982.
History
The original album was released on Harper's own label, Public Records, formed with Mark T ...
'' was named ''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' Album of the Year in 1982.
Harper was given the MOJO
Mojo may refer to:
*Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* '' ...
Hero Award by the staff of ''Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
*Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* MOJO HD, an American television network
* ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film
* '' ...
'' magazine on 16 June 2005 at the Porchester Hall, London. The award itself was presented by longtime collaborator and friend, 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 ...
and now hangs upon the wall at De Barras Folk Club in Clonakilty, Ireland.
On 30 January 2013, Harper was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall is a concert and arts venue located in Glasgow, Scotland. It is owned by Glasgow City Council and operated by Glasgow Life, an agency of Glasgow City Council, which also runs Glasgow's City Halls and Old Fruitmarket v ...
.
Personal life
One of Harper's sons, Nick Harper
Nick Harper (born 22 June 1965) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the son of English folk musician Roy Harper.
Early life
Harper was born in London, England, to the folk singer-songwriter Roy Harper. Nick tells of how he ...
, is a singer-songwriter. He has occasionally toured and recorded with his father and appeared as a guitarist on a number of his albums since 1985. Another son, Ben Harper (by English actress Verna Harvey), lives in the US.
Harper is an atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
.
Following police interviews in February 2013, Harper was charged in November 2013 with ten counts of alleged historic child sexual abuse over a period of several years with two under-age females. After a two-week trial in early 2015, he was unanimously acquitted by a jury of two of the charges with no verdicts on the remaining five, then in November 2015, following a review by the Director of Public Prosecutions
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members o ...
, Alison Saunders
Dame Alison Margaret Saunders, ( Brown; born 14 February 1961) is a British barrister and a former Director of Public Prosecutions. She was the first lawyer from within the Crown Prosecution Service and the second woman to hold the appointment. ...
, the remaining charges were dropped.
Discography
;Studio albums
;Live albums
;Compilation albums
;Reissues and remixes
* 1977 – '' The Early Years'' (reissue of ''Come Out Fighting Ghengis Smith
''Come Out Fighting Ghengis Smith'' is English folk / rock singer-songwriter and guitarist Roy Harper's second album and was released in 1967. The album was re-issued in 1977 as ''The Early Years'', re-issued once more on Compact disc in 1991 ...
'')
* 1994 – ''Garden of Uranium
''Descendants of Smith'' is the fourteenth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1988. In 1994 it was re-issued under the title, ''Garden of Uranium'' with an identical track list but new cover artwork.
History
As a publicity stunt on the m ...
'' (reissue of ''Descendants of Smith
''Descendants of Smith'' is the fourteenth studio album by Roy Harper, released in 1988. In 1994 it was re-issued under the title, ''Garden of Uranium'' with an identical track list but new cover artwork.
History
As a publicity stunt on the m ...
'')
* 1998 – '' Death or Glory?'' (tracks 1 & 9 remixed)
;Singles, 12" singles and EPs
;Collaborations
* 1970 – "St. Thomas" (guest lead vocal and lyrics for the Nice and appears on ''America – The BBC Sessions'')
* 1971 – "Ravneferd" (co-written with Lillebjørn Nilsen and appears on the album '' Tilbake'')
* 1975 – " Have a Cigar" (guest lead vocals for Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...
)
* 1978 – "Short and Sweet" (co-written with David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined as guitarist and co-lead vocalist in 1967, shortly before the departure of founding member Syd Barrett. P ...
for his first solo album; Harper's version appears on ''The Unknown Soldier'')
* 1980 – "Breathing
Breathing (or ventilation) is the process of moving air into and from the lungs to facilitate gas exchange with the internal environment, mostly to flush out carbon dioxide and bring in oxygen.
All aerobic creatures need oxygen for cellular ...
", backing vocals on a track on the Kate Bush album '' Never for Ever''.
* 1995 – ''The Edges of Twilight
''The Edges of Twilight'' is the third album by Canadian rock band The Tea Party, released in 1995. The album features many instruments from around the world, giving various songs a strong world music flavour in addition to the rock/ blues infl ...
'' (spoken word on hidden track
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track (sometimes called a ghost track, secret track or unlisted track) is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as t ...
for the Tea Party
The Tea Party is a Canadian rock band with industrial rock, blues, progressive rock, and Middle Eastern music influences, dubbed " Moroccan roll" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s and up until 2005, the band re-formed in 2011. The Tea P ...
)
* 1995 – "Time" (guest lead vocals for the Tea Party
The Tea Party is a Canadian rock band with industrial rock, blues, progressive rock, and Middle Eastern music influences, dubbed " Moroccan roll" by the media. Active throughout the 1990s and up until 2005, the band re-formed in 2011. The Tea P ...
's ''Alhambra
The Alhambra (, ; ar, الْحَمْرَاء, Al-Ḥamrāʾ, , ) is a palace and fortress complex located in Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the ...
'' multimedia CD)
* 1996 – "Hope" & "Bad Speech" on Anathema's album '' Eternity''.
;Downloads
* 2005 – '' The Passions of Great Fortune, Vol. 1'' (iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
Download)
Videography
* 1984 – '' Stonehenge 84''
* 1986 – '' Live in Your Living Room''
* 1990 – '' Once Live''
* 2005 – '' Beyond the Door'' (DVD) (includes CD recorded live in Clonakilty 2004)
* 2011 – '' Classic Rock Legends: Roy Harper – Live in Concert at Metropolis Studios'' (DVD + audio CD)
Filmography
* 1972 – ''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. ...
''
* 1976 – '' The Song Remains the Same''
* 2009 – ''Brokeback Cowboy''
Bibliography
* 2003 – ''The Passions of Great Fortune – The Songs Explored'' ()
References
External links
Roy Harper Official Website
The Stormcock Community fan site
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Roy
1941 births
Living people
English rock guitarists
Musicians from Manchester
People from Rusholme
People educated at King Edward VII and Queen Mary School
Liberty Records artists
Harvest Records artists
Chrysalis Records artists
Beggars Banquet Records artists
I.R.S. Records artists
English folk guitarists
English male guitarists
English male singer-songwriters
English folk singers
People acquitted of sex crimes
Fingerstyle guitarists
English expatriates in Ireland
English atheists
Bella Union artists