Roy Harper (singer)

Roy Harper
Harper in 2011
Harper in 2011
Background information
Born (1941-06-12) 12 June 1941 (age 83)
Rusholme, Manchester, England
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • musician
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • harmonica
Years active1964–present
Labels
Websiteroyharper.co.uk

Roy Harper (born 12 June 1941)[1] 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.[2] He was the lead vocalist on Pink Floyd’s “Have a Cigar.”

Harper's influence has been acknowledged by Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Pete Townshend, Kate Bush, Pink Floyd, and Ian Anderson, of Jethro Tull, who said Harper was his "primary influence as an acoustic guitarist and songwriter."[3] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph described him as "one of Britain's most complex and eloquent lyricists and genuinely original songwriters... much admired by his peers".[4] Across the Atlantic, his influence has been acknowledged by Seattle-based acoustic band Fleet Foxes, American musician and producer Jonathan Wilson, and Californian harpist Joanna Newsom, with whom he has also toured.

In 2005, Harper was awarded the MOJO Hero Award, and in 2013 a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. His most recent album, Man and Myth, was released in 2013. In 2016, Harper celebrated his 75th birthday by performing concerts in Clonakilty, Birmingham, Manchester, London, and Edinburgh.

  1. ^ "Today in history". ABC News. Associated Press. 12 June 2014.
  2. ^ 2011 Roy Harper interview Guardian.co.uk Retrieved 9 December 2011
  3. ^ "Roy Harper Ian Anderson's primary musical influence". Classicrockmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  4. ^ McCormick, Neil (12 November 2013). "Roy Harper: 'I'm inspired to carry on'". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2013.