HarperPR
17-12-2007, 03:51 PM
Nick spoke with Barnaby (who made an appearance, of sorts, in the DVD) for London Tour Dates prior to the Spitz gig this year. It did go on for FAR longer than given here too! The interview appeared at the beginning of November.
Nick Harper’s new album Miracles For Beginners is touted by many as the best of his twenty-year career as a singer-songwriter.
The son of the excellent Roy Harper, Nick’s reputation for crafting a perfect tune, banshee-like vocals and aggressively virtuosic guitar playing precedes him.With a recent charity performance at Everest Base Camp behind him,we wondered what inspired him to great heights.
What are the five albums that have most influenced you?
The Brahms Violin Concerto, the Gimpel version. It’s full of all sorts of beautiful
refrains. Stephen Stills’s first solo album, Stephen Stills. My drunken, improvisational style comes from ‘Black Queen’ on that album. Storm Cock by my Dad, ‘Me and My Woman’ is one of my favourite songs of his. Any one of the first three Killing Joke albums. The blues is for getting rid of the blues, and you can’t get more blue than Killing Joke. Grace by Jeff Buckley, he did things with his vocals that definitely influenced the way I sing.
What’s the best concert you have ever been to?
At the age of ten, Led Zeppelin at Earl’s Court was an assault on the senses. Jon Bonham was an absolute god as far as I was concerned.
If you could have been a musician in any era when would it be?
I can’t imagine any era other than the one I’m in, really.
What is the best gig you have ever performed?
I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever done a complete gig where everything’s been incredible, though in every gig I do there’s something great in it for me.
Is there any particular venue you would like to play?
Royal Albert Hall, Machu Picchu, the glass bridge over the Grand Canyon, the South Pole, everywhere really.
What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done or seen on tour?
I don’t think I can divulge these things. I’ve seen people pull guns, malicious damage, sex and violence… usual things.
What books have you read and films have you seen recently?
Well having two kids it has to be Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows and Shrek The Third. I can’t remember the last time I went to the cinema for myself.
CD, vinyl or MP3?
The guy who produced Blood Songs (Harper’s 2004 album) described MP3s as ‘cardboard cut-outs’ of music which I thought was a very good description. A rock or pop band always sounds best on vinyl.
John or Paul?
John.
Sex or drugs?
Aren’t they the same thing?
Dylan or Elvis?
That’s not fair. I’ll say Elvis.
Intimate club or massive arena?
Intimate club, but I could do with a few massive arena gigs before I quit.
Nick Harper
Under The Influence
Nick Harper’s new album Miracles For Beginners is touted by many as the best of his twenty-year career as a singer-songwriter.
The son of the excellent Roy Harper, Nick’s reputation for crafting a perfect tune, banshee-like vocals and aggressively virtuosic guitar playing precedes him.With a recent charity performance at Everest Base Camp behind him,we wondered what inspired him to great heights.
What are the five albums that have most influenced you?
The Brahms Violin Concerto, the Gimpel version. It’s full of all sorts of beautiful
refrains. Stephen Stills’s first solo album, Stephen Stills. My drunken, improvisational style comes from ‘Black Queen’ on that album. Storm Cock by my Dad, ‘Me and My Woman’ is one of my favourite songs of his. Any one of the first three Killing Joke albums. The blues is for getting rid of the blues, and you can’t get more blue than Killing Joke. Grace by Jeff Buckley, he did things with his vocals that definitely influenced the way I sing.
What’s the best concert you have ever been to?
At the age of ten, Led Zeppelin at Earl’s Court was an assault on the senses. Jon Bonham was an absolute god as far as I was concerned.
If you could have been a musician in any era when would it be?
I can’t imagine any era other than the one I’m in, really.
What is the best gig you have ever performed?
I don’t know. I don’t think I’ve ever done a complete gig where everything’s been incredible, though in every gig I do there’s something great in it for me.
Is there any particular venue you would like to play?
Royal Albert Hall, Machu Picchu, the glass bridge over the Grand Canyon, the South Pole, everywhere really.
What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done or seen on tour?
I don’t think I can divulge these things. I’ve seen people pull guns, malicious damage, sex and violence… usual things.
What books have you read and films have you seen recently?
Well having two kids it has to be Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows and Shrek The Third. I can’t remember the last time I went to the cinema for myself.
CD, vinyl or MP3?
The guy who produced Blood Songs (Harper’s 2004 album) described MP3s as ‘cardboard cut-outs’ of music which I thought was a very good description. A rock or pop band always sounds best on vinyl.
John or Paul?
John.
Sex or drugs?
Aren’t they the same thing?
Dylan or Elvis?
That’s not fair. I’ll say Elvis.
Intimate club or massive arena?
Intimate club, but I could do with a few massive arena gigs before I quit.
Nick Harper
Under The Influence