Roy Harper / Songs of Love and Loss

Roy Harper
Songs Of Love And Loss
(Believe Digital)
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If there was a worry that the music of Roy Harper was beginning to fade into the hinterland, then it was erroneous; Harper has seldom tasted the fruits of celebrity no matter how colourful his history – in fact, it’s a history which could be detailed purely with wild name-checking.

Harper, a doyen of English folk music, celebrates his 70th birthday this year with 19 LPs from his back catalogue being released digitally. With such an extensive repertoire this two-disc compilation would have been hard pressed to include a bum track. One surprise however, is that it’s as the chronology moves towards the present that the song-smithery improves; the aesthetics become less arcane, less epochal, less like hippy shit as Harper carries elements of vitriol and spite with the grace of an angel.

Much can, and will be, made of Johnny Rotton's fleeting fascination with Harper as the plaudits fall; it would not be uncommon for misjudgements to reign as his canonisation commences. Regardless, Harper is a master fully deserving of high praise.

Samuel Breen