Few survivors from the golden age of British folk-rock have kept their reputations intact. Of the generation of troubadours who came of age in the folk clubs of London in the mid-1960s, some have passed away, others have surrendered to the regurgitation of the blandest form of acoustic folk music. But among the survivors, there is one figure whose body of work, comprising 23 studio LPs and almost as many live and compilation releases, has come to stand for a particularly single-minded form of integrity. That man is Roy Harper.
Now officially ‘retired’, and living in a secluded corner of Ireland, Harper has recently been hailed as a key influence by a much younger generation of devoted starsailors who instinctively recognise his innovations, his refusal to compromise and his visionary world view. It is rumoured that Joanna Newsom insisted she’d only play her recent UK shows if he would support her. The likes of Fleet Foxes, Joanna Newsom, and Jim O’Rourke are avowed fans; and in previous decades he has enjoyed public endorsements and tributes from the likes of Led Zeppelin, Kate Bush, Pink Floyd’s Dave Gilmour and many more.
Biography
Born in 1941, Harper lost his mother within a few weeks of his birth and was brought up in the outskirts of Manchester by his father and stepmother, a Jehovah's Witness. Harper developed a deep hatred of organised religion and ran away, aged 15, to join the Royal Air Force. The rigid discipline required did not suit him. In order to be discharged early he pleaded insanity and was committed to an institution where he received ECT. A former participant in the skiffle revolution in the mid-50s, around 1964 Harper found himself joining the stream of bohemian rambler-buskers hitching and singing their way around Europe and North Africa. On his return to Britain he pitched in to the London coffee-house folk scene and secured a residence at legendary folk club Les Cousins, where he was spotted by the obscure Strike label.
Beginning with 1966’s Sophisticated Beggar, Harper’s music has consistently rattled the cage of received ideas. His versatile, poetic sensibility was employed in a wide range of song styles from romantic love songs to late-night mantras to blackly comedic throwaway numbers. A brilliant, percussive guitar stylist in his own right, he extended the form of folk music over the next few years, allowing himself the space to stretch out in long, lyrically dense and mantrically repetitive odysseys of poetic thought. “I was writing long poems in the 50s,” says Harper, “none of which unfortunately made it past the first few moves of living quarters. My first inspiration was John Keats’s Endymion.”
The first inklings of his expansive approach on record came on the ten minute “Circle” on 1967’s Come Out Fighting Genghis Smith – produced by Shel Talmy – and was vastly ramped up on the following year’s Folkjokeopus, which contained an 18 minute “McGoohan’s Blues”, named after the lead actor of TV’s The Prisoner and whose enigmatic verses were laced with anti-establishment rants.
By this time Harper was a favourite at the outdoor Hyde Park Festivals, where he was exposed to the wider attention of the underground scene. Now produced and managed by Peter Jenner, and signed to EMI’s progressive label Harvest, his 1969 LP Flat Baroque And Berserk reflected his reputation as a bloodyminded, truculent troubadour, reflecting turbulent times with anger, wrath and sardonic humour, singing – like the mistle thrush after which his next opus would be named – into the eye of the storm.
Stormcock (1971) is generally regarded as a masterpiece: a sprawling but focused suite of four lengthy tracks which explored the inner space of Abbey Road Studio to rhapsodic effect. Like Astral Weeks refracted through the pages of OZ magazine, the songs span an enormous spectrum of experience, from the frontline of social unrest to the secluded, birdsong-infested lanes of the English countryside. Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page added guitar, disguised as ‘S Flavius Mercurius’, highlighting a relationship with the group that had begun at the 1970 Bath Festival of Blues and Progressive Music. “Hats Off To (Roy) Harper”, an incoherent, gutsy blues workout on Led Zeppelin III, paid tribute to the singer’s status as a beacon of integrity for the underground scene.
Harper enjoyed a special relationship with Led Zeppelin, and his subsequent albums began to move into harder rock territory with the addition of various key collaborators including, as well as Page, orchestral arranger/keyboardist David Bedford, David Gilmour, Chris Spedding, Bill Bruford and John Paul Jones. Lifemask (1972) contained several songs written for the film Made, directed by John Mackenzie, which starred Harper as an edgy, high-maintenance rock star. Valentine (1974) was launched with a gig featuring Page and Bedford plus Ronnie Lane and Keith Moon. He was invited to sing lead on the single “Have A Cigar” from Pink Floyd’s classic album Wish You Were Here (1975). In the same year Harper released HQ, a rock based album notable for the closing track, “When An Old Cricketer Leaves The Crease”, an elegiac hymn to unchanging ways and mortality which BBC DJ John Peel insisted should be played in the event of his death.
With the dawn of the 1980s Harper took part in a musical exchange with Kate Bush, who guested on The Unknown Soldier (1980), while Harper returned the favour by appearing on Bush’s hit single “Breathing”. Harper rode the unsteady waves of the music industry during the early 1980s but kept up a productive output that saw his music taking on a prophetic role, expressing more explicit concerns with environmental disaster, religious fundamentalism, urban poverty and the first Gulf War, on releases like Once (1990) and The Dream Society (1998), through to his most recent studio album, The Green Man (2000). In 1994, exhibiting typical desire for autonomy and self-sufficiency, he set up his own record label, Science Friction, to curate and rerelease his entire back catalogue, along with a clutch of CDs of live and unreleased material covering his entire career. In his book, The Passions Of Great Fortune (2003), he published his complete lyrics together with photos, annotations and re-evaluations of every one of his songs.
With a new series of reissues in 2011, Roy Harper’s incredible, visionary catalogue of work enters the digital domain in time for his music to take on a new, urgent and timely appeal, in an age in which the hypocrisies and injustices he railed against are more present than ever before. It’s been a damned good innings and he’s still not out.
Once
Roy Harper Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A thought for all (wo)men
Right for the speechless
Wrong until then?
Eyes for the laughter
Thirst for the tongue
Hands for together
The song of love
We sing in silence
Every moment long
Once
Here to be done as we do
With only one chance
Here for the wonder of under the stars
For the one and only
Once
Joy for the children
Hope for the chance
Men for the women
Now for the dance
The dance of love
We dance just once
In unique circumstance
Once
Here to be done as we do
With only one chance
Here for the wonder of under the stars
For the one and only once
The lyrics of the song 'Once' by Roy Harper refer to the preciousness and uniqueness of life, and stresses the importance of living it to the fullest. The opening lines of the song suggest that Earth is meant for all living beings, and everyone deserves to be treated with respect and kindness. The next line 'Right for the speechless, wrong until then?' seems to question our past actions towards the vulnerable, innocent creatures, and highlights the need for justice and compassion.
Then, the song talks about the different senses - eyes, tongue, hands, and ears - and how they enable us to experience life's pleasures like laughter, thirst, togetherness, and music. The following lines 'The song of love, we sing in silence, every moment long' indicates that love, which is often unspoken, is the most beautiful and valuable thing in life. We must treasure every moment of it.
The song culminates into the chorus, which emphasizes the uniqueness of our existence - 'Here to be done as we do, with only one chance'. We must make the best of the opportunities we get in life as they won't come back. The line 'Here for the wonder of under the stars, for the one and only, once' captures the mesmerizing beauty of the universe and how we are lucky to be alive and experience it.
Overall, the song 'Once' is a reminder to value life, love, and everything that makes us human. It urges us to make the most of the present and not take anything for granted.
Line by Line Meaning
Earth for all creatures
We should share the Earth with all creatures and not harm the natural environment.
A thought for all (wo)men
Consideration and empathy should be extended to all human beings without any discrimination.
Right for the speechless
It is our responsibility to stand up for those who cannot speak for themselves, like animals and other vulnerable groups.
Wrong until then?
We may not have acted right in the past, but we have the opportunity to correct our mistakes and do better in the future.
Eyes for the laughter
Our eyes should be filled with joy and positivity, seeking out the good in life and spreading happiness.
Thirst for the tongue
We should have an appetite for life, experience new things and live in the present, savoring every moment.
Hands for together
We should use our hands and resources to bring people together, to help each other and make the world a better place.
Ears for the song
We should listen to the music that inspires us, connects us to others and uplifts our spirits.
The song of love
Love is the universal language that brings people closer, creates a harmonious world and heals all wounds.
We sing in silence
Sometimes words are not enough to convey our deepest emotions, so we turn to music to express ourselves.
Every moment long
When we are truly living in the moment, time ceases to matter and we experience life in a profound way.
Once
Life is precious and fleeting, so we should make the most out of every opportunity that comes our way.
Here to be done as we do
Life is what we make of it, and we should take responsibility for our own actions and make a positive impact on the world.
With only one chance
We only have one life on this Earth, so we should live it to the fullest and leave behind a legacy that we can be proud of.
Here for the wonder of under the stars
The natural world is awe-inspiring and beautiful, and we should take the time to appreciate its wonders and protect it for future generations.
For the one and only once
Life is a unique and precious gift, and we should cherish every moment and make the most out of the one chance we have to live it.
Contributed by Tristan M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@davep7164
We were waiting to score some fine hash seemed like forever and a day ... the hash arrived and so did a tape cassette of Roy Harper ...30 years later I still love it and have collected his full works on vinyl ....pure joy
@ambidextra_ambidextra
Lovely Post🙏🤗💖
@matthewreeves8408
Great story. Roy Harper and hash seem suited to one another. What album was it?
@floatymcboaty9851
Are you still stoned 🙂
@tedcroaker
I have only recently begun to appreciate the true genius of Roy Harper myself, despite having first been exposed to his music in the 1980s. I guess everybodys' tastes change over time, and as i have gradually become more and more bored with superficial pop music and more appreciative of prog and jazz genres i've come to really appreciate the depth and quality of Roy's work.
@globalfightback5878
You've got it! Join the club. :-)
@jeffryJEFFRYWITH1Ewillis
This is unbelievable. Just now realizing the wonder of Roy Harper!
@tomwalsh9405
Thanks for posting this... I've such a hard time finding Roy Harper music in the states, and the only other song I know of the 3 of them was "You" so it was nice to hear something else... now if I could only find these records! Lol. My love for Gilmour led to Harper, and vis-a-vis, Gilmour and Gabriel lead me to Kate Bush... again, many many thanks!!! xx
@globalfightback5878
Truly sublime and life-asserting. Harper is an understated genius. Thanks for uploading.
@234cheech
roy will always be in my top ten of all time singer songwriters the guy can sure write a track or two