Man And Myth, Roy’s first studio album in 13 years, isn’t just proof that one of the leading, most erudite and passionate orators of the British folk rock renaissance hasn’t lost an iota of his gifts, but also timely evidence for anyone who has wondered why so many musical luminaries have been lining up to praise this enigmatic and legendary singer-songwriter.In 2011, Harper performed a special show at the Royal Festival Hall in celebration of his 70th birthday, where those who joined on stage included Joanna Newsom, Jonathan Wilson and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, who once penned a tribute called ‘Hats Off To Harper’.
David Gilmour not only played on record and stage for Harper, but Pink Floyd engaged him to sing ‘Have A Cigar’ on the band’s landmark album Wish You Were Here. Fellow collaborator Kate Bush has called Harper “one of the greatest English songwriters” while the late John Peel declared, on his death, that cricket obsessive Harper’s “When An Old Cricketer Leaves The Crease” be played at his funeral. Johnny Marr, meanwhile, has stated that Harper’s 1971 opus Stormcock was “intense and beautiful and clever.”
