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"...Clean Sheets..."
Not much point in arguing
that Roy Harper's sixth studio album "Lifemask" (issued February 1973
in the UK) is a bit of a wonder - it is. But as any fan will tell you, his CD
reissues have had a tangled history to say the friggin least and
"Lifemask" is no different. I'd like to sort out those details first
before discussing this superb new 2018 reissue that at last makes the album
available in digital form with truly awesome audio.
The first CD reissue for
"Lifemask" came in October 1990 on the Awareness label - Awareness
AWCD 1007 (Barcode 5017701100729) and was a bog-standard jewel case with a
minimal booklet. Second came his own record label Science Friction who in
September 1994 issued Science Friction HUCD005 (Barcode 679076770058) as a
supposed Remaster - itself reissued in October 1996. Come 1999 we're still on
HUCD005 - but now with a different Barcode - 5020522397629. Then to celebrate
his 75th birthday and 50 years in the music game - Harper reissued
"Lifemask" in September 2016 on 180-Gram VINYL with a detailed repro
of the gorgeous and elaborate original LP on Harvest Records. Science Friction
SFLP 002 was remastered by ROY HARPER and JOHN FITZGERALD in Lettercollum
Studios, Timoleague, West Cork in Ireland and it is this 2016 Remaster that is used for the
February 2018 CD variant - unfortunately minus that great LP packaging (note also how the catalogue number of old HUCD005 has now become HUCD050).
For the 2018 reissue the
booklet has been upgraded to 20-pages and features lyrics to the six songs
including the five-part 23-minute song occupying all of Side 2 - "The
Lord’s Prayer", his song explanations, the 'Introduction 1972' note penned
by RH from the original gatefold, that colour painting on the inner gatefold
now sits beneath the see-through CD tray and finally we also get a new
'Introduction 2017' essay by Harper that mainly goes on about "The Lord's
Prayer" in that uniquely oblique way of his (talks a lot - tells you
nothing). Unfortunately unlike "Stormcock" (1971) and "HQ"
(1975) which received gorgeous hardback book edition reissues recently (see my
reviews for both) - for some reason we don't get that here - just another
boring jewel case that completely undermines the sheer visual impact of the
original Hipgnosis artwork - that opening die-cut face sleeve with the inner
and song explanations. Still the 2016 Remastered AUDIO is fabulous - bringing
out the original Peter Jenner Production values. Let's get down to the
details...
UK released February 2018 -
"Lifemask" by ROY HARPER on Science Friction HUDCD050 (Barcode
5065000022075) is a straightforward CD Reissue of the 6-Track 1973 UK LP with a
2016 Remaster that plays out as follows (44:00 minutes):
1. Highway Blues [Side 1]
2. All Ireland
3. Little Lady
4. Bank Of The Dead
5. South Africa
6. The Lord's Prayer [Side
2]
(a) Poem
(b) Modal Song Parts I to IV
(c) Front Song
(d) Middle Song
(e) End Song (Front Song
Reprise)
Tracks 1 to 6 are his 6th
studio album "Lifemask" - released February 1973 in the UK on Harvest
Records SHVL 808 (no US release). Produced by PETER JENNER with all songs
written by Roy Harper - it didn't chart. Much of the music was used in the 1972
John Mackenzie movie soundtrack to "Made" - a film that starred Roy
Harper in the part of Mike Preston (his acting debut). The soundtrack was not
released as a stand-alone LP – so "Lifemask" is the way to acquire
its music.
PLAYERS:
ROY HARPER - All Lead Vocals,
Guitars, Synth, Bass, Harmonica and Bells (all instruments on "All
Ireland" and "South Africa")
JIMMY PAGE (of Led Zeppelin)
- Lead Guitar on "Little Lady", "Bank Of The Dead" and
"The Lord's Prayer"
STEVE BROUGHTON (of The
Edgar Broughton Band) - Bongos on "The Lord's Prayer"
BRIAN DAVISON (of The Nice
and Brian Davison's Every Which Way) - Drums on "The Lord's Prayer"
RON WARLEY (of Soft Machine
and The Keef Hartley Band) - Flute on "The Lord's Prayer"
BRIAN HODGES - Bass on
"Little Lady", "Bank Of The Dead" and "The Lord's
Prayer"
TONY CARR - Drums on
"Little Lady", Bongos on "The Lord's Prayer"
LAURIE ALLEN - Drums on
"Highway Blues"
Harper plays Guitars, Synth
and Bass on the opener "Highway Blues" with Laurie Allen providing
the Drums. The song sets the album's restless mood - huge-sounding acoustic
guitars assaulting you like their plugged into Orange stacks - a travelling song about driving through
foreign countries with a friend in a car that reminded him of olden touring
days. The violence of nationalism and rabid political positions rears its ugly
head in the pretty but dreadfully sad "All Ireland" – Harper playing
Guitar, Harmonica and Bells as he tries to square the human-cost of religion's
downside. Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin plays Lead Guitar throughout "Little
Lady", "Bank Of The Dead"and "The Lord's Prayer".
"Little Lady" is about women although his own notes try to imply its
more about sex - but deep in its 'that old forgiveness that I can't forget'
lyrics you can hear the hurt - trying to understand the minefield that is
relationships. "Bank Of The Dead" has Harper praising Page's
contributions and understanding of his unique leanings in tones and textures.
Speaking of such - using
highly tuned 6-and-12 string guitars with his voice often echoed - Harper more
often than not creates an 'atmosphere' as opposed to an actual song. When EMI
reissued the June 1970 Harvest Label double-album sampler "Picnic - A
Breath Of Fresh Air" as an expanded 4CD remaster in 2007 - they chose the
fabulous "South Africa" song as their demonstrative poison for
"Lifemask" (they also featured "Twelve Hours Of Sunshine"
from 1974’s "Valentine"). And it's easy to hear why. It's utterly
brilliant and uniquely RH. The LP simply credited the instruments on
"South Africa" as Guitars and Vocals - yet listening to it - you'd
swear there was an army of players at work – overdubbed pings and pongs echoing
in a gorgeous swirling mood-scape – the sideways yet deeply personal lyrics
hurting for a torn nation in a far away country.
You will need 'an open mind
before me' when listening to the 23-minute opus that is "The Lord's
Prayer" - a part astonishing, part tedious meandering swirl of sounds and
melodies you can never quite nail but somehow enthral nonetheless. Harper was
seriously ill at the time (even hospitalised) and some felt the album's
centrepiece might well end up being a 'last will and testament' moment. The
five-part monster opens with a four-minute poem spoken by Harper that
occasionally has a synth drone ominously entering its 'living the story'
narrative. Then the music proper begins with the long 'Whose...' section where
every line starts with 'whose' - strings of text that are both statements and
questions - whose excuse is holy, whose fear is himself, whose hope is lust,
whose thoughts are games...' and so on. Jimmy Page makes his Lead Guitar a
subtle presence as the piece progresses – those beautiful strummed passages
around sixteen minutes impressing so much as Harper makes the synths sound like
string arrangements. The best bits of "The Lord's Prayer" feel like
those wild acoustic stretches on 1971's "Stormcock".
Harper fans tend to think
everyone else should and must adore their hero – but I know people who simply
can’t get on with his voice or the long songs or sometimes his lack of an
actual tune. But I’d argue that’s what makes him such a national treasure. In
fact like so much of his Seventies output – I want it all and return to it like
I would a John Martyn or Sandy Denny or Bruce Springsteen album – with genuine
affection – always somehow finding myself admire and love them even more.
It’s a shame Science
Friction didn’t go the full hog with the ‘book’ packaging of
"Lifemask" like they did on "Stormcock" and "HQ"
(docked a star for that). But otherwise – dig your gooey kisser lugs-first into
this revealing remaster and prepare to swoon and swear by poetry you don’t
understand...
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