tag:gsharper.com,2005:/blogs/latest-newsLatest News2018-06-07T13:10:45-04:00GS Harperfalsetag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/52779692018-06-05T21:08:16-04:002018-06-07T13:10:45-04:00NEW SONG "PRAYING FOR RAIN" TO BENEFIT RELIEF FOR THE UTE PARK WILDFIRE IN NEW MEXICO<p>If Family Feud put the top ten answers on the board of "things people say when tragedy strikes", the number one answer would undoubtedly be- "I wish there were something I could do." </p>
<p>Well if you're one of those people, this is your lucky day! Because this time you can help. </p>
<p>I've often said during live shows when I introduce the song "August Day", that northern New Mexico is the source of everything good that has ever happened to me in my life, and it's the truth. That stretch of the Sangre De Christo mountains between Cimarron and Eagle Nest on highway 64 is very near and dear to my heart, especially the piece of range that is home to Philmont Scout Ranch. I worked four seasons in the backcountry on that ranch. They are my very best memories, and I even met my wife while working there. My father's ashes are scattered in Cimarron Canyon. It's HOmE. </p>
<p>Right now that range is on fire. Nearly thirty thousand acres of it at last count. Not only is the land so very important to me, but I have people there as well. My mother lives in Cimarron, and I have many dear friends in the affected area. They're all safe, they've been evacuated. But their property, and livelihoods may not be as they were for a very long time. </p>
<p>You can all relate the horrific effects of a house or barn fire. Now imagine thirty thousand acres burning. </p>
<p>My new song "<a contents="Praying For Rain" data-link-label="" data-link-type="track" href="/track/1489164/praying-for-rain" target="_self">Praying For Rain</a>" was written this week, specifically to give folks far away an avenue to help their fellow humans. </p>
<p>It's a two dollar download, and 100% of the proceeds brought in during the 2018 summer season will go directly to relief efforts in the wake of this fire. </p>
<p>Please help out if you can, and please spread the word. The mountains and their people need you. </p>
<p>Thanks so much, <br>GS Harper</p>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/39746832016-01-05T12:37:44-05:002016-01-05T12:43:25-05:00New EP "New Mexico Dirt" will release January 9thGreetings!<br><br>As you know from the previous post here, the new EP "New Mexico Dirt" has been underway for quite some time. I'm happy to report, it's all wrapped up! My initial idea was to record where I was writing, in the cabin at the foot of the Sangres. Unfortunately that didn't quite go as planned. I am happy to report however, that the ultimate goal was accomplished, and the result is nothing less than what I'd hoped for. <br><br>All the songs were written from October 23rd to November 3rd, in Cimarron, NM. I had a whole notebook full of ideas going back about a year. Just snippets. A line here, half a chorus there, but nothing definitive. The plan was to use all of that to write enough new songs for an EP. As it turned out, I didn't use any of it. The Sangres and Cimarron are a very inspiring place for me. I opened that notebook the first night I was there, and promptly started writing about different stuff altogether. The good news is, that means I still have a lot of untapped material to work with!<br><br>On December 22nd, I spent the day with Todd Divel at his Silo Sound Studio here in Denver. The place is amazing, and on top of being a first rate engineer, Todd is a ton of fun to work with. It would have been easy to really slick this thing up and make it super polished, but that was not what I envisioned, and not what I promised you folks. The resulting recordings are exactly as I said they'd be. Nothing but one vocal and one guitar. Nice and simple, and pretty damned raw. There were definitely things we could have gone back and "fixed" or done differently. But, we both felt that with the goal of the project being honesty and reality rather than spit and polish; they were better left alone. What you get is just me, playing you some new songs. Mostly single takes.<br><br>This Saturday, January 9th at 10:00 AM, "New Mexico Dirt" will be released into the wild. It will be available exclusively as a download here on the website. Nowhere else. You'll be able to download all six new tunes for $5, or get them individually for $1 each. There will also be artwork, photos, lyrics, etc., everything you've come to expect when you get new music.<br><br>Stay tuned for upcoming new year specials and limited time offers on other music and merchandise. And as always:<br><br>Keep both feet on the wheel, never pet a dog that's on fire, love your neighbor or I'll do it for you.<br><br><br>See you down the road,<br>G.S.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/39049282015-10-26T22:25:59-04:002015-10-26T22:25:59-04:00New EP New Mexico Dirt now underway...Greetings and salutations, people of Earth! Sorry for the radio silence. It's been a whacky bunch of months. I did a whole tour of Route 66 with my good friends <a contents="Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.jwhandsomedevils.com/" target="_blank">Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils</a>; and then I did a tour of Italy with Americana goddess extraordinaire, <a contents="Mary Cutrufello" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.marycutrufello.com/" target="_blank">Mary Cutrufello</a>. I had planned to be out on the road this fall both on my own and with the Handsome Devils again, but you know how it goes - the best laid plans of mice and men, and all that jazz. In other words, shit happens. <br><br>Big news on the music front, though. Y'all have no idea how much it means to me to get emails, messages, texts, and social media posts pertaining to how much you like the music, and asking when you can have some more. As a songwriter, there's no higher honor than knowing there are people out there who not only paid money for something you've created, but actually want to do it again. It's really humbling; and for me, it's a fairly major responsibility. So when will you fine folks get some new music?<br><br>Funny you should ask! I'm currently in New Mexico, at my top secret writing facility in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. I'm working on getting 7 to 8 all new tunes done this week, for what I hope will soon be a brand new EP entitled <em>New Mexico Dirt</em>. The material is stemming from notepads and scrap paper dating back about a year. Ideas that came to me at various points during the last year's travels, that I have either been unable or unwilling to commit to finishing up until now.<br><br>Details? For the songs, you get none. Patience, grasshoppers. You have to wait for release day. As for format, it's going to be a VERY bare bones record. I've made a conscious decision with this one to strip away the fat, and let these songs stand on their own. This will be the most honest, totally naked recording I've ever released. The whole idea is to use nothing to color it at all. I really wanted this one to be the closest thing to me sitting with you in your kitchen at three in the morning, with just an acoustic guitar and no amplification, playing you some songs.<br><br>I also wanted to get back to basics. When I was a kid, I would sit in my room with an acoustic guitar, pop a Memorex cassette into my boombox, press record, and play songs. Just to see what I sounded like. There was no studio, no fancy mics, no EQ, compression, reverb or other effects. Just one voice and one guitar. With <em>New Mexico Dirt</em>, I want to get back to that. Thankfully, simple recording has evolved, so you'll get much better sound quality than a Sears boombox and a worn out Memorex cassette. <br><br>If all goes as planned, I'd like to release around Christmas time. This will be a strictly digital release. For the first few weeks, it will be available only here, at <a contents="gsharper.com" data-link-label="Store" data-link-type="page" href="/store">gsharper.com</a>. Later it will be available at all the usual outlets...iTunes, Amazon, etc., and streaming at Spotify and Amazon Radio.<br><br>I know what you're thinking..."But what about pictures, and artwork, and lyrics?" Ok, you probably weren't thinking that. You were probably thinking it's about damned time I finally caught up to the 21st century. But all that stuff will be there. I promise. I'm gonna get it all done, and make sure you can download that along with the music, or view it here, if that's what suits your fancy. <br><br>That's all I've got for now. Here's hoping everything is great in your world. Things are looking pretty good from where I'm sitting in New Mexico. <br><br>Peace, and fried chicken,<br><br>G.S.<br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/36472242015-04-08T13:16:30-04:002015-04-08T13:16:30-04:00Winter tour is wrapped up, Spring/Summer about to launch!What can I say about the winter tour? There were some absolutely fantastic shows, a whole lot of wonderful people, a good deal of laughter, and some very fine times. There were also a ton of sub-zero days, more than a month without seeing the sun, some food poisoning, a van stuck in the ice, a van broken down, and the witnessing of some truly gruesome highway goings on. In short, I'm really glad I did it, and I'm really glad it's over. Onward toward what can only be a glorious spring and summer schedule!<br><br>It kicks off tomorrow, with a show you can catch no matter where you are in the world! At noon Mountain Daylight Time, I'll be on <a contents="KRFC FM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.krfcfm.org/" target="_blank">KRFC FM</a> radio out of Fort Collins, CO. The show is called Live At Lunch, and runs from noon to one. You can stream it live at <a contents="www.krfcfm.org" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.krfcfm.org" target="_blank">www.krfcfm.org</a>. I'll be doing a little talking, and a lot of playing. Set list includes stuff from<em> Sixteen Winters</em>, and all the other records all the way back to<em> Waiting For April</em>. There will even be some un-released stuff from back in the Sinners days. Should be a lot of fun, I hope you'll listen in!<br><br>Spring/Summer tour for 2015 kicks off in Texas! I'll arrive in DFW with my dear friend and bestest beer-swilling buddy <a contents="Mary Cutrufello" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.marycutrufello.com/" target="_blank">Mary Cutrufello</a> on April 20, at which point we will commence to spend a week kicking the snot out of the I-35 corridor. See the dates <a contents="here" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">here</a> on the site, and if you're around, we'd love to see you!<br><br>After that, it's up to MI to join <a contents="Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="http://www.jwhandsomedevils.com/" target="_blank">Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils</a> for the release of their new record <em>Greetings From This Town</em> on 5/2. Honky Tonk Throwdown VI happens in Detroit on the weekend of May 15 and 16, then I'll be joining Jenn and her Devils for a tour of Route 66, from Chicago to LA. It's gonna be one for the ages. Route 66 covers a LOT of ground, this is gonna be a great show, and chances are that somewhere along the run, we'll be within driving distance of you! Road trip!! It'll be worth it. I promise.<br><br>Stay tuned for stories from the interstate, and dates for the rest of the year. There will be details forthcoming on the third annual Wigwam Fest, as well as dates for the southeastern US, and dare I say, Italy? What?!? Oh yeah!GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/35022622015-02-03T13:17:16-05:002015-02-03T13:17:16-05:00On the road again...It's been great to have some time off, but it's that time again! 2015 tour kicks off this weekend in Wichita, KS at The Elbow Room! The last show for 2014 was December 13th, and I am more than ready to get back to it. There have been a ton of dates confirmed, and more coming in all the time. Lots of great stuff happening this year. Not only will I be doing a lot of touring on my own again, but you'll have the chance to see me out on the road with my dear friend Mary Cutrufello, as well as with my Detroit partners Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils!<br><br>Mary and I will be hitting Texas for sure, and maybe some stuff a WHOLE lot further away. Stay tuned for more info there, I'll post it as soon as it's available. Jennifer and those Handsome Devils will have me on board for a whole run of historic Route 66, as well as lots of other fun stuff. Honky Tonk Throwdown VI in Detroit is on the books, as is Wigwam III in Cave City, KY. We've barely cracked into booking this year and it's already looking like a screamin' good time.<br><br>For February- If you're in Kansas, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, or Ohio; I hope to see you out at the show! All details on dates and venues can be found here.<br><br>I always say tell your friends and family, but really, you could even tell the people you can't stand. That way you can stay home, warm with the knowledge that they are nowhere near you!<br><br>See you down the road!<br>G.S.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/33884852014-12-11T16:45:40-05:002014-12-11T16:51:40-05:00As the year wraps up...I'm forced to reflect on all that's happened. It's been... A lot.<br><br>I made a record. <br><br>I quit all my local projects and cut all my safety lines. That was scary...<br><br>I went on tour.<br><br>I played 45 shows in 90 days, across ten states and in 25 cities.<br><br>I think it's about 15,000 miles...<br><br>Which would be roughly 600 gallons of gas...<br><br>All that was after doing my own pre-tour dates in Kentucky, southern Ohio, and Michigan.<br><br>I've drunk enough beer to own stock in the brewery.<br><br>I've made a lot of new friends.<br><br>I've spent time with a lot of old ones.<br><br>I've spent countless nights in guest rooms, living rooms, and basements of friends, family, and strangers who became friends.<br><br>I've spent countless nights at the Red Roof Inn.<br><br>I've done laundry eight times.<br><br>I've worn one pair of boots.<br><br>I've learned that three days is the absolute maximum on one pair of socks. Don't ask...<br><br>I've been 'coon hunting.<br><br>I blew up a pumpkin by stuffing it with explosives and shooting it. You should've seen it, it was awesome.<br><br>I moved to Denver, CO.<br><br>I've learned how to work the word "meow" into ANY conversation.<br><br>Through the kindness of a good friend, I saw an amazing Lucinda Williams concert.<br><br>I did my first ever live webcast concert.<br><br>I've missed my wife and kids immensely.<br><br>I owe a huge debt of thanks to my wife and kids for allowing me to pursue this totally crazy run at a lifelong dream. It's not been easy on any of us. <br><br>I also owe huge thanks to Jeremy Mackinder, Mary Curtrufello, Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils, every one of the rooms that took a chance on an unknown artist, and every single person who came to a show this year. To every person who bought my record: I can't thank you enough. If you let me sleep in your house and eat your food, I have no words.<br><br>This is independent touring and recording. I don't have a label. Airplay is very nearly non-existent. All of you people are the only thing keeping the wheels spinning and food in my belly. If I get to make another record, it'll be because of you. I truly love and appreciate every last one of you.<br><br>I also have to thank the people who help keep me on the road with physical support- Dirty Town Guitar and Amps in Lakewood, OH. Gecko Custom Straps in Wisconsin. GHS Strings in Battle Creek, MI. Stuff don't get much better, take my word for it.<br><br>I have three more shows to do this year. Tonite, I go back to the Burntwood Tavern in Brecksville, OH. Tomorrow night, Friday 12th, I return to The Village Idiot in Maumee, OH. Saturday the 13th, I wrap the 2014 tour for good at the Kirtland City Tavern, in Kirtland, OH. Then it's back to Denver and my family for a nice long break. <br><br>The 2015 tour launches in February. Don't forget about me, I'll be headed back your way before you know it. Here's hoping you and yours have a great holiday season, and a new year that brings you everything you dream of. Now say it with me:<br><br>Until next time, keep both feet on the wheel, never pet a dog that's on fire, love your neighbor, or I'll do it for you. Good night!<br><br>See you down the road, America.<br><br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/33488142014-12-02T18:54:24-05:002014-12-02T20:49:21-05:00Snow, great shows, and some news about a "first time ever"; and I thought I'd done it all...I really thought I'd done it all. I've played a stadium, I've played a laundromat. I've played a coliseum; I've played a Sonic Drive In. I've played burger joints, juke joints, a hot dog joint, clubs, pubs, bars, living rooms, and swimming pools. I've played summer camps, band camps, hippie camps, never a prison camp... Hmmm... I might have to look into that. As a guest only... Okay, I'm getting distracted again. Happens often to a bear of very little brain. Anyhow...<br><br>Wednesday, December 3<span class="font_small">rd</span>, at 8 p.m. EST, live from the <a contents="Honky Tonk House" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.honkytonkhouseconcerts.com/Home.html" target="_blank">Honky Tonk House</a> in Streetsboro, OH, I do my first ever concert that will be everywhere in the world at once. That's right, I've mastered the art of not only being two places at once, but EVERYWHERE. Hey, if Big Brother could do it in 1984, why not me in 2014?<br><br>Wednesday evening (or morning, or afternoon,depending on where you are), I'll be broadcast for the first time, world wide. Via the magic of the innerwebs, you can have a show in your home, office, car (put it in "park", please) or wherever you happen to be.<br><br>Log onto <a contents="concertwindow.com right here" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.concertwindow.com/shows/10974-gs-harper-live-from-the-honky-tonk-house" target="_blank">concertwindow.com right here</a>. You can be part of the magic that is modern technology. Huge thanks to my dear friend and Honky Tonk House owner/operator Jay Johnson for making this possible. I hadn't thought of it; but he did, and did all the legwork to figure out how to make it happen. Buy that guy a beer!<br><br>I know it's the silly season, and money is tight, so there is no set ticket price. There is a $1 USD minimum, but really, it's all up to you. You pay whatever you want. Whatever it's worth to you to see the show. Just remember - not only do you not have to drive anywhere and pay five bucks a beer, you don't even have to put on pants! That's gotta be worth something...<br><br>And, with the crazy wild internet magic of Concert Window, you can also be part of the show. You can log on to watch; and if you feel like it, talk with other viewers, and even send me requests, questions, or comments in real time. How often do you get to go to a concert, ask the artists questions, and have them see your comments first hand? Much less get to be part of deciding what songs get played?<br><br>I've never done anything like this before. But I love the idea, and I think it will be a lot of fun. Log in, and let's find out!!<br><br>I was gonna say this next part if just for Cleveland folks. But hey, if you wanna drive, fly, or swim here, who am I to argue?<br><br>This Thursday night, December 4<span class="font_small">th</span>, I'll be returning to <a contents="The Beachland Ballroom" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://beachlandballroom.com/" target="_blank">The Beachland Ballroom</a>. It's been quite a while since I've done a big Cleveland show. I've had a couple of small room jam-bush appearances, but nothing like this. Thursday night I'll be hitting the stage at the Beachland in support of Waylon Speed. Come on out and enjoy some tunes in one of the best live music rooms in America. You can get info, tickets, etc at <a contents="www.beachlandballroom.com" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://beachlandballroom.com" target="_blank">www.beachlandballroom.com</a>.<br><br>I'd love to see you all. I've been driving around in blizzards, trying not to follow the guy that smacked dead on into the wall (that was scary), playing some great shows from Kansas to NY, and generally having a great time. I'd love to share some of it with you.<br><br>Keep the shiny side up,<br>GSGS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/32949702014-11-17T22:07:49-05:002014-11-17T22:22:02-05:00So... It's snowing like crazy...I didn't want to (because I was in denial) but I packed a winter coat for this tour run. Never mind that it was sunny and 68 degrees when I left Denver. I knew I'd need it. Alas, I was right. Sitting in Cincinnati this morning, looking out the window, all I could think is that the drive to Chillicothe sure was gonna suck! That's alright though, because being here is great. Which brings me to today's bit of subject matter.<br><br>People ask me all the time, "How do you drive so much? It would make me crazy spending that much time in the car."<br><br>You see, it's like this: I like all the places I get to go and driving is how I get there. It's true: I like to drive. Love it in fact. I can't remember a time when I didn't enjoy a good road trip. I've even been known to undertake huge trips back to back. The touring thing is kind of like that. It's a road trip that sort of never ends. Instead of going someplace, and then going home, you just keep going to another place. And then another, and another. But the driving is just a small part of it. The meat and potatoes are the places you go, and the people you meet. Ok, now I'm channeling Dr. Seuss...What I mean is...<br><br>The drive doesn't matter, and it really isn't hard when you're focused on the destination. For instance, I had to stare down several hours of driving today, in horrible conditions. It wasn't fun. But I wasn't worried about that. Because it's the other end that matters. When I got here, there was a warm house with my friends in it. There's a show to play, and good food to eat. There will be much eating, drinking, and being merry, with people I really enjoy being around. We live far apart. If not for my job, I might never see them, seeing them makes all the driving more than worth it.<br><br>Sometimes (ok, a lot of times), I go to places I've never been before. On those days, the inspiration comes from the mystery of it all. Who will I meet? Anybody's guess. Sometimes they're just people. Sometimes they're friends I didn't realize I had, because I hadn't met them yet. Those folks make any drive worth it. And when you come back again, so much more so.<br><br>Sometimes destinations are between stops. The more you travel, the more you find little gems. A favorite truck stop. A favorite restaurant with amazing pie. A favorite hotel in a little town someplace that you've stayed in twice, where the desk clerk remembers your name. He thinks what you do is cool, so he watches your website. He knew you were in the area, and held a room for you, just in case. All these things help to shift focus away from "all that driving". I never get in the van and think "I'm going to drive 387 miles today". I think "I'm going to St. Louis! I hope Christina and Don are working tonight, it'll be great to see them." <br><br>So now you know. Contrary to the well-worn cliche, it's not the journey. It's the destinations, and the people (or pies) that wait for you there. The driving is nothing; it's just a way to get to them. <br><br>Safe travels, America! See you down the road!<br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/32731122014-11-08T18:31:19-05:002014-11-08T18:31:19-05:00I don't think we're in Kansas anymore...It's been a whole week since I hit the road from Denver for the first time. I'd love to tell you what a great town it is, and really, I feel like that's what I'll be saying after I get to spend some time there. Initial impressions are all very good. I just wasn't really there long enough to form a full opinion. I'll be home for Christmas though, and I'll be taking a nice long break to spend time with my family, and get to know the new surroundings.<br><br>For right now though, where in the world will I be? Well I'm out of Kansas. Spent nearly a week there. Ran into old friends, made some new ones, and did a couple of really fun shows at The Elbow Room and Lizard's Lounge. If you ever get to Wichita, I highly recommend you drop in on Kenny and Dariah at the former, and Cooper and Kaitlin at the latter. You'll rarely meet more friendly and supportive bar owners.<br><br>Last night found me in Kansas City, Missouri. Hadn't been there since I don't remember when, and if I've ever played a gig there, I don't remember it. There's a brand new room down the Westport district called the <a contents="Westport Saloon" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://westportsaloon.com/" target="_blank">Westport Saloon</a>. It's Travis Summers' place, and I'd strongly suggest you check that out, too. They have live music all night long. They start with a rock and roll dinner show at 6 pm, and that's usually followed by 4-5 bands throughout the night. It's all Americana and roots music, and the room and staff are wonderful. They're doing everything right, and I hope to be going back there for many years. The food is killer, too. I'd have never thought of breading and deep frying a black bean burger. They did, and it was outrageous. Major party in my mouth. If you get there, find Travis, say hello, and tell him I sent you!<br><br>Moving on down the road, tonight I'm at <a contents="The Moonshine Grille" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Moonshine-Grill-Central-West-End/321608731344399" target="_blank">The Moonshine Grille</a> in St. Louis, MO. Tomorrow at <a contents="The Verve" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.thevervenightclub.com/" target="_blank">The Verve</a> in Terre Haute, IN. After that, I'm gonna hide out for a few days in a cabin in the woods, and then head to Dayton area and Southern OH for some <a contents="gigs" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">gigs</a>. I'll be sneaking through Cleveland under the radar in a couple of weeks, to pick up a guitar I left with my tour support sponsor <a contents="Dirty Town Guitar and Amps" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://dirtytownamps.com/" target="_blank">Dirty Town Guitar & Amps</a>, and maybe sneak out for a beer or ten and see what's hoppin' around town. If you see me, say hello! And don't forget, I'll be back in town for a Cleveland show on December 4th, with Waylon Speed at the <a contents="Beachland Ballroom" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://beachlandballroom.com/" target="_blank">Beachland Ballroom</a>.<br><br>No update would be complete without a sales pitch, so here ya go. The holidays are coming up fast, and online shopping is easy. If you know anybody who might enjoy a CD, T-Shirt, Koozie, etc. Place your order right <a contents="here" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">here</a> on the website. Still plenty of time to get stuff shipped to you before the fat guy falls down the chimney!<br><br>One final thought for you tonight, as I go over all the crazy road signs I see in my travels. This one is from eastern Kansas. I saw an exit for Lake Tapawingo. Keep saying it, it's really fun. Tapawingo. You can't stop, can you? Me neither! I like to say it Tapa-WEEEEN-go. Later!<br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/32620842014-11-02T09:25:49-05:002014-11-02T09:25:49-05:00Sorry for the radio silence, a lot's been happening!Where do I begin? When we left off, I lived in Cleveland, OH, and was touring to support Sixteen Winters. Well, I'm still touring to support the record, but now I live in Denver, CO. What can I say? Things change.<br><br>To the city of Cleveland, I'd like to say a HUGE, and very sincere THANK YOU!! You made a Texas transplant feel like family, and you gave me a place to have a family, and realize many of my biggest dreams. You're a great town, and I will never stop preaching the gospel of the coolness of the CLE. Although Cleveland will never be where I was born and raised, in many ways it has become more of a home than I ever had there. I love the city; I love it's people; and I'm gonna miss it a lot. Opportunity knocked though, in the form of a great new adventure for me and my family, and we had to follow the muse, so to speak.<br><br>I can't tell you much about Denver, yet. I spent less than a week there before I had to hit the road again. It seems really amazing though. And I have to say, there ain't a whole lot that makes me happier than being able to see my beloved Rocky Mountains out the window when I wake up.<br><br>Back to business. The tour continues. I'm at a Super 8 motel in Kansas as we speak, embarking on the next leg of this never ending journey to languish in slightly less obscurity. Please check out the "<a contents="shows" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">shows</a>" page here on the site, for November and December tour dates. There are several in place, and many more should be added in the next couple weeks. I'll be in KS, MO, IN, OH, MI, and NY for sure, and I'd love to see your smiling face and play you some music. To my Cleveland folks, I'll be there for sure on December 4th, at one of the best venues in the US of A, the <a contents="Beachland Ballroom" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://beachlandballroom.com/" target="_blank">Beachland Ballroom</a>. Come on out and say howdy, I miss you guys already.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/32147172014-10-02T21:38:38-04:002014-10-02T21:38:38-04:00iTunes, El Chubacabra, The Ramones, and a very friendly Seneca...What do they have in common? Me, I guess.<br><br>First of all, today's major announcement is that Sixteen Winters is now available on iTunes worldwide. I've been asked by some folks outside the good ol' USA when they'll be able to order it, and I'm happy to say that day has arrived! For the rest of y'all, you can still order right here on the website, and I'll get the sale minus the pesky service fees. Down with the man! But I digress...<br> <br>Back on the road again yesterday. I figured I'd get a jump on the seven hour drive to Oneonta, NY for tonight's show. I'm not a fan of driving all day just to pull up, jump out of the van, and start singing. I like things a little more laid back and relaxed. I like to take my time, breathe a little. So I started out yesterday evening at about 7pm, meaning it was full dark by the time I crossed into New York. When I say dark, I mean DARK. There's nothing on the road in upstate NY at night. It's not much more populated than rural areas out west, and it was cloudy. Except for my headlights, it was pitch black. That's when I saw El Chubacabra. Or something... It was eating a dead animal on the side of the road. When I came around the bend, it dropped it and ran from the right shoulder, across the road and into the median where I lost it in the darkness. I only saw it for a split second, Not sure I've ever seen anything move that fast. It was there, and then it was gone. Just a mammoth black shadow with reflective eyes.<br><br>Every hair on my body stood straight up. I pondered pulling over and grabbing my flashlight, then I thought that might be a really stupid idea, so I didn't.<br><br>Shortly after that, I86 was closed, and the detour signs took me through the sleepy little town of Salamanca, NY. I needed gas, so when I saw a station, I pulled in. Their sign advertised "full service at no extra charge". Sure enough, the moment I opened the van door I was very pleasantly greeted by a Seneca kid in a pair of coveralls who let me know in no uncertain terms that his huge smile was not a load of crap, he truly enjoyed helping people. He just sits out there all night with his lawn chair and his little boom box, and pumps gas for anybody who drives up. As he was pumping gas and scrubbing my windshield to within an inch of its life, he noticed my Ramones t-shirt and his eyes lit up like the fourth of July. What should have been a five minute stop turned into fifteen, as he was just too damned nice for me NOT to take time out for a discussion on the finer points of Rocket To Russia.<br><br>His Ramones knowledge being so formidable, I figured he might have plenty to say on other subjects too, so I asked him if he had any knowledge of a local Chubacabra. I'll say this for him, he didn't bat an eyelash. He just asked what it looked like. When I recounted my tale of terror and surprise at the sight of the roadside corpse muncher, he looked thoughtful for a minute, then said "It was probably a bear". I said no, I've seen a lot of bears. At about one third the size of my van this was way too big to be a bear, and it moved WAY too fast. He said "man, that's weird. Good thing you didn't stop." But I'll note again, he did not look surprised, and did not act at all like I might be nuts. That's one of the things I love about this country's native populations. They are not so quick to disbelieve when somebody says they saw something really freaky.<br><br>After that, I figured this kid would know more about the area than I did, so I asked him about nearby hotels. A more honest salesman I've never met. He said I could go back down the road to the casino, and he'd get some of the money, but it was way too expensive, and he didn't like ripping people off. He then suggested I go knock on his friend's door. Seems his friend owns a local steakhouse, and rents out rooms upstairs from the dining room. I thanked him for the offer, but decided to move on a little further down the road. As I was getting back in the van, he called out "be careful bro, you never what's out here at night". I thought he might finally be having a little fun at my expense, but I noticed as I pulled away from the stoplight that he'd moved his chair inside... GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/32016962014-09-24T14:52:53-04:002014-09-24T14:52:53-04:00I left on September fourth...To embark on a great adventure. A journey of discovery. A bold endeavor to... Oh who am I kidding, I thought it would be fun. And it is. It's also a lot of hard work, and a long way from my home and family. I am still connected though. Modern technology allows for an umbilical cord of sorts. A cyber ray of sunshine that keeps me in touch with friends and family. I Skype with my kids; I talk on the phone with all kinds of people, and email or text almost all day long when I'm not driving. <br><br>Some folks just want to say hello and check in. Some want to make sure I'm alright. Eating right, sleeping well, etc. Others are just plain curious. They want to know "what's it like out there?". For people who have never toured extensively, it's hard to imagine what it's like. So here's a little insight:<br><br>I left Cleveland on September 4th. Since then, I've played fourteen shows. Slept in other people's houses for nine nights, slept in six different hotels, done laundry three times. I've been through five sets of guitar strings and eaten about twenty of my meals all by myself. I've driven over four thousand miles, I've lost track of how many times I've stopped for gas, and I have dirt and dead bugs from nine different states all over my van. A bear waved at me in Missouri. Ok, I guess he could have been waving at the car behind me; it's hard to tell at 80 miles per hour. I've brushed my teeth in a lot of parking lots, and I'm somehow not ashamed to tell you that at one point I wore the same socks for three days.<br><br>Sound like fun? No? Maybe? I'm loving it. I'm really homesick, but I'm also meeting tons of great people, seeing some amazing things, and having a ball making music for anybody who will listen. Tonight, I'll be playing <a contents="The Verve" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.thevervenightclub.com/" target="_blank">The Verve</a> in Terre Haute, IN. Tomorrow, I'll head home to Cleveland for just a few hours before heading down to southern Ohio. I'm actually playing a show in Cleveland on Sunday, the 28th. <a contents="Music Box Supper Club" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.musicboxcle.com/" target="_blank">Music Box Supper Club</a>. If you'd like to hear more about my great American adventure, drop on by!GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/31855512014-09-13T13:38:56-04:002017-02-04T04:10:50-05:00It rained, and it poured, and now we're headed for Green Bay!It's been a crazy week since the last time we talked. I was in Cincinnati, and you were wherever you live. From there I rolled down to Kentucky, where I met some really nice folks and had some amazing catfish. I mean this stuff was so good I kinda wanted to stay there and just keep on eating it forever. Alas, or fortunately, depending on your outlook, there were many more shows to play, so back in the van I went.<br><br>Back in Detroit for the historic Cardieux Cafe show, it rained and rained. Detroit has had a rough time this summer. Houses streets, businesses, all have flooded, vehicles have been destroyed, it's just been relentless. Even where I was staying, we got water in the basement once again. On the bright side, full power was restored to the house while I was there. It's the little things. You've never seen a bunch a silly musicians so happy to do laundry. Clean underpants ARE a plus...<br><br>On Thursday of last week, I joined up with some friends for a run. We loaded up the van under cold, grey, Michigan morning skies and lit out for Chicago. The Reggie's Music Joint show went well, and although I hadn't been to Chicago in nearly twenty years, it was pretty much as I remembered it. Met some nice folks, played some tunes, and generally had a great time. Touring with another band has proven to be a lot of fun, and it's nice to have company in the van. On that note, if you're going to tour with another band, I highly recommend you hooking up with Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils. What a great bunch of folks. I don't think we can scrape any further into the bottom of the barrel where humor is concerned, but at least we're laughing!<br><br>Last night was Lee's Liquor Lounge in Minneapolis, MN. I love this bar. It's the cleanest bar in the history of the world. If you dropped food on the floor, you'd eat it anyway. No really, you would. I'd have surgery on the floor of this bar. It's pretty remarkable. The crowd was small, but enthusiastic, and even though it was nowhere near a sellout, I'm gonna go ahead and call it a success. Pre-show dinner was courtesy of my old friend Mary Cutrufello, and nothing short of outstanding. We also stayed with her last night, and are about to have breakfast here, too. This woman's hospitality apparently knows no bounds, and we're all feeling very appreciative. Living on the road at this level of the business, is made much easier at times through the kindness of others, and they don't get much kinder than this lady. Double bonus, I was able to twist her arm a little and get her to join me on stage last night. Now THAT, was a treat.<br><br>So that's where we are. I'm gonna stuff my face with a half pound of turkey bacon that somebody bought just for me, then we'll load back up again and head for <a contents="Green Bay" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.reverbnation.com/venue/fretsandfriends" target="_blank">Green Bay</a>. It's hard to describe my excitement. It's kind of like going to Mecca for me. I'm getting my picture taken in front of Lambeau Field, and I might cry. I really might. Don't judge me...<br><br>From there we'll head back to the Chicago area for a show at the legendary <a contents="Fitzgerald'" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.fitzgeraldsnightclub.com/" target="_blank">Fitzgerald'</a>s, in Berwyn. For those of you with discerning enough taste to be experts on 80's cinematic masterpieces, this is the bar from Adventures In Babysitting. The room where Albert King made sure we all knew that "Nobody gets outta here without playing the blues!". I'm kind of giddy about that too.<br><br>Lots of other dates coming up, including a very special show added with my friend Nathan Bell. Check <a contents="here" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">here</a> for all venue and date details, and keep the shiny side up. I know I will.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/31733132014-09-05T14:14:30-04:002014-09-05T14:14:30-04:00Sixteen Winters tour now underway!Hey folks! Just a note from the road...<br><br>The Sixteen Winters tour kicked off last night at MOTR Pub in Cincinnati, OH. It was a great night, with a lot of very cool people, and I can't wait to go back. Things seem to be going pretty well, and everything is running like clockwork so far. Van is running great, I'm feeling fantastic, and neither of us stink yet!<br><br>Stop number two will be tonight in Newport, KY at the legendary <a contents="Southgate House" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.southgatehouse.com/" target="_blank">Southgate House</a>. After that it's on to Lexington, KY, a quick stop back through Ohio, then up to Michigan for a night. Friday the 11th, I'll join up with Detroit's own Jennifer Westwood and the Handsome Devils for a run to Chicago, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. I love sharing stages with these folks. Friends don't get much better than Jenny and her boys. As she says: "I love my guys. They never whine or complain, they use less hair product than me, and they never stop at Hot Topic. I could go on and on." I'm telling you, these are my kind of people.<br><br>Anyhow, as a prominent Texas songwriter once said, "the road goes on forever". When you think about it, it kind of does. Every road in this great country of ours is connected to some other road, that's connected to still more roads. I think it would be overly ambitious, even for me, to say I'm going to drive every one of them. But I'm going to find as many of them as I can, and drive them 'til I find out what they look like from both ends. Along the way I'm going to play a lot of music, make a lot of friends, and drink a lot of beer. Hopefully sell a lot of records...<br><br>Check out the show listings <a contents="here" data-link-label="Shows" data-link-type="page" href="/shows">here</a> on the site for details on cities and venues where I'll be coming to do my thing. Keep a close eye on those listings, as new dates are being added all the time, and you never know when I might be headed your way. If I do, I'd love to meet you.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/31346972014-08-13T14:09:05-04:002014-08-13T14:09:05-04:00Detroit, Michigan area CD release date announced!Hey folks! Hope this finds you well! Just wanted to hip you all to a little tour warm-up run through Michigan next week. Four days, five shows, including an official Detroit area CD release.<br><br>Over the years the Detroit area and Michigan in general have been very good to me. I love playing there; I have friends there; and I always have a GREAT time there. I can't think of a better place to hit the road for a few days and get warmed up for the tour.<br><br>Wednesday August 20th, I'll be a live guest on the <a contents="Rustbelt City LImits" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://rawradiox.com/rustbelt-city-limits/" target="_blank">Rustbelt City Limits</a> radio show with my friends Jennifer Westwood and JD Mackinder. You can tune in at 2pm EST at <a contents="RawRadioX.com" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://RawRadioX.com" target="_blank">RawRadioX.com</a>. Later that night, I'll be in Detroit at <a contents="Cafe D'Mongo's Speakeasy" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cafe-dMongos-Speakeasy/261696076791" target="_blank">Cafe D'Mongo's Speakeasy</a> where Ryan Dillaha and I will both open the show for<a contents=" Jennifer Westwood" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.jenniferwestwood.com/" target="_blank"> Jennifer Westwood</a> and the Handsome Devils EP release.<br><br>Thursday August 21st, I'll be supporting <a contents="Ryan Dillaha " data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://ryandillaha.com/" target="_blank">Ryan Dillaha </a>at the <a contents="Third Street Pub" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/3rd-Street-Detroit/141369032591541?sk=timeline" target="_blank">Third Street Pub</a> in Detroit at 7, then I'll be off to be a featured guest at the Rustbelt City Limits showcase at <a contents="The Stray Cat Lounge" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.thestraycatlounge.com/" target="_blank">The Stray Cat Lounge</a> in Clinton TWP, MI. This will be the official Detroit area CD release show for Sixteen Winters! <br><br>Friday August 22nd, I'll be pointing the van north and putting the brakes on in Mt. Pleasant, MI., for a special Paddle and Pick show at <a contents="Buckley's Mountainside Canoes" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.buckleyscanoe.com/" target="_blank">Buckley's Mountainside Canoes</a>. <br><br>Saturday, August 23rd, I'm gonna hold over in Mt. Pleasant, and play at <a contents="Rubble's" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/rubblesbar" target="_blank">Rubble's</a>, with my old friend Bob Busch. Something I don't get to do nearly often enough.<br><br>So there you go! If you're in Michigan, stop on out and say hello!<br><br>As per usual, Sixteen Winters CDs and related merchandise will be available at all shows, and right here on the <a contents="website" data-link-label="Store" data-link-type="page" href="/store">website</a>.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/31051612014-07-29T21:45:14-04:002017-01-15T19:23:19-05:00Sixteen Winters CD release show... Thank you all!!Hey folks! Just wanted to say a sincere thank you to everybody who came out to <a contents="Aces Grille" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.acesgrille.com" target="_blank">Aces Grille</a> on Saturday night. It was great to play all the new songs for a full house. The band and I had an absolutely fantastic time, and we could tell you were all having fun, too!<br><br><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/127419/2e1ee848076ddb59072d0f00759cd50a21bbd7e8/original/cd8.jpg?1406684387" class="size_l justify_center border_" /><br><br>Special thanks to Mike Horvath at Audio 1 for booking the show, and to Eric Vardnell for such great sound. Major thanks to <a contents="Alice Wallace" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.allicewallacemusic.com" target="_blank">Alice Wallace</a> for an amazing opening set, and for singing some songs with me and the boys. Also, thanks mucho to Ami Heap for handling the merch table, and finding the venue to begin with. Big thanks to the staff at Aces for keeping a big crowd from getting hungry or thirsty, and very big thanks to all of you for showing up and making it one of the best parties I've been to in years. <br><br><br>Last but not least, I'd like Chris "Elmer" Hanna, Jon Darling, Paul Lewis, "Steely" Dan Morris, and Curtis Leonard to know how much I appreciate them. There are a staggering number of absolutely amazing musicians in the Cleveland area, but these guys are some of the best of the best. Putting on a great show is a breeze with them on board, and I can't say enough about how lucky I am to work with them. Check out the pics in my <a contents="photo gallery" data-link-label="Gallery" data-link-type="page" href="/gallery">photo gallery</a>!<br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30934972014-07-23T12:17:16-04:002014-07-24T19:11:34-04:00G.S. Harper to take the stage this Saturday to debut fourth album, Sixteen WintersCalling <em>Sixteen Winters</em> "the kind of album that those partial to country or those who prefer rock will like, but those enamored of both are bound to love", <a contents="No Surf Music" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.nosurfmusic.com/home.html" target="_blank">No Surf Music</a> published its <a contents="review" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.nosurfmusic.com/thenosurfreview/reviews/gsharper-sixteenwinters/index.html">review</a> of G.S. Harper's fourth album just days before the Cleveland show that will launch a national tour for the Texas-born, Cleveland-based singer/songwriter. G.S. Harper will take the stage at <a contents="Aces Grille" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.acesgrille.com" target="_blank">Aces Grille</a> (Pearl Road, Middleburg Hts.) this Saturday night, July 26, to debut his fourth album, Sixteen Winters. The full band show ($5 cover) will feature the Cleveland area artists who performed on the record, with an opening set by California-based <a contents="Alice Wallace" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.alicewallacemusic.com" target="_blank">Alice Wallace</a>. <br><br>"Harper is a songwriter whose name deserves to be spoken in the same breath as Lucinda Williams and Mary Gauthier, Guy Clark and Jerry Jeff Walker, Steve Earle and Ray Wylie Hubbard..." writes Jason D. "Diesel" Hamad of No Surf Music. The review highlights the autobiographical nature of the songs drawing from Harper's Texas upbringing and 16 years living, working and raising a family in Cleveland and calls Sixteen Winters "a terrifically well written and well produced collection that features a bevy of Cleveland musical talent, including impressive performances turned in by Chris Hanna on keys, Dan Morris driving steel, Becca Rhoades sawing fiddle, and of course Harper himself demonstrating his guitar prowess."<br><br>For media inquires, please contact <a contents="media@gsharper.com" data-link-label="" data-link-type="email" href="mailto:media@gsharper.com" target="_blank">media@gsharper.com</a>.GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30903972014-07-21T22:56:54-04:002014-07-22T00:21:50-04:00The Band and the Studio: The making of Sixteen WintersMaking a record isn't easy to do. You need songs; you need a studio; you need an engineer; and, you need the right musicians. If any one of these factors doesn't fall exactly into place, your record will fall short of what you envisioned. Me, I figure making a record isn't cheap; and if it goes well, lots of people are going to hear it. I really want it to be the best it can possibly be when it's finished. I want to listen to it and know that in that place and at that time, I made the best record I could have made. I could have made this record for half of what it cost me. But it would not have been "this" record. Of that, I'm sure.<br><br>It doesn't matter how good your songs are. If you can't find musicians to play the parts the way they need to be played to make your sound happen, it ain't gonna happen. I don't mean players you can stand over and dictate notes and phrases to - that takes a lot of skill on both ends, but it never sounds natural to me. You have to find players who understand and feel what you're trying to do, where you're trying to get the song to take people. You can't reference songs and styles to give a guy the right idea if he's not familiar with what you're referencing. You need players who have the ability to come from the same place you do, musically speaking.<br><br>I played all the guitars and the bass guitar myself. I also played some percussion, and a little harmonica. I knew I could do that, and get the job I needed done. The other instruments however...let's just say that although I mess around with all of them, I knew there was no way I could play them at the level I needed to, to get that elusive "sound in my head". I knew I had to hire the right people if I was going to make the record I wanted to make.<br><br>The first piece that fell into place and really got me itching to make this record was Chris "Elmer" Hanna. I've known Chris for a long time and although I loved his playing, we never got much chance to work together in years past. I was about to kidnap him and force him into a band with me several years ago, but he up and moved to Nashville for a couple of years, where he did quite well. When he moved back to Cleveland a couple years ago, we started working together, and I knew he was the guy. He's a beast on anything with keys, and he hears like a bat. He can play blues; he can play rock; he can play jazz; and, he can play gospel. If you ask me though, the guy was born to play country music and western songwriter music. He's got a feel for it that I have not found anywhere outside of Texas and the Rocky Mountains. Some people are born in the wrong time; Chris was born in the wrong place. I don't know how he did it; but, somehow he got this stuff in his blood. His piano and organ parts really set the mood for so many of these songs. <br><br>Jon Darling played all the drums on the record. I first met John a little over two years ago when we hosted a jam together. I immediately liked him and his drumming. With Jon, it's never about him; it's always about the song. Every time. He listens to a song, figures out what it needs, and just does that. It's a beautiful thing. About a year after I first met Jon, I approached him about being the drummer on <em>Sixteen Winters</em>. I knew he had never really played country or roots music before because he'd told me as much. But, I knew he could do it. I could tell from working with him, even just playing classic rock covers at the jam we hosted, that he'd find the exact right place to put these songs. He did. He's a very dynamic drummer with a great touch; and, he listens to and really pays attention to arrangements. Oh, and his cymbals sound freaking amazing. We did absolutely nothing to them during tracking or mixing. We just mic'd them up, and that's how they sounded. <br><br>"Steely" Dan Morris played pedal steel. I have known Dan for seven or eight years now. The entire time we've known each other, we've played together in a band called California Speedbag, which has played a couple of the songs from this record live for years. Dan already had great parts for those and had worked with me on several duo dates, so he was the logical choice for the record. Not to mention, there just aren't a whole lot of choices up on the North Coast when you're hunting somebody who plays this ridiculously complicated instrument. Lucky for me, not only does Dan own a pedal steel and know how to play it, he plays it really, really well. His style really emphasized exactly what I needed it to.<br><br>Now, let's talk about Becca Rhoades. I knew I wanted to record <em>Lock the Door</em> really sparsely. My vision for it was originally just acoustic guitar, upright bass, and fiddle - which is exactly what I ended up doing with it. Good fiddle players around these parts are almost as rare as pedal steel guys. I had a few very good options; but all the way up until a couple weeks before tracking, I still wasn't sure who I'd call. I dropped by a local music venue one night to see a duo called <a contents="Red Brick Rhoades" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.redbrickrhoades.com/" target="_blank">Red Brick Rhoades</a> - Becca and my friend Red Chrosniak. I knew within 20 seconds of walking in the door that Becca was going to get the job. I love what she did with the song. It's Appalachian fiddle for sure, but also has that little touch of Texas because Becca is from Lubbock. It is, in my opinion, the perfect part for this tune. Becca also has the distinction of singing the only backing vocal on the entire record. She was in tracking fiddle for <em>Lock the Door</em>, and Curtis suggested a really simple, one line harmony part for <em>Still in It</em>, so we had her take a pass at it. It's beautiful; and, it's one of my favorite moments of the whole recording.<br><br>Michael Barrick plays upright bass on <em>Lock the Doo</em>r. I knew I wanted upright on the tune, and again, wasn't sure who to call. I was talking to a drummer friend of mine one night, and Mike was standing right next to us. I mentioned that I needed an upright player for one track, and my friend pointed at Mike and said "he plays upright". So I asked him, and he said yes. I've known Mike and worked with him for many years. He's an amazing musician, and a seriously hilarious cat. It was really cool to be able to have him on the record.<br><br>All of these great players though, and all of the amazing work they did, could not have been presented properly without engineer Curtis Leonard, and his PlaYroOm studio. I made the first solo record I ever made, an EP called <em>Waiting for April</em>, with Curtis more than ten years ago. For <em>Sixteen Winters</em>, something told me it was time to go back. I'm very thankful for that little bit of intuition, wherever it came from. I started calling Curt "The Zengineer" during these sessions because he's so laid back and easy to work with but at the same time keeps things very focused and on track. If I ever make another record without him engineering, it won't be any time soon. Curt's approach is to get the right sounds the first time, through mic and preamp selection, and mic placement. Capture the performance the way it's supposed to sound so that messing with things post tracking is extremely minimal. It takes a little more time while you're tracking; but, it's so worth it in the long run to have those sounds be natural and not manipulated after the fact. We really spent very little time adjusting things in the mixing stage of things, and did almost nothing with EQ, compression, or effects. What you hear on this record is Curt bringing my production ideas, and the sounds I wanted to hear, to life through plain, old-fashioned, straight-up engineering - no studio magic. In my opinion, it's the way records ought to be made. If an artist and the players they hire have the talent, there's no excuse for doing it any other way. <br> GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30625032014-07-07T22:21:15-04:002014-07-07T23:16:58-04:00First Listen: Track Seven, Peace of Mind<div id="yiv5570592329"><div dir="ltr" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1404784015010_1831">
<p class="yiv5570592329MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1404784015010_2064" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><a contents="First Listen: Track Seven, Peace of Mind" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">First Listen: Track Seven, Peace of Mind</a><br> </p>
<p class="yiv5570592329MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1404784015010_2064" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span class="font_regular">This is one of the older songs on the record, although not the oldest by a good sight. I wrote this one in the spring of 2004.<br><br>I was working with an electric band at that time - G.S. Harper and the Sinners. The Sinners were me, Andrew Zeager and Billy "Junior" Crompton. We were gigging a little here and there; but, we'd spent most of 2003 holed up in a Lakewood, Ohio basement becoming a band. We were much more on the rustbelt rock side of things. Definitely not a country band, though we did draw quite a bit of influence from that direction. We were the house band every Friday night at a little joint at E. 39th and Superior here in Cleveland - The Town Fryer. That’s where we really became a band. The bar isn’t there anymore but a great collection of songs came out of it. Peace of Mind being one of the most popular from that year. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Late 2003 into early 2004 was a pretty heavy winter where snow is concerned, and by the time it all finally melted, I think everybody on the North Coast was really ready for spring. That’s where this song came from. I was dealing with a serious lack of sunshine and warm temperatures, which even now, after sixteen years, is something that totally takes it out of me. My genetics just weren’t engineered for northern winters. Anyhow, I think that was the first winter that I really kind of lost my mind, and swore I’d not be here for another one. All I wanted to do that spring was pack up and go back to Texas, where “shit like this just doesn’t happen. EVER.” I believe those were the words I used…</span></p>
<p>That was also the first time I realized, that if I really wanted to be there, I still would be. It sank in right then and there that if I’d really wanted to stay, I’d had plenty of opportunities. It slowly hit me that although I truly loved my hometown, the people that live there, and almost everything that goes along with all of it, I didn’t want to go back anymore. By finally admitting to myself that I’d left, and then stayed completely away on purpose, I was able to really move on.</p>
<p id="yui_3_16_0_1_1404784015010_2064">I’m not gone because I dislike the town or the people. I love both, and I always will. I even subscribe to an <a contents="online newspaper" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://sanangelolive.com/" target="_blank">online newspaper</a> that hits my phone every morning, so that I can wake up and see what’s going on there. It never fails to make me smile. Life is simpler there, and much slower paced. Sometimes I really wish I could be happy with that. I’d sure have a lot less snow to deal with. But I wanted more. I had to see what was going on over the next hill, and then over the next one, and so on. Once you see all that first hand, and not just on TV or in a magazine, you can’t un-see it. There’s no going backward. At least for me there wasn’t. And so, though I’ll always be proud to tell people I’m from San Angelo, TX, I don’t foresee a future in which I would actually live there again.<br><br>The longer I lived here and and people (myself included) moved on to other things, it became more and more apparent to me that the likelihood of a Sinners record was pretty small. There are three tunes on Sixteen Winters that I wrote during the Sinners period, and I’m really happy I finally got them on tape. Here’s <a contents="Peace of Mind" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">Peace of Mind</a>. More coming soon!</p>
</div></div>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30521052014-07-01T21:39:23-04:002014-07-02T07:05:34-04:00First Listen: Track 2, Ponderosa Breeze<div>
<a contents="First Listen: Track 2, Ponderosa Breeze" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">First Listen: Track 2, Ponderosa Breeze</a><br><br>Ponderosa Breeze is the newest song on Sixteen Winters. I wrote it in February of this year, and we began recording in March. It was actually one of the deciding factors in going ahead with the record at that time. When I finished this song, I felt like I had nailed down the final piece of the puzzle. I wrote this tune with several things and people in mind. Not the least of which was my friend Eddy Lee Bullington. More on him later…<br><br>In 1996, my father passed away very unexpectedly. He was forty-three years old. To say it messed me up would be a gigantic understatement; I still haven’t recovered. When the smoke cleared, I did what I always did in those days when things went haywire. I dropped what I was doing, loaded up my pickup, and took off for New Mexico. I didn’t have a plan; I just knew where I wanted to be. The little town of <a contents="Cimarron, NM" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.cimarronnm.com/" target="_blank">Cimarron, NM</a> and the Sangre De Christo mountain range have given me everything good that has ever happened to me since I was old enough to leave home. They have never let me down in times of trouble or need. They have been, and will always be, my safe haven.<br> <br>The town itself sits at nearly 6,500 feet in elevation. The mountains are less than a mile out. When the wind blows off them, which is frequently, the smell of the ponderosa pine trees that cover them is wonderful. You don’t realize it until you’ve been away for a while, but that smell is everywhere. It’s a kind of subconscious olfactory soundtrack to everything that happens. When you come back from some place much less piney, the smell immediately triggers memories of everything you love about being there.<br><br>When I went back in ’96 after losing my dad, I had no idea that the simple action of heading that direction was determining the path I would be on for the rest of my life. I just wanted to escape. That’s what the first verse covers. I think if you have a place like that, somewhere you really want to be, and don’t get to be often enough, then you should just go every once in a while. Just go. It’s a small world. There’s no place in it that’s so far away it’s impossible to get to. You’ll be happy once you’re there, so just go.<br><br>The second verse covers fall of that year. I didn't know what I would do when the summer season out there ended; or where I would go. So I just stayed. So did the girl who would later become my wife. We took jobs at a small roadside hotel with an attached bar. I was a bartender; she worked the hotel desk. She worked the early shift, and I was off on Saturdays, so we’d spend those days riding around in my old truck and just enjoying life. Cold Beer, in this song, isn't a thing, it’s a place. The Colfax Tavern. A little red building out in the middle of nowhere with “COLD BEER” painted on the side of it in big white letters. Home of some awesome green chile cheese burgers back in the day.<br><br>Likewise, <a contents="The Motherlode" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/MOTHERLODE-SALOON-RED-RIVER-NM/183525161246" target="_blank">The Motherlode</a> is a saloon in Red River, NM. It’s down the highway in the opposite direction. There’s about 80 miles between the two places; but, we’d usually hit them both on a Saturday evening. Cold Beer was good for burgers, but The Motherlode was good for dancing, and good grief did we love to dance. A guy named Eddy Lee Bullington fronted the house band. He was an amazing singer, and a very good songwriter. We met one night when Maureen and I were there dancing, and I liked him immediately. As weeks went by, he started hanging out with us on breaks, and then asking me to sit in with the band. He was hysterically funny, a great musician, and a wonderful friend. He was also playing at The Sagebrush Inn in Taos, NM the night Maureen and I got engaged. He got the news even before anybody in our families. I think he was almost as happy as we were.<br><br>Eddy has been gone a long time now, but I still think of him often. He was a big mentor to me early on, and very encouraging about my songwriting at a time when I wasn’t even really sure what direction I wanted it to go in. The things I write today I owe in no small part to people like Eddy, and other New Mexico artists like Rod Taylor and Michael Hearn. <br> <br>I woke up one morning thinking about Eddy, and I just couldn’t get him out of my head all day long. That was the inspiration for this song. Kind of an “It started there, and ended up here, and I love it here, but I miss being there” thing. It’s kind of a re-occurring thing with me…<br><br>New Mexico country and folk music, and that whole Rocky Mountain music thing in general, has a very unique sound. I really wanted to pay homage to it on this track. I think Chris Hanna and Jon Darling knocked it out, and Curtis Leonard did a great job of catching the sounds just perfectly. My favorite part of this tune is Chris’ piano break. I don’t even know if he knows who she is, but man, it really reminds me of hearing Bonnie Hearn play piano out there when I was a teenager. It throws me right back in time. Which is what this song is really about.<br> <br><a contents="First Listen: Track 2, Ponderosa Breeze" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">First Listen: Track 2, Ponderosa Breeze</a>
</div>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30312872014-06-21T15:38:46-04:002014-06-21T21:50:56-04:00First Listen: Track 3, Love's Despair<a contents="First Listen: Track 3, Love's Despair" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">First Listen: Track 3, Love's Despair</a><br><br>The idea for this track came up a few years ago. This song was actually not written by me. It’s by my friend, Mary Cutrufello. Mary and I first met in 2004, although I was a fan of her music before that. We kept running into each other in strange places between here and Texas, and quickly became friends. We now work together whenever time and scheduling allow. <br><br>She wrote this song way back in ’96, and released it on her 2010 disc entitled <em>Acoustic EP</em>. Her version is very slow and gritty. It’s visceral. I have always loved the idea, the arrangement, the delivery, the everything of this song. Her version is haunting, desperate. The feeling of the character singing the song really comes through in spades.<br><br>Since the first time I heard it though, I’ve wanted to do it as a shuffle. Just to see if it would work. I had a vision for an uptempo, Texas swing meets flat tire shuffle approach, and I just wasn’t gonna be happy until I got to try it. I knew it had to have old-school pedal steel, and honky tonk piano. I just knew that stuff was going to put it where I wanted it.<br><br>Musically, a Texas country shuffle is a very different style from a blues shuffle, or any other kind of shuffle. It’s my most very favorite groove to play bass on, as it has a feel all it’s own. It has to bounce, because it’s straight up dance music. Unlike a lot of dance music though, it doesn’t bounce in one place. The up-beats on the snare drum and rhythm guitar, coupled with the “four on the floor” kick drum that locks in with that unique bass groove, constantly propel it forward. It’s a driving rhythm that’s still laid back and grooving at the same time. It doesn’t happen in quite the same way anywhere else in popular music.<br><br>Dan Morris (pedal steel) and Chris Hanna (piano) really drove the point home on this one. They took it straight back to 1963. Their parts knock me out every time I listen to this track. Jon Darling (drums) locked in so nicely with my bass on this one too. It’s one of my favorite tracks on the record, because these guys just really played it well.<br><br><a contents="First Listen: Track 3, Love's Despair" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">First Listen: Track 3, Love's Despair</a><br><br><em>"I've only been lucky enough to be covered a handful of times. It's hard to express how good it feels, whether you know the covering artist or not. In this case, GS is one of my best friends, and a Texan to boot, so this is really special for me. I love how he shuffles this tune. He puts it right on the dance floor, where it belongs.</em>" - <a contents="Mary Cutrufello" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://marycutrufello.com/">Mary Cutrufello</a>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30162922014-06-14T17:51:41-04:002014-06-21T22:00:12-04:00First Listen: Track 1, Fifteen Winters<a contents="Track 1: Fifteen Winters" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">Track 1: Fifteen Winters</a><br><br>I wrote this song in June of 2013, while in Minneapolis working on a record with my friend Mary Cutrufello. One of the first nights I was there, we had finished up in the studio for the day, and decided to hit a local open mic night. I'd had the first line in my head for about a week at that point, but that was all. No music, no melody, just that first line: "There's a scissor-tailed bird on a telephone wire". I'm really not sure where it came from, except that there were scissor-tail birds all over the place where I grew up. I always liked them. Anyhow, we hit the open mic and had a great time. At one point in the evening, one of the hosts was sitting off to the side playing this really simple chord progression over and over again. It wasn't the exact rhythm and progression I used for this song, but it was very close. It's definitely where the idea came from. I was sitting there at the table, and I kind of zoned out on what he was playing. It was super simple, but it just kind of drew me in. In all of about ten minutes, I had the whole song written in my head. I performed it a few minutes later. It was rough around the edges, but I knew right away it was a keeper. Mary and I drove back to her house at the end of the night, and I immediately sat down at the table and wrote the whole thing out. I knew if tried to wait til morning I was gonna forget it. So that's the story of how a song was born on a Monday night, in a bar in Minnesota.<br><br>The subject matter is stuff straight out of my life. I grew up in west Texas. It's hot, it's dry, it's dusty. The droughts are constant, never ending. They ration public water supplies, and hand out tickets to people watering grass or washing cars during restricted times. I've seen it literally look and feel like the sky was on fire. To outsiders, stepping outside, out of the air conditioning, feels like going to hell. I miss it a lot. There's a kind of dark beauty to it that really can't be explained. Merely surviving there, adapting to the environment and staying alive, is something to be proud of. It's where I was born, and where I grew up, but it's not my home anymore. I have no family there, and haven't been back to my home town in over twenty years. The high school I went to doesn't exist anymore. It burned to the ground years ago. There's really nothing left of "me" in west Texas.<br><br>At the time I wrote the song, I'd just passed the fifteen year mark in Cleveland. I love it here. It's a beautiful city full of amazing people and places. It's where my wife was born, and where our children have all been born. But it's not mine. I wasn't born here. I'm not part of the history. I can't look around and point things out and say "that's where I went to school", or "that's the house where the girl I took to homecoming used to live". I truly love Cleveland, but I have no roots here.<br><br>This song is my way of dealing with the fact that I'm kind of a "man without a country", so to speak.<br><br>The middle verse is just that, the middle. Dealing with the subject of wasted time and wasted efforts, trying to get somewhere, all the while knowing the biggest thing keeping you from getting there, is you. I've been my own worst enemy at several points in my life. I can handle that though, because it was a very necessary part of the journey to where I am today. Without that part of my life, I wouldn't be here. And here, whether it'll ever actually be mine or not, is a pretty good place to be.<br><br><a contents="Track 1: Fifteen Winters" data-link-label="Music" data-link-type="page" href="/music">Track 1: Fifteen Winters</a>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/30073772014-06-10T20:49:51-04:002017-01-15T19:23:18-05:00Sixteen Winters release date set for July 26<img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/127419/57e549fc26456cf68aead943ccae6c178ff4ce12/medium/sixteen-winters-cover-art.jpg?1402593066" class="size_m justify_left border_none" alt="" style="margin-top: 5px; margin-bottom: 5px;" />G.S. Harper’s new full length recording <em>Sixteen Winters</em> is totally wrapped up, and the official release has been set for Saturday, July 26, 2014 at <a contents="Aces Grille" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.acesgrille.com/" target="_blank">Aces Grille</a>, 6849 Pearl Rd., in Middleburg Heights, Ohio.<br><br>Special guest <a href="http://www.alicewallacemusic.com/">Alice Wallace</a> will kick off the night at 9 p.m. After that, Harper will take the stage accompanied by the <em>Sixteen Winters</em> studio band - Chris “Elmer” Hanna (keys), Jon Darling (drums) and Dan Morris (Pedal steel guitar), as well as guest bassist Paul Lewis.<br><br>“This will be a full, front-to-back live performance of <em>Sixteen Winters</em>, and some acoustic performances of material from my earlier records,” said Harper. “And there will be some pretty fun surprises. When you have guys on stage with you that play at this level, you have to let ‘em out to run a little bit.”<br><br><em>Sixteen Winters</em> and related merchandise will be available at the show. GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/29348002014-05-09T17:28:11-04:002017-01-15T19:23:18-05:00G.S. Harper proudly endorses GHS guitar strings<a contents="" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.ghsstrings.com" target="_blank"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/127419/f37b08524ff3eea33b8f55d13a3f2e3146d31d74/medium/ghs-logo-scroll.jpg?1399670678" class="size_m justify_inline border_thin" alt="" style="margin-right: 5px; margin-left: 5px;" /></a>G.S. Harper signed an exclusive endorsement agreement today with GHS Strings of Battle Creek, Michigan. The company has been one of the leading string makers in the world since 1964. With a reputation for innovative design and manufacturing, great sound and rock solid reliability, their strings are an integral part of the sonic foundation of many of the world's top artists. <br><br>"I've tried a lot of strings in 27 years of playing live music. I've played GHS Strings for years now, and they have consistently been the best sounding and feeling strings to me," said G.S. Harper. "It feels great to officially be a part of the GHS team."GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/29205092014-05-05T12:08:20-04:002014-05-05T12:12:13-04:00Lakewood’s own Dirty Town Guitar and Amps to provide tour support for upcoming Sixteen Winters tour<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2598" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">When you're out on the road, it can be hard to search out and find the right music store that will have what you need in stock and ready to go. But for his upcoming <span style="font-style: italic;">Sixteen Winters</span> tour, G.S. Harper's on-the-road gear needs will be much easier to handle, thanks to the tour support of <a contents="Dirty Town Guitar and Amps" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://dirtytown.net/" target="_blank">Dirty Town Guitar and Amps</a>. </div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2601" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"> </div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2602" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">"As a shop owner and musician, you can really get a good feel for the players are in your area," said <span style="font-size: 10pt;">Dirty Town owner Dennis Bielinski</span><span style="font-size: 12px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(69, 69, 69);">. "</span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">That said, there are players and then there are players who get it! G.S. Harper gets it! Dirty Town Guitar and Amps is proud to sponsor G.S. Harper. His music touches and inspires!"</span>
</div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2603" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"> </div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2605" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;">Dirty Town Guitar and Amps, located at 15230 Madison Avenue in Lakewood, Ohio, carries </span><span style="font-size: 10pt;">a full line of parts and accessory products. And, they </span><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2604" style="font-size: 10pt;"><span class="yiv5287772935" id="yiv5287772935misspell-1">specialize</span> in factory-certified repair and maintenance of guitars, amplifiers, and related equipment, used and vintage instrument and amplifier sales, custom amp and effects design and building. </span>
</div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2606" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;"> </div>
<div class="yiv5287772935MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1399305871595_2607" style="font-size: 13px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;">“Dennis has been a friend and supporter of my music for a long time, and I’m very happy to have him on board," said G.S. Harper. "This tour support will let me focus more on performing and less on worrying about how to take care of my gear. Having a place I can call back home that will be there to send me what I need, wherever I may be, is huge. It’s a game changer where touring is concerned."</div>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/28971892014-04-24T22:40:40-04:002014-04-25T21:27:39-04:00Sixteen Winters Kickstarter Project Supporters Bust Goal in Five DaysG.S. Harper is a confident guy. But fan support for his latest project, <em>Sixteen Winters</em>, has overwhelmed even him. Launched on April 19, 2014, the Kickstarter Project for G.S. Harper's fourth release, <em>Sixteen Winters, </em>reached and passed its goal in just five days. The project is open until May 15, 2014 and any additional funds will help support promotional efforts for the new record and allow for a bigger, better tour to launch the CD. Check out the project and the latest personal video message from G.S. Harper. <br><br><a contents="Sixteen Winters by G.S. Harper" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/315712243/sixteen-winters">Sixteen Winters by G.S. Harper</a>GS Harpertag:gsharper.com,2005:Post/29078702014-04-22T20:30:00-04:002014-04-29T20:34:31-04:00Sixteen Winters recording is well underway<span class="font_regular">G.S. Harper is in studio now, recording <em>Sixteen Winters</em>, a full length album featuring 10 of his previously unreleased songs written over the course of the 16 years he's lived in Cleveland. The song selections reflect Harper's work over the years with different bands, different projects and different times.<br><br>"I wanted to do this record a little bit differently," said Harper. "I had some brand new songs that I had just written and I also had a lot of things that had been lying around for a long time but never recorded them. So I'm putting them together, warts and all, in one collection."<br><br>The eleventh song on the record is <em>Love's Despair,</em> written by <a contents="Mary Cutrufello" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://marycutrufello.com/" target="_blank">Mary Cutrufello</a> and released on her <em>Acoustic EP </em>(2010). "Like all of Mary's work, <em>Love's Despair</em> is outstanding," Harper said. "I had a vision for how to include it in <em>Sixteen Winters </em>and I'm so grateful to her for sharing it with me."<br><br><em>Sixteen Winters</em> will have some familiar sounds to Harper's fans who have heard a few of the songs in live performances over the years. But many of them will be heard for the first time when the record is released this summer. And, they're all being recorded with full band production, unlike Harper's previous acoustic releases.<br><br>"I played all guitar, bass and sing lead vocals, but the project is really coming together with the incredible work of some of the finest musicians in the Cleveland area who are working with me on this project," said Harper. "And, with the mastery of my engineer, Curtis Leonard."<br><br>Leonard's <a contents="PlaYRoOm Recording" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://www.playroomrecording.net/" target="_blank">PlaYRoOm Recording</a> has been a home away from home for Harper during the early part of 2014 as he is recording <em>Sixteen Winters</em>, which is his fourth release. Harper's previous albums were <em>Waiting For April </em>(2002), <em>Live From Cleveland </em>(G.S. Harper and the Lonesome Tomatoes, 2006), and <em>The Belmont Sessions</em> (G.S. Harper with Andrew Zeager, 2008).</span>GS Harper