Harper Simon

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Harper Simon

Background information
Birth name Harper James Simon
Born 7 September 1972 (1972-09-07) (age 35)
New York, U.S.
Genre(s) Indie pop
Indie rock
Occupation(s) Singer-Songwriter, Music Producer, Actor
Instrument(s) Guitar
Years active 1980 - 2001, 2005-
Label(s) Concord Records, Independent
Associated acts Menlo Park, Sean Lennon, Bijou Phillips, Paul Simon, Money Mark, Jena Malone, The Heavy Circles

Harper James Simon (aka Harper Simon, born September 7, 1972) is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He is the son of musician Paul Simon and Paul's first wife, Peggy Harper.[1]

Contents

[edit] Biography

Harper James Simon began his journey as a musician at an early age. In 1983, at the age of 9, he appeared on the children's program Sesame Street with his father. Together they sang "Ricardo The Cowboy" and "Bingo."[2] By the age of 12, he was on the Graceland tour, as the guitarist who accompanied his father. Many of Paul Simon's lyrics include references to Harper, most notably "St Judy's Comet" and "Graceland."[3] Harper, travel companion of his former stepmother Carrie Fisher, also regularly appears in pieces written by Fisher for the New York Times.[4]

[edit] Music

In NYC Harper frequently played music with his childhood friend Sean Lennon, son of famed musician John Lennon. Harper played guitar on Sean's second album, Friendly Fire,[5] and also appeared in the film by the same name with actors Lindsay Lohan, Bijou Phillips, Devon Aoki, and Carrie Fisher.] After attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass., Harper moved to London for several years where he played with the band Menlo Park.[6]

In 2005, Harper performed in Afghanistan with tabla player Suphala.[7] Also in 2006, Harper recorded an album with stepmother Edie Brickell, wife of Paul Simon, and the lead singer of the band Edie Brickell & New Bohemians.[8] Other collaborations that year included projects with Bijou Phillips,[9] Carl Perkins on Go Cat Go,[10] and with actress Jena Malone. Together, Harper and Jena wrote "Tested Dry," a song on which he also played guitar and drums.[11]

In 2007, Rolling Stone Magazine writer Austin Scaggs found Harper's work noteworthy and wrote about the musician in the January 2007 print edition. The article discussed Harper's first solo project recorded in Nashville, Tenn. Harper co-produced that album with legendary producer Bob Johnston, known for producing albums for Bob Dylan, including Highway 61 Revisited, and Johnny Cash, most notably his albums Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison and Johnny Cash at San Quentin.[12] The pianist Hargus "Pig" Robbins and the multi-instrumentalist Charlie McCoy of "Blonde on Blonde" added to the sound with other musicians such as Mike Leach and Gene Christman, known for their work with Elvis Presley.[13]

Harper's musical contributions also cover film, and they include the Abel Ferrara films New Rose Hotel[14] and The Blackout.[15]

In February 2008, Harper Simon and Edie Brickell formed the group the Heavy Circles, and it released an album, which Simon co-produced with Bryce Goggin.

[edit] Humanitarian Efforts

In 2005 Harper participated in Quantum Shift, a concert that aided humanitarian efforts for survivors of the South Asian Earthquake that occurred on Oct. 8, 2005, which claimed more than 73,000 lives and left over 3.5 million people homeless in Pakistan.[16] He accompanied Suphala, Edie Brickell, Sean Lennon, Yoko Ono and Paul Simon on stage in NYC. All proceeds from this event were delivered in person by the former.[17]

Also, in 2005, Harper performed for a benefit for Alliance Art, an organization that is dedicated to drug-policy reform.[18]

[edit] Acting

Harper acted as a small child in 1980 in the film One Trick Pony.[19] written by Paul Simon Later, he appeared in the films New Rose Hotel, directed by Abel Ferrara; Bringing out the Dead, directed by Martin Scorsese;[20] and "Friendly Fire" directed by Michele Civetta.[21]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Remix; First Watch - Menlo Park - New York Times
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ Paul Simon (I) - Biography
  4. ^ The New York Times > Travel > T Style Magazine: Travel > Postcards From the Edge: The Joys of Ear Cleaning
  5. ^ Sean Lennon - Friendly Fire Trailer
  6. ^ Paul + Menlo Park @ Ocean, London | live music reviews | musicOMH.com
  7. ^ Suphala
  8. ^ EdieBrickell.com ~ music ~ Fast World
  9. ^ BMI.com | Harper Simon Joins BMI Family
  10. ^ allmusic
  11. ^ http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/41227
  12. ^ Bob Johnston Interview-interview with producer Bob Johnson
  13. ^ Rolling Stone : Smoking Section: Sneak Peek at New Discs from Perry Farrell, Mavis Staples and Harper Simon
  14. ^ New Rose Hotel (1998)
  15. ^ The Blackout (1997)
  16. ^ American Red Cross - International Disaster Profile: South Asia Earthquake
  17. ^ GIANT STEP™ | Event - Quantum Shift: A Benefit For The Warmth of South Asian Earthquake Survivors
  18. ^ Alliance Art Benefit a Success
  19. ^ One Trick Pony (1980)
  20. ^ Bringing Out the Dead (1999)
  21. ^ Friendly Fire (2006) (V)