Roy Harper albums – my own ratings
Before I start to indulge myself in assessing the merits of Roy’s output, which I fully recognise is a potential disaster from the very beginning (and would probably change day to day – or following another listening); I first need to clarify a few points.
These are my very own subjective judgements. I fully realise that everybody else has their own preferences, all equally valid.
I’m sure your own ratings are based on a number of factors – your personal preferences for genres of songs, the time when you first discovered Roy, relating periods in your life to sentiments in the songs, the musicality of a piece – and a host of other reasons.
With me, the songs that really matter are the ones that delve into social matters. I love poetry and the ideas. I love the epic songs (not to say that I do not rate the others as well).
The other point to note is that I do not believe there has been a bad album. I just like some more than others.
I just thought it would be fun to have a go and might stimulate everyone else to disagree. It might also get some of you delving into your collection for a replay. It did with me.
So let the fun begin:
| Album | Rating | Why |
| Sophisticated Beggar | 8 | A great album. Has a nice feel to it. Stand out tracks – Legend, Forever and China Girl. |
| Come out fighting Ghenghis Smith | 9 | As an eighteen year old in the midst of A-Levels I really related to this. The poetry and philosophy. Circle was great. |
| Folkjokeopus | 9 | Should have been a ten but for me the production let it down. McGoohan’s Blues, She’s the One and One for Al(l) are amazing. |
| Flat Baroque and Berserk | 10 | Fantastic album – I Hate the Whiteman and Another Day, Tom Tiddlers Ground and East of the Sun. |
| Stormcock | 10 | I’d give this one 11. Four superb masterpieces. Me and My Woman is incredible. |
| Lifemask | 10 | Has to be a 10 just for the brilliance of The Lord’s Prayer. But there is also All Ireland, Highway Blues and South Africa. – Brilliant |
| Valentine | 8 | Had some highlights such as Male Chauvinist Pig Blues, Commune. I’ll See You Again and Twelve Hours of Sunset but lacked a real epic song. |
| Flashes from the archives | 9 | I love Flashes – I was there at the gigs and it captures that for me. I wish he would do an up to date version of Kangaroo Blues. |
| HQ | 10 | A superb album – one of his best – The Game, The Spirit Lives, Hallucinating Light and Cricketer – sublime. |
| Bullinamingvase | 10 | One of those Days in England – another epic – plus These last Days, Naked Flame and Cherishing the Lonesome – Perfecto. |
| Unknown Soldier | 9 | Short and Sweet, The Fly Catcher and the Unknown Soldier – a great album |
| Born in Captivity | 8 | Love these acoustic versions of Work of Heart, Drawn to the Flames and No Woman is Safe |
| In between every line | 9 | I love this album – great live versions that capture the moment – I like the continuity too. |
| Whatever Happened to Jugula | 8 | Hangman, Elizabeth, Frozen Moment and Twentieth Century Man were great – but it did not quite work for me. I think I was expecting something more. |
| Work of Heart | 8 | Work of Heart almost makes it as a masterpiece but is not as strong for me as The Lord’s Prayer or Me and My Woman. Then you have Drawn to the Flames and I still care. |
| Descendants of Smith (Garden of Uranium) | 9 | Garden of Uranium, Desert Island, Pinches of Salt and Still Life – but lacks a real walloping song. |
| Loony on the Bus | 8 | Love that riff in Loony On The Bus. Then there’s Ten Years Ago, The Flycatcher and Sail Away. |
| Once | 8 | Once and Black Cloud of Islam make this for me. |
| Burn the World | 9 | A brilliant single – and we are burning the world. |
| Born in Captivity 2 (Unhinged) | 9 | Great Live album (missing Short and Sweet off the tape??) |
| Death or Glory | 8 | The Fourth World, The Tallest Tree, Miles Remains, On Summer’s Day – all great but lacking an epic. |
| Commercial Breaks | 8 | Interesting version of Ten Years Ago, Too Many Movies, The Fly Catcher and Sail Away. |
| Live at Les Cousins | 9 | A doorway into the Roy of 1969 – a little tentative but superb. A piece of history. |
| Heavy Crazy | 10 | Atmospheric live album with some great versions of old favourites. |
| BBC Tapes – 1-6 | 9-10 | Fabulous insight into Roy live in the studio from the 60s through to 78. |
| Poems, Speeches, Thoughts and Doodles | 8 | Roy the poet – loved these. |
| Dream Society | 8 | These Fifty Years, Broken Wing, Songs of Love and Drugs for everybody |
| Green Man | 8 | The Green Man is superb – then the Monster. |
| Royal Festival Hall | 8 | A great live album and memento of a superb evening. |
| Today is Yesterday | 8 | A compilation of outtakes from the first album and some singles and rarities. Interesting to me. |
| Beyond the Door | 8 | Good live material |
| Man and Myth | 8 | This won a lot of awards and is a great album – Time is Temporary, the Enemy and Cloud Cuckooland |
| Live at the Metropolis | 9 | A superb live album. More controlled. |
| Songs of Love and Loss | 9 | A collection of love songs. |
| East of the Sun | 9 | A great compilation of love songs |
| Counter Culture | 9 | Another great compilation |
| From Occident to Orient | 7 | A rip-off compilation (Can’t fault the music) |
| Hats off | 7 | A rip-off compilation |
The only ones dropping below an 8 are the two rip-off compilations that Roy had nothing to do with.
What an incredible catalogue of brilliance.
I wonder how you’d rate them?
