Roy Harper – Sophisticated Beggar Album

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When I was 18 back in 1967 I was desperate to get hold of Roy’s first album – Sophisticated Beggar. Roy had been hawking it around at his gigs but had just sold the last one. I think they’d only press 400. There were none left. So Roy lent me his own copy! (Just imagine! – The only copy he had!)

I remember that Roy had drawn in a moustache with a felt-tip.

I was lucky. One turned up a few week’s later in one of the second-hand record shops I used to browse through. Although it was a hefty £4 (a fortune for an impoverished student living off one meal a day of pig’s head soup) I snapped it up.

Here I am, some fifty seven years later, holding that album. A treasured copy.

The cover artwork was Lon Goddard. He played some guitar on the album too!

Roy Harper – ‘My Friend’

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‘My Friend’

On this acoustic track, Roy demonstrates his finger-picking style, along with the use of harmonics. The song was written for Jackson C. Frank: a ground-breaking New York singer/songwriter who had a tragic past. He suffered horrendous burns in a school fire when a number of his friends were killed, including his girlfriend. Many years later, in 1964, after receiving a financial settlement, Jackson came to England on the Queen Elizabeth, with a Native American girlfriend. He is reputed to have written a superb set of songs on the journey, including ‘Blues Run The Game’. But this is open to debate as many of the songs were possibly written previously.

   Jackson rapidly assimilated into the Les Cousins folk scene, along with fellow American Paul Simon. Jackson’s songwriting style had a profound impact on other musicians. He recorded only one album – simply titled Jackson C. Frank. Paul Simon produced it, with Al Stewart on second guitar. The album was a milestone for other folk singers and is now a classic.

   Jackson and Roy became friends. They would hang out, getting stoned, laughing and pondering the meaning of life into the early morning hours. But Jackson was profligate with money and soon found himself penniless. Suffering stage fright and writer’s block – and with his mental health deteriorating – he eventually returned to New York.

   ‘My Friend’ is a heartfelt farewell and reminiscence of Roy and Jackson’s close relationship. The gold and silver of the lyric are the opening words of Jackson’s ‘Milk And Honey’: a song about leaving.

   Roy sings with a mellow sadness as he recounts the depth of their friendship and the laughter they shared. He embellishes his poetic lyrics, creating a melancholic, affectionate melody over a bed of intricate guitar notes.

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Roy Harper – China Girl and Goldfish

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‘China Girl’

The opening track of Roy’s career is remarkable. People expecting some type of folk song were about to be amazed. This song is much rockier than they would’ve expected – not Roy with a guitar, but Roy with a whole band.

   This was only 1966 but listen to that phasing as Roy makes the music into a psychedelic masterpiece. This was the very dawn of psychedelia, and Roy was riding it.

   The song was written about a beautiful Chinese girl he used to see in Soho. The lyric’s willow patterns, dragons and sunsets, create a magical landscape. It is an example of the way Roy was merging his poems with music.

   The track set the tone for the rest of the album.

‘Goldfish’

In contrast to ‘China Girl’, ‘Goldfish’ has a catchy tune and is a much simpler acoustic number. It starts with a basic melody plucked out on guitar, the vocal then mirroring it – the song changes at the chorus, with the backing growing in symphonic effect.

   Written for Roy’s baby son Nick, ‘Goldfish’ is a fine example of a contemporary folk song. The deft poetic touch makes it much more than a lullaby. The second guitarist on this track is Lon Goddard.

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Roy Harper – Sophisticated Beggar Album

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The title says it all. Roy saw himself as being outside of mainstream society. He used his intelligence and creativity to scrounge a living. He was and still is, the sophisticated beggar.

   Pierre Tubbs produced this album for Strike Records. The story is that a bunch of shady underworld characters were laundering money, and they set up Strike in order to hide their activities. Roy claimed it to be a true garage album because it was recorded in a makeshift studio, converted from a potting shed in Leatherhead. As studios go, it was a primitive setup, and the album was recorded on a basic Revox tape machine. Out came this remarkable album, which is quite unlike anything his contemporaries had produced.

   Nobody seems to remember exactly who played on what. No professional notes were made. The tape was left to roll, and the numbers were mainly single takes with a minimum of overdubs. The equipment wasn’t up to much and options were limited. Only one or two tracks were worked on further and added to – notably the single and the other chosen as its B-side.

   For the time, it is surprising and unusual that Roy didn’t want to include any of the folk/blues songs he’d been busking with. All the songs are Roy Harper originals. Also surprising is the album showing such a range of style and complexity, coupled with poetic lyrics. Roy was already experimenting, adding jazz chords and even using rock backing. His vision was much wider than most other folk artists. Not only is the album more original in content than that of his contemporaries, but it’s more ambitious and avant-garde. He knew what he wanted and was extending his musical prowess. He might have been playing folk clubs with an acoustic guitar, but this album clearly demonstrated that there was a lot more to Roy.

   Sophisticated Beggar has been re-released a number of times (and was illegally bootlegged by Tring Records as Legend). It also appeared as Return of the Sophisticated Beggar, with the additional track, ‘Hup Hup Spiral’: which is simply Roy saying, ‘Hup hup hup’, as the stylus moves to the disc centre and lifts.

Sophisticated Beggar (1966) (Extract from Roy Harper On Track: Every Album; Every Song:)

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Extract from Roy Harper On Track: Every Album; Every Song:

Sophisticated Beggar (1966)

Strike label 1966

Peter Richards: producer

Roy Harper: guitars, vocals and all songwriting

Paul Brett: guitar

Bert Jansch: guitar

John Rebourn: guitar

Richie Blackmore: electric guitar

Lon Goddard: guitar and the drawing for the cover.

Unknown: drums and organ

The title says it all. Roy saw himself as being outside of mainstream society. He used his intelligence and creativity to scrounge a living. He was and still is, the sophisticated beggar.

Pierre Tubbs produced this album for Strike Records. The story is that a bunch of shady underworld characters were laundering money, and they set up Strike in order to hide their activities. Roy claimed it to be a true garage album because it was recorded in a makeshift studio, converted from a potting shed in Leatherhead. As studios go, it was a primitive setup, and the album was recorded on a basic Revox tape machine. Out came this remarkable album, which is quite unlike anything his contemporaries had produced.

Nobody seems to remember exactly who played on what. No professional notes were made. The tape was left to roll, and the numbers were mainly single takes with a minimum of overdubs. The equipment wasn’t up to much and options were limited. Only one or two tracks were worked on further and added to – notably the single and the other chosen as its B-side.

For the time, it is surprising and unusual that Roy didn’t want to include any of the folk/blues songs he’d been busking with. All the songs are Roy Harper originals. Also surprising is the album showing such a range of style and complexity, coupled with poetic lyrics. Roy was already experimenting, adding jazz chords and even using rock backing. His vision was much wider than most other folk artists. Not only is the album more original in content than that of his contemporaries, but it’s more ambitious and avant-garde. He knew what he wanted and was extending his musical prowess. He might have been playing folk clubs with an acoustic guitar, but this album clearly demonstrated that there was a lot more to Roy.

Sophisticated Beggar has been re-released a number of times (and was illegally bootlegged by Tring Records as Legend). It also appeared as Return of the Sophisticated Beggar, with the additional track, ‘Hup Hup Spiral’: which is simply Roy saying, ‘Hup hup hup’, as the stylus moves to the disc centre and lifts.

Roy Harper: Every Album, Every Song (On Track): Amazon.co.uk: Opher Goodwin: 9781789521306: Books

Roy Harper – Sophisticated Beggar extract! Thank you so much for the great reviews and ratings!

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Big Thank You to all those who have left the great reviews and ratings. Much appreciated! Certainly gave me a boost! So glad you’ve all been enjoying the book and, hopefully playing the tracks as you read and buying the albums you haven’t got!

Sophisticated Beggar

The title says it all. Roy saw himself as being outside of mainstream society. He used his intelligence and creativity to scrounge a living. He was and still is, the sophisticated beggar.    Pierre Tubbs produced this album for Strike Records. The story is that a bunch of shady underworld characters were laundering money, and they set up Strike in order to hide their activities. Roy claimed it to be a true garage album because it was recorded in a makeshift studio, converted from a potting shed in Leatherhead. As studios go, it was a primitive setup, and the album was recorded on a basic Revox tape machine. Out came this remarkable album, which is quite unlike anything his contemporaries had produced.    Nobody seems to remember exactly who played on what. No professional notes were made. The tape was left to roll, and the numbers were mainly single takes with a minimum of overdubs. The equipment wasn’t up to much and options were limited. Only one or two tracks were worked on further and added to – notably the single and the other chosen as its B-side.    For the time, it is surprising and unusual that Roy didn’t want to include any of the folk/blues songs he’d been busking with. All the songs are Roy Harper originals. Also surprising is the album showing such a range of style and complexity, coupled with poetic lyrics. Roy was already experimenting, adding jazz chords and even using rock backing. His vision was much wider than most other folk artists. Not only is the album more original in content than that of his contemporaries, but it’s more ambitious and avant-garde. He knew what he wanted and was extending his musical prowess. He might have been playing folk clubs with an acoustic guitar, but this album clearly demonstrated that there was a lot more to Roy.    Sophisticated Beggar has been re-released a number of times (and was illegally bootlegged by Tring Records as Legend). It also appeared as Return of the Sophisticated Beggar, with the additional track, ‘Hup Hup Spiral’: which is simply Roy saying, ‘Hup hup hup’, as the stylus moves to the disc centre and lifts.

Roy Harper: Every Album, Every Song (On Track): Amazon.co.uk: Opher Goodwin: 9781789521306: Books