A 20th Anniversary: Welcome To The Cruel Word - Ben Harper

Hard to believe it's been twenty years since Ben Harper issued his debut album, Welcome To The New World. This is a favorite of mine, one of the albums that really developed my love of music. What stands out for me is how many quality tracks there are from beginning to end, one of those classic albums you can just play and let go until it finishes. Many of you are probably familiar with his work but for those that aren't, I've posted some of my favorites below.

The first video below was just issued by Ben Harper honoring the 20th anniversary of the album.





THE THREE OF US




DON'T TAKE THAT ATTITUDE TO YOUR GRAVE




WAITING ON AN ANGEL




FOREVER




WALK AWAY




I'LL RISE

Ben Harper Acoustic Tour

Really excited about this news from Ben Harper, should be an amazing tour......

Due to popular demand we are happy to announce the first-ever Ben Harper acoustic headlining tour. It will kick off his on September 4 at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA. The run will include a concert at New York City's Carnegie Hall on October 10, marking his first performance at this legendary venue. He will be performing songs from throughout his career -- from his 1994 debut, Welcome to the Cruel World, to his latest album, Give Till It's Gone.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public this Friday, March 23 at 10:00am. See below for itinerary. (All times local.)


09.04.12 Vienna, VA - The Filene Center at Wolf Trap*
09.26.12 Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theater
09.27.12 Chicago, IL - Cadillac Palace Theatre
09.29.12 Toronto, Canada - Massey Hall
10.01.12 Montréal, Canada - Maison symphonique de Montréal
10.02.12 Burlington, VT - Flynn Center for the Performing Arts
10.03.12 Philadelphia, PA - Merriam Theater
10.05.12 Boston, MA - Boston Opera House
10.06.12 Portland, ME - State Theatre
10.07.12 Northampton, MA - Calvin Theatre**
10.10.12 New York City, NY - Carnegie Hall**

SOTD: "I've Handled Myself Wrong" - Grace Woodroofe

Here's the first single off Grace Woodroofe's debut record, "Always Want", coming out January 24th. Grace will be on a fall tour with Ben Harper starting September 29th in Philadelphia (additional dates & venues below).

9/29: Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
9/30: Boston, MA @ House of Blues
10/1: New York, NY @ Terminal 5
10/4: Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/5: Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/7: Atlanta, GA @ The Tabernacle

Ben Harper 2011 North American Tour

Ben Harper has announced some new North American tour dates, the following from his newsletter:

"We are pleased to announce the 2011 North American tour! Ben Harper will be playing headlining shows on both coasts, Canada, and a few in between. Pre-sale tickets will be available at Ben Harper Ticketing using password "GIVE" starting Tueday, May 10 at 10am local time."



Jun 4 Wakarusa Festival Ozark, AR
Jun 5 Crossroads Kansas City, MO
Jun 6 Ogden Theatre Denver, CO
Jun 7 Ogden Theatre Denver, CO
Jun 30 Vic Theatre Chicago, IL
Jul 1 Vic Theatre Chicago, IL
Jul 2 Saturday in the Park Sioux City, IA - Free Show
Jul 3 Summerfest Milwaukee, WI
Jul 5 The Sound Academy Toronto, ON, Canada
Jul 6 Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest Ottawa, ON, Canada
Jul 8 Quebec City Int'l Summer Festival Quebec, QC, Canada
Aug 25 Warfield Theatre San Francisco, CA
Aug 26 Les Schwab Amphitheatre Bend, OR
Aug 27 Marymoor Amphitheatre Redmond, WA
Aug 28 Malkin Bowl Vancouver, BC, Canada
Sep 3 The Blvd Pool @ the Cosmopolitan Las Vegas, NV
Sep 4 Del Mar Racetrack Del Mar, CA
Sep 27 Metropolis Montreal, QC, Canada
Sep 29 Electric Factory Philadelphia, PA
Sep 30 House of Blues Boston, MA
Oct 1 Terminal 5 New York, NY
Oct 4 9:30 Club Washington, DC

SOTD: "Rock N' Roll Is Free" - Ben Harper

Fistful of Mercy on Conan TONIGHT

Fistful of Mercy will be performing on Conan tonight with special guest Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine). Check it out tonight at 11PM (EST) on TBS.

SOTD: "Endless Eyes" - Alain Johannes

Alain Johannes will be opening several shows for "Fistful of Mercy" (Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur, and Dhani Harrison) this November, dates below:

Alain Johannes Tour Dates w/Fistful of Mercy

11/09: Seattle, WA @ Showbox at Market
11/11: San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
11/14: Los Angeles, CA @ Masonic Lounge at Hollywood Forever
11/16: Washington, DC @ Sixth + I Historic Synagogue
11/17: New York, NY @ Apollo Theater
11/18: Sommerville, MA @ Sommerville Theater
11/20: Philadelphia, PA @ Temple University – Baptist Tample

Fistful Of Mercy: "As I Call You Down"

The new album from Fistful of Mercy (Ben Harper, Dhani Harrison, Joseph Arthur) titled "As I Call You Down" was released yesterday. I listened to it last night, you can get it HERE.

Also, the band has some upcoming tour dates listed below. More information can be found at their site HERE.

Fistful of Mercy from Fistful of Mercy on Vimeo.

11/09 - Seattle, WA : Showbox at the Market
11/11 - San Francisco, CA : Great American Music Hall
11/13 - Hollywood, CA : Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever (early show)
11/13 - Hollywood, CA : Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever (late show)
11/14 - Hollywood, CA : Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever
11/16 - Washington, DC : Sixth & I
11/17 - NYC : Apollo Theatre
11/18 - Somerville, MA : Somerville Theater
11/20 - Philadelphia, PA : Baptist Temple at Temple University

SOTD: "Fistful of Mercy" - Fistful of Mercy

This one's from a new "supergroup" called Fistful of Mercy: Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison. Really cool song....

Kennedy Center Honors: Bruce Springsteen

This evening CBS will be broadcasting the Kennedy Center Honors at 9pm (EST) and one of the recipients will be Bruce Springsteen. Ben Harper will perform a duet of "I'm On Fire" with Sugarland's Jennifer Nettlesh. Eddie Vedder is also listed as one of the presenters/performers and supposedly sang "My City Of Ruins", hopefully we'll get to see that. Additional information is available HERE.

25 Songs From 2009 (Part V)

MERRY CHRISTMAS! Here's the final 5 songs, completing the list of 25 great songs from 2009.

"My Night With A Prostitute From Marseille" - Beirut (from the album "March of the Zapotec)




"Fly One Time" - Ben Harper & The Relentless 7 (from the album "White Lies For Dark Times"




"Sometime Around Midnight" - The Airborne Toxic Event (from the album "The Airborne Toxic Event")




"Ain't Nothing Like You (Hoochie-Coo)" - Blakroc (from the album "Blakroc")




"Paradise Cove" - Pete Yorn (from the album "Back & Forth")

Larger In Life.... In 3D: DMB, Ben Harper, Gogol Bordello

Received this email last night, sounds interesting......

Beginning Friday December 11th and screening in theatres nationwide through Thursday, December 17th only, check out Ben Harper and Relentless7 in "LARGER THAN LIFE...IN 3D". The movie features songs from R7's set at Mile High Music Festival before Dave Matthews Band's set at ACL Festival closes the film. Gogol Bordello (with Innocent Criminal Oliver Charles on drums) also perform.

Shot in Digital 3D by inconcert3d, the format brings viewers onstage, giving them a stunning 360° view of each live performance. Larger than Life...in 3D is a limited one week engagement and will not be released on DVD. Visit the film's official site HERE for screening locations and advance ticket sales.