songwriter, Builth Wells, Powys, Wales
Reviews 
There was a certain synergy, albeit accidental, regarding the billing of Tracy Grammer and Jim Henry and opening act Jack Harris, the connection being the Quiet Valley Ranch in the Texas Hill Country. Located ten miles south of the town of Kerrville, since 1974 and the third Kerrville Folk Festival, the ranch has been the home to this annual Folk music smorgasbord. In late May 1998, Tracy accompanied her late musical partner, Dave Carter, when he was a finalist and winner of the annual Kerrville New Folk Songwriting Competition. Segue forward seven years and not only did Welsh-born Jack Harris become the first non-North American-born winner of the contest, but I believe he's also the youngest ever - at the age of nineteen years, one month, and one week.
As for the venue, Fulston Manor head teacher Alan Brookes has been presenting around half a dozen Roots music concerts each year for the past three years in the school's purpose-built Millennium Performing Arts Centre. History will record that Tracy Grammer and Jim Henry made their U.K. performing debut together in Sittingbourne in the county of Kent, in front of a capacity crowd of over 100. Further extending the Texas connection, I first saw Jim Henry display his skill with a "piece of wood and steel," on the Quiet Valley Ranch circa 1999 as guitarist for the Ithaca, New York-based songbirds The Burns Sisters.
Born in Builth Wells, Powys, during April 1986, the oldest of three siblings, Jack Harris is currently a first year English Literature major at Jesus College Oxford. For three years, commencing at the age of eight, Jack took Classical guitar lessons, but as Jude, his schoolteacher mother recalled, "It was a sod to get him to practise." Although he gave up the lessons, Jack maintained an active interest in music and went on to discover the music of Blues artists Taj Mahal and J.J. Cale. Inspired, the youngster began writing songs soon afterwards.
Armed with a Taylor acoustic guitar and with brother Harry on mandolin, Jack opened his Sittingbourne set with "Red's On The Bed," a tune that was recently posted at his website. Jack's New Zealand-born father, Russ, told me after the show that the title, although not the lyric, had been inspired by a poster that Jack saw one time that stated "Llanidloes Quilt Festival: Reds on the Bed." Extracting the latter part of the title, Jack added an apostrophe to Reds and wrote the song. After he performed the song at home, having unknowingly employed similar words to the cold war spy syndrome of "reds under the bed," Jack and his father had a conversation about that recent period in world history. As for the thrust of Jack's lyric, I guess the repeated line "_Think of colour baby, Think of passion_" hints at the song's content. On his own, Jack then performed "Oasthouses," a previously unheard composition - and, he noted, one of his latest creations. I have to say that Harris' lyric appeared quintessentially English, while, in terms of sound the melody appeared to be, in equal measures, traditional and contemporary. It's a unique approach to song composition, one of its few proponents being the late Nick Drake. Prefacing the song, Jack informed the audience that the lyrical images were inspired by the landscape he witnessed on a car journey from Wales to England, particularly over the border in Herefordshire and around Gloucester. Furthermore, he added, it was a journey where a tourist could be shown "English things in quite a short space of time." His poetic observations include "_I could show certain things that move like wind upon the conifers, Hear the seasons whispering_" and "_I could show you oasthouses, Look like crooked witches hats, And moss broken barns, Frequented largely by stray cats, And a kiln no one thought was there_" [See Note #1]. Constantly on the lookout for the next goose-bump-raising musical experience, "Oasthouses" has to be one of the finest new songs I've heard during 2005.
Next up, while raising a laugh from the audience, Jack recalled his time on Kerrville's Quiet Valley Ranch with "The deal is; you're in a field in Texas for three weeks. There's none of that wussy, three-day Glastonbury stuff" [See Note #2]. On the ranch, Harris witnessed three major thunderstorms and penned "The Devil And The Quiet Lightning." As a witness to such phenomena, I can attest that the power dispensed by these storms can be frightening, destructive even and yet utterly beautiful. Harris has captured those aspects with "I am the quiet lightning, smouldering electric and low/You can find me in valleys far below." Although supported on a shoulder strap, while playing his guitar I noticed that Jack tended to it in an almost vertical position. His fourth selection of the evening was the already familiar Blues-based tune "Flesh & Blood." "A Plague On Both Your Houses," one of the songs that helped Jack to gain a winning slot at New Folk 2005 followed and if you posses a knowledge of the works of William Shakespeare you'll recall that in Romeo And Juliet, with practically his final breath, Mercutio delivers the frustrated curse "A plague o' both your houses" - subjectively, Jack's song possesses an equine focus. For his debut Sittingbourne rendition of the song, Jack was joined on mandolin by brother Harry with the added "fringe benefit" of a support vocal by Naomi Honour, a Fulston pupil. Having delivered the quip "Thank you for being so kind and warm and welcoming. It's always good to show up and play a gig and have people there," and (still) accompanied by Harry, this undeniably talented youngster closed his set with a cover of the Gabby Rodgers and Billy Ed Wheeler co-write "Jackson," which, as he recalled, scored Nancy Sinatra a U.S. Pop hit back in 1967 [See Note #3]. Delivered at a slow pace, the amusing lyric ridicules one man's attempt to prove that he is macho.
Read the rest of the review on Folkwax
I’m going to write a bit more about Texas’ Kerrville Folk Festival, as Arthur Wood, publisher of the Kerrville Kronikle, was not there to digest the proceedings for UK readers this year. We missed him, as he’s the only person who really takes the whole thing seriously. The rest of us go to drink whisky and wine and sing and swim in the glorious Medina river.
A highlight for me, not just of the festival but of my musical life, was hearing Jack Harris for the first time. Jack is from Wales, 19 years old, a huge fellow with pale eyes, wild red hair and a sweet, masterful guitar style. He didn’t have any of his 3 and 5 song CDs with him, but they have begun taping the entire festival so I was able to head home with his New Folk Award Winner’s set.
Which began with “Pomegranate”, written from the point of view of Hades as he yearns for Persephone: “November flows remorseless, red from mortal wounds of May / And I want her more, and I want her still, and I want her more each waking day.” Austin slide guitartist/singer-songwriter Colin Brooks was running the soundboard for New Folk, with his muscle shirt and his tattoos, tolerating my continued insistence to turn down the instruments so we could hear the lyrics. He wasn’t quite sold on Jack.
Jack did another couple of songs, including “A Plague on Both Your Horses” (love and fate), and then, “See How the Bronze Horse Go.” Inspired by a statue, it describes the rider’s cruelty and the horse’s need to be free: “How low now the head, see the bend of the ears / Feel the footsteps’ solemn flow / Come down from his back, you have rode him for years / See how the bronze horse go”. Colin leaned across the board with tears in his eyes and said, “Okay.”
Jack’s got another one based on a Winslow Homer painting, “Girl With a Hayrake.” “But when the redwings fly / Through the evening by and by / She will sit beside the cider mill and drink the apples dry.”
He’s got a working knowledge of American country blues as well as British Isles guitar styles – at late night circles he pulled out his own arrangements of Nic Jones’ signature piece “Canadee-I-o” as well as “The Cobbler’s Daughter,” and sang us one he wrote about Tampa Red. One night he hosted a circle by his tent, serving cranberry juice and bad scotch, a drink we named “Crotch”.
He promised to come back next year. This year he’s beginning literature studies at Oxford University.
June 2005Jack Harris' mastery of the guitar and his passionate singing frame the delivery of some of the loveliest language in contemporary song. His subjects, often inspired by other works of art - a painting, a statue, a Greek myth - are filled with a yearning that transcends personal desire - he's a voice of regeneration, of sure kindness in the face of cruel realities. Mr. Harris is a born poet, and it would be a mistake to say he is destined for greatness. He is already there.
A tall, shy 19-year-old Welshman named Jack Harris walked out on to the Kerrville New Folk Stage with a shock of red curly hair and a guitar dwarfed by his size. In a gentle voice he painted pictures in my head with a lyrical density and metaphorical depth I had not expected to hear. Not since the first time I heard Dave Carter have I been so impressed by a songwriter. He sang "A Plague on Both Your Horses," a cynical tale full of Shakespearian metaphor, and followed that with "Tampa Red," the sad story of an old Georgia bluesman hanging up his guitar.
And it wasn't just the two songs in the contest. There were others at Ballad Tree and around the campfires and in the New Folk Winners' Showcase (of course he was one of the 6 winners). Songs with something to say on the surface, and with layers that invite analysis and research. Songs I want to spend a lot of time with. How can he possibly do that at the age of 19?! I need to hear them all again, and again, and to learn them and sing them and spread them around.
And then there were the sweet instrumentals of old favorite songs in the lazy midweek afternoons, and the tasty lead guitar licks added to the songs of others in the wee hours around quiet song circles after Main Stage.
If you ever get a chance to hear Jack Harris from Builth Wells, Powys, Wales, UK, make every effort to do so. I'm going to do all I can to get him back to Texas, and I'm sure I'll have help from Eric Taylor, who has been mentoring him for some time, and from other venue operators.
Legendary Texas singer-songwriter Eric Taylor played a Memphis stage for the first time on Sunday, May 15, to the delight of a warm and welcoming Memphis audience. He brought along his trusty sidekick, Susan Lindfors, who serves as agent, manager, awesome backup harmony singer, and girlfriend. A surprise for the Coffee House audience was found in Jack Harris, 18-year-old aspiring songwriter from Builth Wells, Wales, who's been traveling with Eric & Susan this year. Jack's opening was arranged about a month before the concert, and was met with much enthusiastic appreciation. His gracious giddiness about actually getting to play and sing in MEMPHIS, was contagious. He's a gifted, talented musician who makes it all look so easy... certainly the mark of a real pro. Best wishes to Jack as he makes his debut as a finalist at the 2005 Kerrville Folk Festival later this month!
"I give you the tall Welshman with the big hair!" was how Jack Harris was introduced to the packed crowd at Twickenham's Cabbage Patch. The 18-year-old singer/songwriter stepped up to the mike and quietly replied ""That would be Colin Charvis, then!" Over the past few years, Jack has charmed listeners in this disarming way at gigs from Mid-Wales to Austin, Texas. His acoustic guitar playing and sensitive, husky warm vocals were on form as he supported A. J. Roach at the start of their recent joint UK tour. Their mutual admiration and strong friendship was evident as they paid genuine compliments to each other during the show.
Jack opened with 'Martin's Coming Home', a slow elegiac ballad, reminiscent of Nick Drake's hypnotic 'One Of These Things First', with its gentle timeless melody and rippling arpeggio guitar runs. He followed with a song, based on a children's picture book story, 'Where Does The Brown Bear Go?'. This sprightly piece had an easy-paced syncopated guitar figure and a treat of an animal lyric worthy of Tom Paxton at his zoological best. The audience started adding harmony lines at this point. Jack, a keen English language student, showed his love for words with 'Kettling', his third number. Kettling is apparently a natural history term, referring to the upward circling movement by a bird of prey seeking its victim. Jack uses this as a metaphor for courting, describing how the song's genesis was influenced by an 18th birthday party hangover!
Jack dedicated 'Breakfast', a track off his 'Pathfinder' EP, to a fan in the audience. This lively strummed folk lovesong counsels 'there's nothing like breakfast with others around you, to ease up a man's worried mind'. His final song 'The Tailor Of Aquitaine' is key to Jack's links with A. J. Roach. It was a performance of this song at the 2004 South-By-South-West festival in Austin that first attracted A.J. Roach's manager. Similar in texture to Donovan's 1960s' cameo 'Guinevere', 'Tailor' has a delicate medieval feel plus a casanova-style arresting lyric 'All the noblemen's daughters are wearing me down'. If music performance is about winning hearts and minds, then this Jack of Hearts, on his return appearance to the Cabbage Patch, won hands down.
Jack’s songs tell searching stories of human experience and reveal a maturity and understanding far beyond his years. His rich, complex lyrics and his powerful melodies draw upon a diverse range of influences - from the music of Tom Waits, Lyle Lovett and Laura Nyro to the local tales told by his grandmother.
Monday 2nd saw us in Rhayader, Powys, where Carad had kindly organised a showcase performance for the Builth Wells singer/songwriter Jack Harris. Despite the intimidation of playing to a crowd of five, Jack played a whole set of songs of stunning originality. Still only seventeen, Jack has managed to beat off strong competition to secure a place at the prestigious music industry bash SXSW in Austin, Texas, which he did for himself via the internet. We will be recording three songs with Jack in Rockfield studios for him to take to the States.
Jack Harris is a singularly gifted young singer/songwriter from Builth Wells. His regular opening spot at Rhayader's Carad venue has impressed visiting headlining American artists, including Eliza Gilkyson and Eric Taylor, so much that he is due to travel to the States this year to appear at one of the most prestigious American songwriter festivals, as well as to 'open' for Eliza Gilkyson at a number of her shows. A bright future beckons for young Jack - oh, and he's just seventeen years old!
Review
Well, if 2004 continues in this vein, we'll be happy bunnies here at Cambria Arts HQ. Audience numbers - 130 plus, we reckon - far exceeded our ever-cautious expectations, and a comfortable near-full house enjoyed an evening of music that oozed quality in abundance.
Late addition Builth Wells-based opener Jack Harris stilled the just-arrived punters, demonstrating why he's impressed visiting American folk songwriters - Eliza Gilkyson and our friend Eric Taylor among them - so profoundly. A lanky seventeen-year-old, his initially nervous guitar work and stage presence soon settled, and his voice is at a brave half-way point on the way to being a great one. With songs as good as 'Breakfast' and the astonishingly literary 'Tailor of Aquitaine', his dream-come-true invitation to appear at the fabled South-By-Southwest Songwriter Festival in Austin, Texas in March could well result in a a thumbs-up and some handy career guidance from a few more of the legendary US songwriters that he so obviously reveres (and emulates). The Talbot crowd recognize promise when they see it, and they gave young Jack a warm reception (and bought some of his CDs). Jack's on his way.