New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Reservoir announces the signing of three-time Grammy-winning singer-songwriter
Ben Harper to worldwide publishing deal. The deal includes global rights to Harper's entire catalog of works including the new instrumental album Winter Is For Lovers, which was released last week.
The LA-based Harper has written and recorded a prolific collection of works both alone and with his longtime band The Innocent Criminals, including fourteen studio albums, five live albums, and three concert films, plus a project with
Dhani Harrison and Joseph Arthur called Fistful of Mercy. Of those, five have been certified Gold by the RIAA, including Live From Mars, Fight for Your Mind, Burn to Shine, Diamonds on the Inside, and Welcome to the Cruel World, with many of his albums gaining Gold and Platinum certifications across the globe. Harper has won three Grammy Awards, including 2004 awards for 'Best Pop Instrumental Performance' for "11th Commandment" and 'Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album' for There Will Be A Light, as well as a win for 'Best Blues Album' in 2014 for his album Get Up!, a collaboration with Charlie Musselwhite. Some of his best-known works include "Diamonds on the Inside," "Steal My Kisses," "Boa Sorte," "Burn One Down," and "Forever," with these tracks also gaining extensive recognition worldwide. Plus, his single "You Found Another Lover (I Lost Another Friend)" off of Get Up! was also certified Gold by the RIAA.
This October, Harper adds to his impressive catalog with his new release, Winter Is For Lovers, an intimate and ambitious instrumental album he first conceived of more than a decade ago. It is a profoundly emotional story told exclusively through the nuance of sound. The narration is provided by a single lap-steel guitar and the music references blues and folk as well as flamenco, Indian and classical, but it transcends any specific style.
Conceived by Harper as a "lap-steel symphony," the songs on the record serve more as markers to delineate a listener's location. These sections have been named for geographic locations that, over the years, helped to inspire the record, with singles off the album including "Inland Empire," named for the region of Southern California where Harper grew up, as well as "
London" and "Paris."
Harper has built a steady following of fans since the early '90s, earning notoriety for his unique sound, particularly the inimitable guitar skills he first picked up during his childhood while working and spending time at the Folk
Music Center owned by his grandparents in Southern California. It was there Harper found his roots in blues and folk, and also there that he was exposed to instruments and sounds from all around the world. It is, in large part, why he is able to so effortlessly draw upon such a variety of influences.
"Some of the most forward-thinking conversations I'm having around music right now are with the people at my new publisher Reservoir," said Harper. "The first 27 years of songs I've written are now with them, and hopefully my next 27 years, as the best is yet to come."
"Ben Harper's music is essential," added Reservoir EVP—Global Creative Director, Donna Caseine. "His music continues to tell rich stories and move the soul. From "The Three of Us" to "
Paris" on his latest release Winter Is For Lovers, Ben's musicianship and excellence is unparalleled. We are so grateful he put his songs in our care and look forward to all the new music ahead."
