Tones behind the tracks

Every month we get inside the mind of one of the biggest names in music. This issue: Roy Harper . Since the mid-60s, the progressive folk singer-songwriter has enjoyed a successful solo career that’s also found him collaborating with everyone from Pink Floyd and Peter Gabriel to Kate Bush and Ian Anderson. But he’s never quite reached the commercial heights of his peers. As his Final Tour: Part Two fast approaches, he looks back over highlights from his career so far and teases a brand-new album.

After the success of their Space Ritual tour, Hawkwind were keen to explore new possibilities for their music. The result was the eclectic but much-loved Hall Of The Mountain Grill , now released as a nine-disc box set including three live shows from 1974. Prog looks back on the making of a classic.

Zaytoun Songs by JS Bach, Monteverdi, Purcell and Sayed Darwish et al Haitham Haidar (tenor), Sylvain Bergeron (archlute), Abdul-Wahab Kayyali (oud) et al Athene ATH 23027 51:44 mins In medieval Spain

The grand parade of lifeless packaging? Far from it, as this much-delayed blockbuster reissue of one of prog’s most fascinating and frustrating albums finally proves.

Decorated with accolades from the Grammys to the Academy Of Country Music, the legendary Nashville sessioneer has played on over a thousand records. Here, he shares his go-to gear, why he surrendered to the metronome, and how “letting the emotion escape” is the key to nailing that first take

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