Harper and Midwest Kind November Blog 2018

Hi everyone,

Sorry for delay in posting this blog.  This year's Harper and Midwest Kind summer tour was absolutely full on.  We drove from shows in Indiana, Iowa, South Dakota to shows at Mammoth Lakes California, San Jose, Sacramento, Reno Nevada then on to Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois then back to Michigan.  The festivals were amazing - Mammoth Lakes Bluesapalooza right close to Yosemite National Park was incredible fun.  It was very smokey from all the wild fires and lots of roads were closed but the sky seemed to clear for a few hours while we performed. There were 13 fires burning in the area - very sad to experience.  Helicopters were swooping around us collecting water from the lakes.  The club shows at The Poor House and The Torch club were great, lots of old friends coming out of the woodwork.  We then decided to do some touristy stuff - spending a day in Las Vegas - there we had some incredible sushi!!  Then we took the winding scenic drive along the Vermillion Cliffs on Hwy 89 in Utah.  The redness of the rocks surrounded by sage grass were something to see.   Then we took a day in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.  The weather was stunning and the views beyond imagination.  The drive out the east gate was really something to see.  Large mountains, winding rivers, bright blue sky turning in to a golden sunset as we drove towards Montana.    Sorry we didn’t make it up to the North West - Washington State but we will try to do it next time around.

After Montana we played a cool concert series on Spirit Lake in Menahga Minnesota.  Then we finished the tour with a great show at Waukesha Blues Festival in Wisconsin and Pop’s Place in Decatur Illinois.  We ended the summer over Labor Day Weekend at Old Daufuskie Crab Company on Daufuskie Island in South Carolina just before the hurricane hit.  Thankfully the island was spared!  In September, we got to visit one of our favorite festivals - Camp Jam in the Pines in New Jersey.  Wonderful people and good times.   In October we headed down to Mississippi for the incredible Bukka White Blues Festival on a stunning lake out in the countryside of the town of Aberdeen. 

The new "Harper and Griebe” CD has been released and has received heavy rotation in Europe on Top 40/ Rock Stations which is a very nice thing to happen.   Please check out the facebook page and the website   "Distant Unity” is available online at, please check it out .   https://bsc-music-gmbh.lnk.to/S-AeF

https://www.facebook.com/Harper-Griebe-282579245848175/

http://www.harper-griebe.com/  

We are about to head out on yet another tour - to Illinois, Missouri and Florida.  Wishing you all the best for Thanksgiving - despite the negative appearances we see on our televisions and on social media, we all have a lot to be thankful for!

See you all out on the road this Fall/ Winter!!!

Thanks and Peace,

Peter D. Harper,

Harper and Midwest Kind

#harperandmidwestkindspringtour

HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                       HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                              HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation
https://www.instagram.com/harperandmidwestkind
https://www.twitter.com/harperband

Harper and Midwest Kind August Blog

Howdy Everyone,

We are in the thick of festival season, and we are heading West as we speak.  Some exciting news has happened, my new CD - as part of "Harper & Griebe" - called "Long Distant Unity" is due to be released on August 10th.  The style of music is more progressive Adult contemporary, but I think you all will dig the tunes.  There is an incredible backstory to this CD.  Back in the year 2000, German Guitarist Joachim Griebe, contacted me in Australia, after hearing my CD "Glass on The Stepping Stone" being played at a Berlin club called "Quasimodos".  He invited me to come to Germany to write with him.  We put together a CD but it was never released due to a falling out caused by a misunderstanding and the language barrier.  16 years pass and Joachim emailed, out of the blue.  I was so happy to hear from him and he was amazed to hear that we were going to be performing in Germany just 2 hours from his house.   We met up at the hotel in May and it was like meeting my twin brother again.  We laughed so hard, people were looking at us strangely.  To top it off, Joachim wanted to write with me again and was able to get our original recording deal back with a major European Label - "Rough Trade". 

So "Harper and Griebe" is once more!  Please check out the facebook page and the website (still being built).  "Distant Unity will be available online from August 10th onwards.   

https://www.facebook.com/Harper-Griebe-282579245848175/

http://www.harper-griebe.com/  

 

Here are some sample tunes from "Long Distant Unity" : Please enjoy!!!  http://www.joachimgriebe.de/harper---griebe-.html

Harper and Midwest Kind 's summer tour is choc full of festivals/ concert series and club dates.  We will be performing in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Sioux Falls, Minnesota, Nevada and California.  We will be headlining Mammoth Lakes Bluesapalooza for the second time,  we have a show with Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band in Reno, Nevada, we will be returning to Sounds Of Spirit Lake in Minnesota and Waukesha Blues Festival in Wisconsin and some new ones : Microbrew Fest, Mancelona Michigan and Eckhert's Apple Orchard in Belleville, Illinois.   Please come out and say hi.

See you all out on the road this summer!!!

Thanks and Peace,

Peter D. Harper,

Harper and Midwest Kind

#harperandmidwestkindspringtour

HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                       HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                              HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation
https://www.instagram.com/harperandmidwestkind
https://www.twitter.com/harperband

Harper and Midwest Kind June Blog 2018

Happy Summer Everyone,

Just back from Germany, Kentucky and South Carolina.   Our visit to the Grolsch Blues Festival in Shoppingen, Germany was outstanding in every possible way.  The crowd, hospitality, sound and atmosphere was incredible. We had the 9pm slot and it was fabulous.  Great artists like Ronnie Baker Brooks, Lucky Peterson and agency pals - Jeremiah Johnson Band were also there.   And an amazing thing happened!.  My old german writing partner - Joachim Griebe emailed me three weeks prior to our trip to Germany.  After a falling out, 16 years ago, he emailed, out of the blue.  I was so happy to hear from him and he was amazed we were going to be performing in Germany just 2 hours from his house.   We met up at the hotel and it was like meeting my twin brother again.  We laughed so hard, people were looking at us strangely.  To top it off, Joachim wanted to write with me again and was able to get our original recording deal back with a major European Label.  So "Harper and Griebe" will be releasing a CD very soon.  

Once back in the US we performed at the Blues Between the Bridges in Lexington, Kentucky.  It was a very hot but great day of BBQ and blues and roots music.  We had an absolute blast.  Then we had three shows at Old Daufuskie Crab Company on Daufuskie Island in South Carolina.  It was a really unique gig because we had to leave our van on the main land at Hilton Head and travel by boat with our gear to the island.  We were given two golf carts to get around in - got horribly lost on our way to our accommodation one night and rained out on one show.  But all in all it was a fun weekend and great soft shell crab to boot.  But a word to the wise, keep away from the "scrap iron hooch" .

This June/ July/ August we have a bunch of cool festivals/ concert series and club dates.  We will be performing in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Connecticut, Delaware, Wisconsin, Iowa, Sioux Falls, Minnesota, Nevada and California.   Please come out and say hi.

See you all out on the road this summer!!!

Thanks and Peace,

Peter D. Harper,

Harper and Midwest Kind

#harperandmidwestkindspringtour

HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                       HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                              HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation
https://www.instagram.com/harperandmidwestkind
https://www.twitter.com/harperband

Harper and Midwest Kind May 2018 Blog

 Hey Everyone,

Happy May!  Just back from a four week tour to Missouri, Illinois, Florida, Texas and Arkansas!   We have a rare home show this Saturday May 12th at The Rumpus Room, Chelsea Michigan.  Michigandas here is the ticket link:  This is a very special music room and we would really like to make it very successful! 7pm Doors, 8pm Show!  Please spread the word!

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/harper-and-midwest-kind-tickets-44577078241invite=&err=29&referrer=&discount=&affiliate=&eventpassword=

Our Spring tour was a lot of fun.   We visited our friends at BBs in St Louis.  Our good friend and amazing didgeridoo performer Brennan England, showed up and jammed. Which was very cool!  We had some fun shows at Pop's Place in Decatur, Ilinois followed by the Alamo in Springfield.  My beautiful wife Bobbi and I celebrated our wedding anniversary on the road.  We had a meal with the band at Golden Corral then visited Walmart straight after - Soooooo Romantic LOL!!!! We circled back to St Louis and spent some time at the amazing National Blues Museum.  If ever in St Louis, you must check this place out.   We plan to do a show there in November.

Then we headed South to Florida and visited many of our favorite venues.  Some newbies were South Street City Oven and Grill in Naples and the Shark Bar in Fort Myers Beach.  Nice music clubs and definitely worth checking out.   Then on to Texas for the Toyota Music Factory / Big Beat Dallas.  What a huge venue - amazing sound and hospitality.  The legendary Antones in Austin Texas, was just as amazing as I thought it would be.   Then the final show took place at another new venue for us - Chelseas in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.  Eureka Springs is such a quirky and cool place.  We completely fitted in there and hope to return!  We are off to Germany next week for the Grolsch Blues Festival Yay!

We hope to see you out on the road this spring and summer!!

Thanks and Peace,

Peter D. Harper,
Harper and Midwest Kind
#harperandmidwestkindspringtour
HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                      HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                             HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation
https://www.instagram.com/harperandmidwestkind
https://www.twitter.com/harperband

Harper and Midwest Kind April Blog 2018

Hey Everyone,

April has arrived and that means the band will head out for yet another big tour which will take us to Missouri, Illinois, Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Michigan, Germany and Kentucky.  Super excited about heading back to Germany for the Grolsch Blues Festival in Schöppingen.  We are one of the headliners with other great artists such as Ronnie Baker Brooks and Lucky Peterson.  We are also really happy to be returning to Texas. Its been quite a few years and playing Antones in Austin and Big Beat Dallas will be quite a treat.

March was an easy month in terms of several local shows in Michigan.  We played at an amazing venue called Founders in Grand Rapids to a crowd of 500.  Great hospitality and incredible sound! We had our own personal server called Adam and he couldn't do enough for us.  And he refused to be tipped for his service!!!!.  We also had an intimate concert at The Gateway in Clarkston put together by music promoter/ supporter: Craig Carrick.  A beautiful Flower shop/ nursery and concert venue.  Very unique and such an enjoyable. soul satisfying evening was had by all.  We had a huge turn out for our Fundraiser for the Friends of Grass Lake Township at the Dale Fisher Gallery/ Eagle Farm.  The show was completely sold out and we raised $6400 + and residents donated over 300 pounds of food to the local food pantry.  The last week of March we headed to Martins in Roanoke, Virginia and got to hang out with some old friends. Then on to two new venues - Jonathan's Landing in Delaware - where we had a nice full crowd and then the legendary Madam's Organ in Washington DC.  Madam Os definitely lived up to her reputation!!!  We finished the month of March with a fun show at Sweet Nolas Southern Food lounge in Winchester, Virginia.  

We hope to see you out on the road this spring and summer!!

Thanks and Peace,

Peter D. Harper,
Harper and Midwest Kind
#harperandmidwestkindspringtour
HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                      HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                             HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation

Harper and Midwest Kind March Blog 2018

 Howdy all,

Happy March. Finally Spring has arrived. Our show at the Winter Bluesfest - at The Franke Center for the Arts in Marshall Michigan was sold out. Local guitarist Jake Kershaw opened the show and really rocked the crowd.  The Franke Center is an amazing listening room, please try to check it out if you are ever in the area, its worth it. A massive winter storm hit Michigan in early February so we decided to leave a day early for our tour South.  Really glad we did because we would have been snowed in. As it turned out, we had great weather and roads all the way to Florida and Alabama and back.

Our tour to Florida and Alabama was great.  Fantastic weather and full to capacity at most shows.  We performed at several new venues - Arts Garage in Delray Beach and the Barrel Room in Fort Myers - both excellent music venues.  Plus some of our old favorites - the legendary Bradfordville Blues Club in Tallahassee,  Capitol Oyster Bar in Montgomery Alabama where Bass player James Norris celebrated his birthday with a dozen sumptuous oysters!! Guanabanas in Jupiter for Valentines Day - and of course,  I had to sing "Feels Like Sunday Morning" for all the valentines. An absolutely packed Englewoods on Dearborn, finishing off with the incredible Little Bar in Goodland.  We ended the month with a very cool show at yet another new venue - The Third Base in Springfield, Illinois.

Big news -  a tour to Texas  in May with dates in Dallas and Austin, Texas. please spread the word cause we haven't toured Texas in years!!!! Also in August we will be touring to Reno Nevada and Northern California.  We have to send out a big thank you to Randy Christian for getting us the show at Antones in Austin and Leslie Marble for helping us out with the Poor House Bistro in San Jose.  See you out on the road this spring!

Peter D. Harper,
Harper and Midwest Kind
#harperandmidwestkindwintertour
HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                      HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                             HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation

Harper and Midwest Kind January Blog 2018

Howdy everyone,

We are nearly into February and the touring has started again thick and fast.  For our Toronto Fans the scheduled show for next Friday has run into a scheduling conflict.  We hope to rebook this date at a later time, very sorry for any inconvenience caused.   Our fundraiser in December at The Dale Fisher Gallery in Grass Lake Michigan for the non profit group:  Friends of Grass Lake Township raised over $5000 which was way beyond expectations and an amazing event to be apart of.

January saw us facing a two week arctic blast but we managed to perform to some great crowds who braved the icey cold weather to come out to see us at our favorite Michigan clubs - "Tip Top Deluxe" and "Trinity House Theatre"and a very new venue - "20 Front Street" in Lake Orion. We made our debut at "World Cafe Live" in Philadelphia and "Kettleworks" in Columbia PA.  "Kettleworks" was a complete sellout - we hope to return later in the year.   At "World Cafe Live" we hung out with our dear friends: Lori and Steve owners of "Camp Jam in the Pines".  We hope to make a return visit to Camp Jam in September.   Just this past weekend we performed in Connecticut at a great new venue "Woodbury Brewing Company"  and returned to an old favorite - "Black Eyed Sallys".

January was also a very frustrating month  - with our heating furnace breaking down during the big freeze and a sewage explosion for the second time in our basement and Bobbi poured a cup of tea over her new Mac Lap Top for the second time as well. When it rains it pours, as they say LOL!!!!.  I am just very thankful for my wonderful friends who came to our rescue and you all know who you are.  Im still working on a new CD and our guitarist Mike Howe has just completed his solo CD.  The festivals are starting to roll in.  We plan to tour to the West Coast next summer, more dates to be announced very soon.  We Hope to see you out on the road this winter and spring!

Peter D. Harper,
Harper and Midwest Kind
#harperandmidwestkindwintertour
HarperWebsite                                                                                                                         Didgeridoo/HarmonicaWorkshops                                                                                         HarperandMidwestKindYoutube                                                                                                          HarperandMidwestKindFacebook                                                                                                                                                      HarperMusicPage                                                                                                                                                                             HarperandMidwestKindReverbnation