JP Harris and the Tough Choices - Ambassador for old Country music recruiting a few new fans!

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The country singer with Soul…

JP Harris and the Tough Choices **** is on a mission to put the soul back into Country music and convert Europe into followers of the great American music genre. Country music has long been a hard sell as far as I am concerned. My own appreciation of the genre is coloured by childhood memories of time spent in town halls, dance halls and small clubs, permeated by the smell of woodpeckers cider, listening to my dad play with the Tennessee Truckers.

The life of a professional musician can be tough on a young family. That and repeatedly listening to 1980’s country hits like Eddie Rabbitt sing 'Drivin’ my life Away', on tedious family car journeys, and lately songs about big tractors, big pick up trucks, big bums, and beer drinking had turned me off of the genre. Twenty years later I still can’t get that Eddie Rabbitt song out my head. It haunted me in a bad way.

There was also the year I learnt western dancing... shhh!!! that is a long held secret, so don’t tell anyone. Yes JP Harris did take me back to those days and those old Country songs, but I found myself loving it. The distance of time now gives those memories nostalgic warmth. His music is more reminiscent of the music coming out of the Neotraditional country music movement of the 1980's. There are striking similarities between JP Harris and George Straits music such as ‘All my Ex’s live in Texas’ and ‘Honk Tonk Crazy’. Randy Travis and Clint Black also spring to mind.

In places the steel guitar give it the feel of Steve Wariner’s 'Burnin’ the roadhouse Down’. His live sound is big and pure, and far superior to the sound captured on either album 'I’ll keep Calling' and 'Home is where the hurt Is'. He sung a selection of the best tracks off of both albums. Every song has a story, sometimes light hearted and funny, sometimes melancholic. JP Harris songs touch on rough edges and hardships, which are reflections of his life on the road. This Country boy is from the school of life.

If you are not already familiar with this artist, then you should take a quick look at his bio. He started out on the road at fourteen and worked as a laborer, farm hand and carpenter. You wont hear him singing about pick up trucks, cornfields, beer money or whiskey. You will hear numerous references to Honky Tonk, which clearly sets down the markers for the purist old style country JP Harris is creating. Apart from the title track of his new album 'Home is where is the hurt Is' there is a warmth and sometimes a little irony. These are songs of real life experience, grit and wisdom.

The venue was intimate enough to allow him to connect and interact with the audience, and he dedicated a cover of George Straits ' ' to this very appreciative reviewer and photographer Dan Devour, who interviewed JP Harries before the show. The sound at Bullington was top class for such a small venue hosting a big up and coming name in this genre. His first album 'I’ll keep Calling' won “best Country album of 2012” I feel honoured to have been there, but I get the feeling JP Harris likes playing to a small attentive and intimate audience as much as to a larger crowd.

If you are a follower of Country music you will have become used to the little dramatic sequences at the beginning of the music videos. In a way I felt this was missing from the album experience compared to listening to the live show. I would have liked the new album to include a little narrative of the back story to each song. The new album may sound mostly upbeat, but the smile dancing across the lyrics is underscored by a meditation on overcoming life’s hardships. 

It makes a difference to hear the artists take on each song... and to me the talk is a bit of a tradition in itself. But, this is also what makes going to a live performance worthwhile, and this makes the artist all the more worth going to see live. The surprising thing about JP Harris is the diversity of music he appreciates.

When I spoke to him before the show he reveled early musical influences outside of Country and his like of Anarcho Punk band Conflict. At the same time this guy is authentically country, thoroughly nice, humble and he has surely paid his dues for his art. Sadly JP Harris has now completed his 2015 European tour, but we hope it won’t be too long before he returns.

Review by Dezadie and Photo's by Dan Devour

Check Out! the a very special performance of the George Strait song 'The Fireman' for Music Trespass Magazine Below...