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Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals

Ben Harper
Ben Harper 003.jpg
Ben Harper at the Eurockéennes in 2008
Background information
Birth name Benjamin Chase Harper
Born (1969-10-28) October 28, 1969 (age 47)
Pomona, California
United States
Genres Folk rock, blues rock, alternative rock, soul, funk rock, gospel, reggae, jam rock, neofolk
Occupation(s) Musician, humanitarian
Instruments Vocals, guitar, lap steel guitar, slide guitar, keyboard instruments, piano, bass, drums, percussion, vibes
Years active 1992–present
Labels Virgin, EMI Records
Associated acts Ben Harper and The Blind Boys of Alabama
Relentless7
Vanessa da Mata
Fistful of Mercy
Natalie Maines
Charlie Musselwhite
Ben Harper and The Innocent Criminals
Website Official web site
Notable instruments
Weissenborn lap steel guitar

Benjamin Chase "Ben" Harper (born October 28, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Harper plays an eclectic mix of blues, folk, soul, reggae and rock music and is known for his guitar-playing skills, vocals, live performances, and activism. He has released twelve regular studio albums, mostly through Virgin Records and has toured internationally.

Harper is a three-time Grammy Award winner, with awards for Best Pop Instrumental Performance and Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album in 2005 and Best Blues Album in 2014.

Harper was born in Pomona, California. His father, Leonard, was of African-American and possibly Cherokee ancestry, and his mother, Ellen Chase-Verdries, is Jewish. His maternal great-grandmother was a Russian-Lithuanian Jew. His parents divorced when he was five years old, and he grew up with his mother's family. Harper has two brothers, Joel and Peter.

Harper began playing guitar as a child. His maternal grandparents' music store The Folk Music Center and Museum laid a foundation of folk and blues for the artist, complemented by regular patrons Leonard Cohen, Taj Mahal, John Darnielle, and David Lindley and quotes of William Shakespeare and Robert Frost made often by his grandfather.

In 1978, at the age of 9, Harper attended Bob Marley's performance in Burbank, California where Marley was joined by former bandmate Peter Tosh for the encore, It was, according to Harper, an important influence.


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