Stir Cheat Sheet: 5 things to know about adventurous U.K. guitarist Martin Harley
Roots-and-blues musician playing the Kay Meek Arts Centre on May 17 has strummed alongside Vieux Farka Touré in Mali, toured England by bicycle, and more
Martin Harley playing slide guitar. Photo by Michal Augustini
Kay Meek Arts Centre presents Martin Harley, a Kay Meek Cabaret Presentation, on May 17 at 7:30 pm
U.K. GUITARIST MARTIN HARLEY has a remarkable habit of embarking on once-in-a-lifetime musical journeys. Born in Cardiff, Wales and now based in Hertfordshire, England, the musician has reinvented the wheel when it comes to performance, from touring his home country by bicycle to strumming his guitar atop a mountain in South Asia.
Melding roots and blues rhythms with slide guitar, Harley produces a down-to-earth sound that is both intimate and engaging for audiences. He has recorded multiple albums in the U.K., Texas, and Nashville, and toured to Glastonbury Festival in England, Tønder Festival in Denmark, and the Troubadour in California, among other venues.
Ahead of his cabaret-style concert at the Kay Meek Arts Centre on May 17, here are some fun facts about the daring English guitarist.
He once set the Guinness World Record for playing the highest gig in the world
Back in 2005, Harley visited the Himalayas in Nepal and scaled Kala Patthar—from which there’s a stellar view of Mount Everest—alongside six other musicians. Amid the majestic mountain range, they played a 40-minute gig at an elevation of 21,000 feet, setting an official Guinness World Record for the “Highest altitude concert on land” (which has since been broken). Fellow English musician Oz Bayldon organized and led the performance to raise money for his charity, Music4Children, and the proceeds went to Nepalese children in need.
Walfredo Reyes Jr., the current drummer of rock band Chicago.
Harley’s fifth album features veteran drummer Walfredo Reyes Jr.
Having previously honed his percussion skills while touring alongside big names in the music industry—think Santana, Steve Winwood, Gloria Estefan, and more—Walfredo Reyes Jr. is now the drummer for American rock band Chicago, a role he’s held since 2012. Just before he joined Chicago, though, he played drums on Harley’s fifth album, Mojo Fix, a more rock-forward approach for the U.K. guitarist’s discography that leans into his use of the Weissenborn lap-slide guitar. Mojo Fix effectively launched Harley’s solo career in the U.S., earning him plenty of radio airplay and leading him to perform American concerts.
Vieux Farka Touré was his travelling concert companion in West Africa
The son of renowned Malian musician Ali Farka Touré, critically acclaimed guitarist Vieux Farka Touré (who recently performed a sold-out show at the York Theatre) weaves together reggae, rock, funk, and traditional African influences to create mesmerizingly layered music. Around the time that his self-titled debut album was released in 2007, Harley spent six weeks travelling and playing music throughout the West African countries of Guinea, Senegal, and Mali, where he performed with the youngest Touré in the early stages of his professional career. A French film crew recorded the visit, and later released a CD and DVD.
He’s a member of modern-Americana trio Harley Kimbro Lewis
Aside from his successful solo career, Harley is also the guitarist of Harley Kimbro Lewis, a joint venture he formed alongside Grammy Award-nominated bassist Daniel Kimbro and singer-songwriter Sam Lewis. The trio released its self-titled debut record last summer, which draws upon the musicians’ previous decade of collaboration for a laid-back, old-fashioned American blues-rock sound. “Cowboys in Hawaii”, the album’s fourth track, encapsulates this vibe perfectly with Harley’s relaxing lap-steel guitar notes.
He skipped the tour van for a bicycle one year
Following the release of Harley’s fourth studio album, Drumrolls for Sommersaults, in 2010, he hopped on his bicycle and set out on the eco-friendly Blues Gone Green Tour, supported by charities Sustrans and Villages in Action. Over a span of 31 days, he pedalled more than 1,900 kilometres across the U.K., playing a total of 27 shows. He may not be cycling to the Kay Meek Arts Centre on May 17, but he’s bound to take audiences for a sonically rad ride.
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