Mark Harrison

Crooked Smile

When I saw Mark play a short while back he featured a number of these songs in his live set so I had an idea of what to expect but when you hear these songs in the full band format they become more coherent and even more ‘classic’.

Mark writes songs that sound as tjough they are Blues staples from the late twenties and thirties but his themes are as much ‘now’ as ‘then’ and with a sympathetic group of musicians he makes a noise that really is timeless. 
He is helped out here by various combinations of Charles Benfield (Double Bass, Hammond C3, Harmonium, Electric Guitar, percussion), Ryan Carr (Mandolin, Electric Guitar), Will Greener (Harmonicas), Ed Hopwood (Drums), Ben Walker (Mandolin, Electric Guitar) and vocals from Josienne Clarke but the songs are the real stars along with Harrison’s gently picked guitar – mainly his trusty National Resonator – and his lead vocals.

There is nothing here that tears it up, rather the songs are dictated by Harrison’s vocal style which is almost conversational in tone, but his lyrics sing of his life and observations and while all the songs feel as though they could be rooted in the past they are contemporary and spark of truth.
What there is here though is a collection of songs that will pull you in to the stories and allow the different musicians to play in an unstrained and very relaxed environment.

‘Georgia Greene’
‘Pearly Gates’
‘Crematorium Blues’
‘Mexican Gardner’
‘Bombs Coming Down’
‘Lay Your Burden Down’
‘The Demon Drink’
The Original Dawg’
‘Honeyboy’
‘Blessed’
‘Smiler John’
‘Reckless’