ERIN HARPE • roots & blues

Wow, what a summer it's been! Last weekend I fulfilled a lifetime dream – opening for the great ZZ Top! Pictures and story below! Our summer midwest/southern/northeast tour went great, thanks to all who came out to see a show or saw us for the first time!

We've got lots of good news! My new Women of the Delta Blues Guitar DVD is coming out soon and you can see a preview right now! We've also got new music coming soon, the International Blues Challenge coming up this January in Memphis, a southern tour, and new videos on our YouTube channel! Also our Upcoming Shows list is at the bottom!
 

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Opening for ZZ Top!

About a week ago (September 10th to be exact...), it was BUCKET LIST time, when I got to open for the legendary band ZZ Top at Indian Ranch in Webster, MA! It was really exciting, a little bit scary, and a day I'll certainly never forget! I had a great time meeting ZZ fans and making new friends – the fans and the show were amazing! People I talked to really appreciated my stripped down sound (my set was solo acoustic, due to the band's stage set-up) – which I'll admit felt a little nerve wracking in front of 3,000+ people. But once I got on stage I felt right at home, and I could feel that people were receptive and digging it! Check out my set and some backstage footage (captured by Jim Countryman)!

Here are a few clips from ZZ Top's set too (see, you get a backstage pass because you're with us!) Here's me dancing to ZZ Top being silly, and a cool little clip from behind Frank Beard's drums!

After the crowds left, Billy Gibbons came out to say hello, saying he and the band had really enjoyed my set, and liked where I was coming from – a real reverence for the old classic blues. He was even trying to imitate which of my licks he liked! We chatted for a bit, took some pictures and then Billy said he wanted to go out on the town, and would we want to tag along? (Hmmm, um, YES!) The plan was bowling at a local alley, but instead we stopped at a Greek Festival on a church lawn he spotted on the way. We ate spanakopita and talked blues, travel, and compared callouses – it was awesome! Just myself, Jim, and Matt, hanging with BILLY GIBBONS OF ZZ TOP (while two body guards looked on...)! I loved hearing about his recent trip to Cuba to record his solo album Perfectamundo. At the Fest, everybody recognized him, but he politely declined any more photos, just wanting to hang out and enjoy the fest with us. Here's a little footage from the Greek fest. It was just about the best day of my life, it felt like we were part of the Reverend Billy G's posse!

From the Worcester Telegram "...following a lovely set by Boston's Erin Harpe, ZZ Top ripped through a 15-song, hour and 14-minute set that was about as bare-bones as one can get: Just bassist and vocalist Dusty Hill, guitarist and vocalist Billy Gibbons, and drummer Frank Beard, with no backup, no effects and no theatrics..." Read the full review.
 

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Delta Blueswomen DVD Preview!
A while ago I was contacted by Stefan Grossman's Guitar Workshop about making an instructional video about Women of the Delta Blues Guitar. Well, I'm happy to say, it's now in production and will be out soon! I'll be sending out a special announcement when it's available – which will be soon – in time for the holidays!

Right now you can see a 20-minute long preview, where I play some of the songs and talk a little about my background, growing up learning the delta blues! Watch on YouTube now!
 

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Coming up!
New music coming! We're going to be releasing some singles very soon, and the new album is coming along too, due out early next year!

2017 International Blues Challenge! We're so excited to be heading back down to the home of the blues – Memphis, Tennessee – this January, to represent the Granite State Blues Society in the 2017 International Blues Challenge (IBC)! The IBC is the world's biggest gathering of blues performers, featuring hundreds of bands from all around the world playing blues and competing for 3 days at clubs on Beale Street. It's also a great place to go as a fan – you can get passes that get you in to see all the music! Stay tuned for more details it gets closer, and we hope to see some of you in Memphis!

Southern tour! Since we're heading down to Memphis in January, we're going to be doing a southern tour around that time. So far we've got stops planned in Arlington, Virginia and Tupelo, Mississippi and we're working on dates in Florida as well as Memphis, Tennessee (of course)! Watch for more news on our upcoming January and February Southern Tour! We're looking forward to seeing our southern friends!

Subscribe to our NEW YouTube Channel! New videos are being added all the time on our new YouTube Channel, so subscribe now for great live show footage, music and lyric videos, and behind-the-scenes videos. Make sure to subscribe today, it's like having backstage pass!