FORREST HARLOW

Kennedys & Kings

A fixture on the Northeast music scene for decades, Forrest Harlow is a charismatic, true original. This is, perhaps, our most-anticipated release, ever. Forrest marches to the tune of his own creation, a Rock & Roll Autoharp original. Tight, catchy, introspective songs of the human spirit and condition. We are proud and pleased to present, at long last... the DEBUT album by FORREST HARLOW & HIS BAND on WildCat Records! The CD release date is June 17th, but you can order NOW and get an immediate MP3 download of the entire album. Your CD will be shipped as soon as they are in stock, which should be any day now. (You can also buy the MP3 package by itself) CD price includes shipping.

$ 15.00 USD (CD-includes shipping, with free electronic download)

or $8.00 USD (Electronic MP3 download only)

Richard Forrest Harlow began singing and playing music in high school with his first band in high school and switched to autoharp when he started writing songs. Soon after his regular appearances at New Haven, Connecticut's legendary The Exit Coffeehouse began, he started hosting their Thursday Night Open Microphone. Being a disciple of the folk-rock/Appalachian folk hybrid, much was gleaned during this stint. Then along came Glam Rock, Art Rock and Punk Rock and the hybrid grew.
It was at this point that Forrest joined forces with Craig Bell (Rocket From The Tombs, Saucers) and Michael Barone & Jon March (Disturbance) to form The Plan. They released Harlow's "I Love NY/I Hate NY" a college radio favorite on Gustav Records, but soon after he left the band, tiring of sharing the singing /songwriting duties not keeping up with his song output which was steadily increasing .
The years and lineups flew by (The Day When, The Nest) the song catalogue grew and grew, recording an L.P. always thwarted by a conflict of no cash and Harlow's fondness for perfection. Numerous low tech attempts were scuttled.
Finally he was approached by Golden Microphone to contribute a song to "The Amy O'Neill Songbook", a benefit CD for Amy who was born with a rare and progressive skin disease. Forrest recruited friends Lauren Agnelli (Nervus Rex, The Washington Squares) and Christopher Listorti (Call It Arson) to record "World For Granted", which became the lead track.
Soon afterward he was approached by Robbie DeRosa to play Connecticut's Daffodil Festival. Needing a band to properly perform his songbook he contacted his old rhythm section (Barone/March ) who had been waxing nostalgic about the good old days and told them it could happen again, let's do this! Things gelled quickly due to Barone's familiarity with Forrest's penchant for turnarounds and lyrical beats. Michael's longtime friend Evan Levene was added on guitar.
Much interest in a record from all fronts but cash continued to be a problem. Then Joe Phillips of WildCat Records stepped in and said "Forrest, the clock is ticking, Let's get this done!" Friend and neighbor, Eric Lichter, graciously volunteered to work within the limited budget and the tax return took care of that, so time was booked at the magical Dirt Floor Studio , right in Harlow's hometown of Chester CT. Then, at the last minute, March had to depart for personal reasons and the months of preparation went into a tailspin.
In steps local musician Justin Vood Good, saying he heard what happened and he could help out on bass for the record. Forrest says he is fairly certain it was halfway through the run thru of songs that Justin decided he was onboard for more than just the recording. The addition of Good's lyrical style of playing fueled the Harlow/Barone chemistry. With Lichter's ear, the elusive studio sound Harlow had sought for so long was finally realized. Both his acoustic and gold distortion electric Autoharp were finally captured and featured instead of being buried in the mix. Session players Lichter, Brian Wolfe, and Brian Wilkens broadened the already eclectic feel of the recording. Finally a permanent record of this gifted singer / songwriter .
Forrest lives in Chester, CT with his wife Laurie, their dog Emily Bronte, cat Rae and their horses Cristal (Forrest's majestic Cheval Canadien) and Brooke (Laurie's Arabian) in a 1928 brick farmhouse.
His fan page is on Facebook - Forrest Harlow & His Band.