Ben Harper: B-Sides & Bootlegs

In honor of JK popping his Ben Harper cherry this past week in Central Park, and to get Top ready for his upcoming show at Merriweather Gross Pavilion this Sunday, I am going to throw down some more goodies I have.


Originally a submission for the I AM SAM Soundtrack, this ended up as a B-side to the "Diamonds on the Inside" single in France. You can also see him perform it on his PLEASURE AND PAIN DVD. Amazing cover. Amazing.
MP3: Ben Harper - "Strawberry Fields Forever"


The "Nobody's Fault But Mine" cover piqued my interest, as did the solo acoustic rendition of his popular Marvin Gaye cover. Some (including Wikipedia) think that "Nobody's Fault But Mine" is a Led Zeppelin original, but it was actually an updated version of a traditional blues song first laid down by Blind Willie Johnson and later covered by The Grateful Dead and Nina Simone, among others.
MP3: Ben Harper - Sexual Healing (Solo Acoustic)
MP3: Ben Harper - "Nobody's Fault But Mine" (Live)


I bought this import because it was the only place I could find Ben doing a version of Jimi's "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)." It is one of my favorite covers that Ben does and I had the pleasure of catching it live in Fairfield, CT.
MP3: Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals - "Power Of The Gospel" (Live @ Shepherd's Bush Empire (6.11.97)
MP3: Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals - "Excuse Me Mr." > "Burnin' and Lootin" (Live @ Cabaret Metro, Chicago 7.10.97)

7.3.96 - Montreal Jazz Festival (Spectrum): Montreal, Canada
From BenHarper.net: "An edited version of the performance was aired on various television networks sans the following: 'Oppression/Get Up Stand Up', 'Breakin' Down', 'Fight For Your Mind', 'Voodoo Child (Slight Return)', and 'Waiting on an Angel'." Obviously, the tracks I have were bootlegged from those network airings. I think I picked these up off of Audiogalaxy.com in my lean college years. I posted the setlist just to give you an idea of where the tracks fell in the setlist that day. I have the mp3 for "I'll Rise" but the file name called it "Breaking Down/I'll Rise" for some reason. I will post that as soon as I fix the file name. "Like A King" & "I'll Rise" were split up into two separate tracks, but they blend together as the setlist suggests.

"Oppression" > "Get Up, Stand Up"
MP3: "Excuse Me Mr."
MP3: "Don't Take That Attitude To Your Grave"
"Breaking Down"
MP3: "Gold To Me"
"Fight For Your Mind"
"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)"
"Waiting On An Angel"
MP3: "Please Me Like You Want To"
MP3: "Burn One Down"
MP3: "Ground On Down"
Encore 1
MP3: "Like A King" > "I'll Rise"