English Singer/Songwriter/Harpist Hattie Webb announces her latest solo album, WILD MEDICINE. It is the culmination of her collaborations with artists like Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench of The Heartbreakers, Austin guitar phenoms Eric Johnson and David Grissom, songwriter Paul Kelly and others, augmenting her crystalline vocals and otherworldly, rhythmic harp. Joining Webb on Wild Medicine are some genuinely spectacular players: Mike Campbell (who also co-wrote two songs on the album), Benmont Tench, Vinnie Colaiuta, Eric Johnson, and Pat Leonard to name a few. These seasoned vets contribute a solid foundation to support Hattie’s ethereal voice and sublime harp playing while providing a framework for her exploration of genres. With an impressive lineup of other collaborators, including Roscoe Beck, David Grissom, Ron Blair, Stephen Barber, Patrick Leonard, and Paul Kelly, it’s inspiring to see how she maintains a thriving music career.
Webb has been touring internationally with David Gilmour, and appeared with him when he performed with The Roots on Thursday, November 7th.
A kaleidoscope of colors, Wild Medicine moves seamlessly through genres from Celtic Folk (“Shakespeare’s Shores”) to Americana (“Hearts Connect”), to Pop (“Ruined in the Rain”) to a somber Waltz (“Waltz for Leonard,” which is dedicated to her dear Leonard Cohen). She even lands on, of all things, a Bob Seger cover (“You’ll Accompany Me”) while touching on everything in between. “Playing the harp growing up, people expect you to be more gentle or to perhaps not be so direct with how you feel,” Hattie explains, pointing out her attachment to the atypical instrument. “In my years of studying and going to harp festivals, I struggled with the more creatively narrow narrative that the harp is sometimes given. There’s so much intensity and meat in the instrument, like a grand piano, and I really wanted to explore how that could translate into the songs I was writing.”
Hailing from Kent, England, she formed her first duo group The Webb Sisters with her sister Charley and performed with Leonard Cohen for six years to over 4 million people and then with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers on their 40th Anniversary international final tour. Cohen called Hattie’s solo work “Flawless, uplifting and utterly original.” Over the years critics have lauded the sisters as “simply astonishing,” “brilliant,” “huge talent and undoubted beauty,” “delicious voices,” and “unique musical gifts,” even calling them “female Simon and Garfunkel for the modern age,” and Q Magazine compared them to Florence & The Machine. Hattie manages an incredible balancing act, touring internationally with David Gilmour and her toddler and newborn baby. Hattie shares from the road, “I am thrilled to join David Gilmour on his international tour kicking off in beautiful and historic Rome. It has been a delight rehearsing the past 3 weeks in the UK. I have loved having new musical adventures with my sister Charley and this amazing band and crew.” Hattie and her harp have brewed some Wild Medicine to calm and soothe.
The complete album is available HERE.
