Home »
Member Page
Harvey Bryant
Musician and Artist residing in Durham, NC
About Me
Durham based multi-instrumentalist and multidisciplinary artist, Harvey Bryant, takes a multifaceted approach to
things. In his 40+ years of playing music Harvey has enjoyed moving between genres, but always has been most
attracted to the improvisation of Jazz. His playing style still incorporates some of those other styles. You can hear
the influence of Spanish Classical Guitar that he studied in the 80’s and 90’s, as well as the rock, pop, funk (and
sometimes even country) that he played in local bands through the 80’s, 90’s and early 00’s.
Harvey’s main instrument is guitar, but he also plays bass as well as some percussion and keyboards. He is an avid
listener and says a good playlist is one that can jump from Mozart to Mariah Carey, Bob Dylan to Bob Marley, and
Paul Simon to Parliament Funkadelic.
After getting married and starting a family in the early 2000s, Harvey took some time off from playing in public. He
has recently gotten back to playing and is releasing original music, starting with a two-song release (“Chonk” and
“Sean & Katie’s Shuffle”) in June of 2021 on streaming services and as videos (he created these too) on the
Facebook and YouTube pages for Harvey Bryant Music & Art. His new seven song album, “Latin Blue” is scheduled
to be released on March 5th of 2022. Harvey played all the instruments and produced both releases.
Harvey has also been busy with creating new visual art pieces as well. His website, which can be seen at
www.harveybryantmusicart.com, showcases not just his music, but also the sculpture, metalwork, photography,
woodwork, sculptural furniture, and other mediums he works in.
My Jazz Story
In 1978, I received my first guitar for my
8th birthday. It was a Sear & Roebuck 3/4
sized steel string acoustic, that I would
stand in front of the mirror with while
imagining myself
playing for The Bee Gees, or better yet the
Jackson 5. But they weren't calling. I was
8. I was on the wrong side of both average
height and weight. I would have looked
ridiculous in a polyester jump suit. And
most importantly I couldn't play worth a
damn.
So I practiced. A lot. I learned to play
other people's music.
In Middle School I played Bruce
Springsteen's, "Growing Up" for a very
skeptical talent show crowd. I hoped that
it would make some of the kids think
differently about me. But
like Springsteen, I was standing stone like,
suspended in my masquerade. Not a
single student knew the song, and since it
was the first time I had played in front of a
large crowd,
I had a wicked case of stage fright. My
hands were shaking, my voice took on
some of the tonal qualities of Roy Orbison
covering Bruce Springsteen, while
wrestling with the
changes brought on by puberty. A few of
the teacher's dug it, but the kids just
thought I was weird.
In High School, I took my first real lessons.
I studied with a classical guitarist from
Uruguay. I learned how to read music and
to play what was written.
I started playing in bands. Anybody that
wanted a guitar player I was available. I
played in country bands, and learned to
play like Johnny. I played in rock bands,
and learned to
play like Jimi. I played in blues bands, and
learned to play like Stevie. I played in funk
bands and punk bands; Free Bird and
Stairway; I'd go from a blue grass
hootenanny to a
classical ensemble.
I learned to play everything from Adam
Ant to Warren Zevon, Bob Dylan to Bob
Marley, Elvis Costello to Elvis Presley. I
even played in a Mariachi Band once. I got
pretty good,
and could play lots of music that belonged
to other people. But none of them sounded
like me.
And then I discovered Jazz. They say if you
want to play popular music, all you need is
3 chords and you can play for 10,000
people. If you want to play Jazz you have
to learn
10,000 chords and if you're lucky you
might play for 3 people. Improvisation is
where I found my voice. Instead of playing
great, but sounding like someone else. I
started
playing, for better or worse, like me.
