www.TheNewBarker.com 66 THE NEW BARKER Sometimes Dogs Bark at Nothing is the name of the new album by JP Harris, his third overall, and first after a four-year hiatus. His all-original debut album I’ll Keep Calling won Best Country Album of 2012 from The Nashville Scene and the same honor at the Independent Music Awards - all without the aide of publicists or a large label’s bankroll. Rolling Stone named him one of 2014’s “Country Tours Not To Miss” and one of the “21 Must-See Country Acts” at South by Southwest Music Fest in 2015. The singer/songwriter has been described as “a carpenter who writes country songs.” Historic restoration is what he does when he’s not touring. We caught up with JP on the phone to talk about his work and the inspiration behind the album’s title song. Several years ago, he and a buddy Tim Findlen were riding along when Tim made the remark, Sometimes dogs bark at nothing. “Tim and I, we’ve been buddies forever,” JP said.“The line stuck in my head.Tim tends to write music tongue and cheek; sarcastic.I write the sad country version of the same song. So,Tim gave me his blessing to take the line and write a song with it, my way.” Shel Silverstein was JP’s inspiration for Sometimes Dogs Bark at Nothing. “I’m a big fan of Shel. He wrote poignant children’s books.But,people don’t realize that he wrote songs for other peo- ple, like A Boy Named Sue for Johnny Cash and The Cover of the Rolling Stone, a hit for Dr.Hook.Shel was an integral part of the music scene in Nashville,” said JP. The dogs on the cover belong to his tour manager, Jen Ross. “She lives in a tiny little house,with a tiny little motor- cycle and her tiny little dogs,”laughed JP. The album’s cover artwork was created by Jaxon Arthur Northon, whose work harkens back to 19th century portrait work.“In keeping with the theme as a country songwriter and singer, my parameters of music expand with every album. I wanted to set the stage for this album with the cover art. There is a lot of deep stuff throughout this album. It’s filled with Easter eggs. I always loved the cover of Merle Haggard’s Greatest Hits album. Old session dudes - everyone knows about that cover. It was the inspiration and Jaxon really captured it for me.” JP grew up with dogs,but left home when he was 14.“At 16, I moved out to the Navajo Nation to help herd sheep for the women.They have their own sense of dogs. One of the dogs had a litter of puppies and I took one for my own, and named her Nizhoni. It’s a Navajo word that can mean beautiful or good.” For the next two to three years,JP and Nizhoni traveled everywhere together, hopping freight trains. “She’d watch my bags for me when I’d go inside a store.We kind of did a trade off. She kept me safe all those years on the road. After we finally settled down, I told her it was my turn to take care of her. When she died, I buried her on a beautiful piece of farm property in New Hampshire.” Right now,because of his schedule,JP doesn’t have a dog of his own. “I kind of take loaner dogs from friends, now and then. And, I get crazy-eyed when I see a dog, whether the owner likes it or not.” “I’m just hoping that me, coming to the table without gimmicks or cool-look- ing clothes or boot cut jeans, just the dirt bag guy I am with a tank top and a pair of boots on, is enough to just get people into the music.” Self deprecating and honest,JP was fun to listen to. Just like the album, the stories get better the more you listen. (JP, please come to Florida.) Why? Because They Can. books, movies, music & more... Purchase the CD at ILoveHonkyTonk.com U by Anna Cooke