Guthrie, Inc., the company that publishes Harp magazine, announced today that it has discontinued publishing Harp,
effective immediately. The last issue sent to subscribers and newsstands was the March/April issue with Dave Grohl on the cover.
Founded in 2001 by editor-in-chief and art director Scott Crawford, the magazine entered into a partnership with the owners of JazzTimes in 2003. The result was a sophisticated rock and pop magazine that was critically acclaimed and well-respected in the music industry for its candor, style and breadth of coverage. The magazine’s web site ‹ www.harpmagazine.com ‹ was also well-received. The site included nearly all of the magazine’s content, as well as daily news updates and special contests and promotions for music fans. There are no plans to continue publishing the magazine in digital form.
The first issue of Harp in the fall of 2001 featured a cover story on Alejandro Escovedo. Among the artists who subsequently graced
the cover of Harp during the last 7 years were Grohl, Cat Power, Ryan Adams, Wilco, Bright Eyes, Nick Cave, The Stooges, Drive-By Truckers, My Morning Jacket, Liz Phair, Tom Waits, The Roots, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Neko Case, Modest Mouse, Jay Farrar, Mars Volta, Devendra Banhart, Steve Earle, Pete Yorn, and Howe Gelb. The magazine also did several Vanity Fair style gatefold cover sessions, including the artists of Bonnaroo, "Rock of Ages" with pop icons and their mentors and multi-artist conceptual covers like the recent "Kings of Comedy" edition.
However, according to Glenn Sabin, Guthrie’s CEO, the publication struggled to become profitable. "We purchased Harp in 2003, and it quickly become a first class product that was highly acclaimed for its often irreverent editorial approach and strong graphical
package. Unfortunately, Harp’s critical acclaim never translated into sustaining commercial success. Harp’s lifecycle was ill timed
with the precipitous decline of the music software industry, coupled with the consolidation of the consumer magazine newsstand business and rising paper and postage costs".
Sabin saw Harp’s demise as reflective of the changes both in the music industry and in print consumer publishing. Sabin continued,
"This story isn’t new. Print consumer publishing and the music industry are undergoing a revolutionary period. Legal digital sales
are not even close to making up for the loss in physical product sales and the pervasiveness of illegal digital downloads. And with
smaller revenues, labels are inevitably spending less money for print and other forms of advertising and promotion."
