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Harmonica Dan is the nom de plume of Dan Balcer, vinyl magus and actuary at the Philadelphia Record Exchange, whose woefully inadequate Discogs entry scarcely scratches the surface of his career. He played early and often with legendary guitarist Jack Rose, who gave him the moniker "Harmonica Dan." Dan was one of Dr. Ragtime's many "pals" and played on Rose's posthumous LP, "Luck in the Valley." He and Jack also performed a series of acoustic and electric duets on the as-yet unreleased "Wizard and Worm" and "Cranberry Bog" sessions. He is a featured artist in Aye Aye, a Philadelphia-based supergroup of sorts involving members of Bardo Pond, Purling Hiss, Watery Love and Birds of Maya. He has also played (at times) with The Birds of Maya, the Megajam Booze Band, and the shadowy collective known as Boogie Witch. He is notable for his range, which includes straight blues skronk, free howl, and high-lonesome desert wail.
In the words of Richie Charles, "Players like Dan are born. The guy came screaming out of his mother blowing a C-sharp."