After a seven-year break from the Innocent Criminals, Harper wanted to reunite with the musicians he played and record with from the mid 1990s through to 2008.

The incendiary band, percussionist Leon Mobley, bassist Juan Nelson, drummer Oliver Charles, keyboardist Jason Yates and guitarist Michael Ward, may not have shared all of the glory but Harper always gave them due credit.

Many fans were shocked when he declared he wanted to work with other musicians, subsequently banding with the Relentless 7.

Harper also formed Fistful of Mercy with his mates Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison, recorded and played with blues harmonica legend Charlie Musselwhite and earlier this year releasing the album Childhood Home with his mother Ellen.

The uncompromising roots rocker said the reunion avoided any awkward “you broke up the band” recriminations as he had stayed in touch with all his band mates over the years.

Reunion blues ... Harper and the Innocent Criminals are already working on a new record. Picture: Supplied Source: News Corp Australia

Last year he gave them a heads up that it might be time.

But when they regathered in the studio to test the waters, Harper said he accepted there may have been some lingering residual tensions.

“Here’s the challenge. The challenge is me. I am not the easiest person to work with,” he says.

“The least-used phrase in the English language is ‘I love my boss’. And, by default, that’s the role I play, the boss.”

But things are different now. He made sure of it.

Harper told his musical mates to “dust some things off”.

He didn’t want to pick up where they left off, like old friends who hadn’t seen each other for years.

Harper wanted the reunion to mark a new chapter for the band to avoid the ubiquitous anniversary/greatest hits excuse for getting back together.

“The guys are stepping up and being their own boss, they are in their own sonic domains and that’s what I craved before,” he says.”

“I want this to be a true collaborative Innocent Criminals record, one that has a chance to define this band.”

Ironically, their reunion gigs in San Francisco in March and then at Bluesfest in Byron Bay next Easter won’t feature too much of their works-in-progress.

Protest song ... Harper shared his new song Call It What It Is (Murder) during a show in October. Picture: Supplied Source: Supplied

Harper doesn’t plan to release the next Innocent Criminals record for at least another year.

He shared a live performance of one new track, Call It What It Is (Murder), written in the wake of the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson.

The musician said the song just poured out of him and he makes no apologies for having his say on the state of race politics in America.

He can claim a fair percentage of politically-charged repertoire yet this particular track appears to have polarised his audience from a sampling of the comments attached to the black and white clip of his performance on YouTube.

“Having been a victim of it, a witness of it, the inequalities of the American justice system, it is a constant source of frustration for me,” he said.

“There has got to be a better method of keeping citizens safe and protecting the rule of law.

“What do I have to offer? Music is people’s justice and it can play that role.”

Regular tourists ... Harper and his bandmates have been touring Australia since the 1990s. Picture: Mark Williams Source: News Corp Australia

While he proclaims he is currently a “songwriting obsessive” as he and his bandmates head into his studio for regular week-long sessions, next year’s gigs are also fuelling his passions.

Harper cannot wait to get back to Byron Bay, to his favourite festival in the world. He and the Innocent Criminals share a long history with the event and played a surprise gig there in 2011 during their break.

“Bluesfest was destination No. 1 when we first started talking about doing shows,” he said.

Mother and son ... Harper and his mother Ellen released their first record together Childhood Home in May 2. Picture: Danny Clinch Source: Supplied

During our last conversation in March, as he and his folk music mother Ellen prepared to release their first collaboration Childhood Home, Harper hinted that he would try to perform shows with her in Australia.

When it is suggested he brings his mum with him to Bluesfest for a surprise gig, the bluesman embraces the idea.

“That is not a bad freakin’ idea. Let me talk to mum. I am going to come down there early anyway but for now, I am going to work on that,” he said.

Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals perform at Bluesfest, Byron Bay on April 5.

There will be no other shows.