Dorothy Ashby was an American jazz harpist, one of the very few who used her instrument to play credible jazz and bebop. First studying as a pianist at Wayne State University and later, in 1952, switching to harp. She recorded eleven albums for different jazz labels, like Savoy and Prestige. Dorothy also guested as a studio player on albums with Bill Withers, Stevie Wonder and many more.

In 1969 the studio album Dorothy's Harp was released on Cadet Records. On the album she covered songs from Jimmy Webb ("By The Time I Get To Phoenix"), Burt Bacharach & Hal David ("This Girl's In Love With You"), John Lennon & Paul McCartney ("Fool On The Hill"), and others. The record also includes the two Brazilian styled compositions "Reza" and "Canto de Ossanha" and two songs written by Dorothy Ashby herself, displaying her craft on the harp with some great bongo work.

In the 90s and beyond, the album started to be sought after by hip hop artists. Pete Rock (from Pete Rock & CL Smooth), Rahzel (from The Roots) and Ugly Duckling were notable for sampling music from Dorothy's Harp.