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Rating: What is a man capable of achieving with his own mind and hands? A lot, but if you're J Fahey, you can create masterpieces. Fahey (b. 1939, USA) is a meticulous researcher of acoustic music. Throughout his career, he achieved little commercial success but numerous artistic satisfactions. In 1986, he contracted the Epstein-Barr syndrome but continued to perform publicly. He managed to overcome this illness five years later. He spent part of the '90s in poverty, living in "notorious" hotels. This CD (Varrick 019 ADD) is composed of 12 tracks for a total of 52 minutes.
The album, completely instrumental, partially deviates from his previous productions, even though in a previous work he was accompanied by the guitarist Terry Robb. In fact, in this album, in no less than seven tracks, he is accompanied by this guitarist who also handled the production of the work. Furthermore, even more curiously, in the short piece "Theme and Variations," Guy Maxell (percussion and Yamaha rx15) and Scott White (bass) appear. Fahey is among the few musicians able to "evoke" magical sounds from his instrument. The start with just acoustic guitar in "Melody McOcean" is at times deep and moving, and at other times more lively and cheerful. In the phenomenal "Layla" (Eric Clapton & J Gordon), the instrumentalist Robb is also present. This track immediately sparked in me, from the first listen, an instant musical love. Personally, I would never stop listening to it. John’s mental-guitaristic elaboration ability is immense. The quantity and quality of music he can "extract" from his instrument is practically unreachable. Also memorable are "Lullaby and Finale From the Firebird" (I Stravinsky) and "Samba de Orfeo" (L Bonfa), warm and sensual, equipped with an irresistible rhythm. It is essential to also mention "May This Be Love/Casey Jones" (Jimi Hendrix/Walter "Furry" Lewis). In this piece, Robb also plays the bottleneck guitar. "Intro to Ocean Waves/Ocean Waves" and "Juroscho Ascopi" are two complex guitar textures, almost like "Western ragas," capable of arousing various emotions in the listener.
The album definitely requires multiple listens to be fully appreciated. The recording quality is excellent. "The sessions which produced this album took place in Cascade Studios, Portland Oregon, during November and December, 1984, and February, 1985. This studio was at one time a small church with a tiny pulpit and choir area at the north end. Here, Mr Fahey and Mr Robb sat, facing the three omni-directional Telefunken 201 microphones which were especially modified by Eric Von Helmholz. These microphones were hung so as to preserve the proper intimate atmosphere. Once the controls were adjusted to the delicate sound of the guitar(s), the microphones were never moved; optimum recording levels were set at the beginning of each session and never changed. These guitarists, Fahey and Robb, were the persons solely responsible for the musical flow of each performance. There is no limiting or compression on this recording. The tapes at the sessions (Scotch 16005) were never electronically altered. This record, played on the proper equipment, is an exact reproduction of the original performance". I decided to include this note in the booklet concerning the recording of the album because it seemed like an important detail, so, forgive me if the review turned out too verbose. The vaguely abstract-figurative cover is decent, with shades ranging from turquoise and royal blue, from purple to light permanent green.
I dedicate this review to Fahey, who passed away on February 22, 2001. Obviously, as almost always, John will only be included in 2003 by RS magazine in the ranking of the hundred greatest guitarists of all time. However, in the end, what truly matters is only the music.
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