John Fahey - Old Fashioned Love

Eclectic Love

'In a Persian Market', the first song on the album, starts out as a mixture of almost dissonant ragtime. An odd melody to put to country blues picking. And it goes through several phases. Don't be put off by the opening (or at least keep going - don't let that be your last impression!). You'll probably want to hear it again later after you've heard the last song on the album (which is a lot more digestable on a first listening). Persian Market's long as well at almost 8 minutes. And it goes through several phases of dissonant ragtime alternating with slower paced, almost Spanish sounding acoustic guitar - with a phaser on it! This was not my favorite tune on the album, though I notice it gets better with careful listening.

'Jaya Shiva Shankarah', the second song is smoother and more melodic - flows like a river. Will soothe you after 'Persian Market'..

'Marilyn', the next song moves beautifully - more to my taste, slower and more expressive with a slight meloncholy. The phaser and steel string together keep conjuring images of Bron-Yr-Aur, Jimmy Page's one solo acoustic song on Zeppelin's "Physical Graffitti". Athough, the slipping back into rag-time snaps me out of that again.

In the fourth song, 'Assassination of Stephan Grossman' you can hear a phaser on his acoustic guitar which again picks up the tempo a bit and is back into the country blues.

'Old Fashioned Love' is kick-back and easy when suddenly the Dixieland band steps in. Still pleasant enough, if not a bit humorous in it's tone. Feel like I'm watching some old movie from the 30s or 40s. Interesting, interesting.

'Boodle Am Shake' has got lyrics, that sound like a fixed scat almost. And is that a kazoo I hear in there? Humor, humor. There's no putting John Fahey in a box I guess! Although, while I do hear a banjo, there doesn't seem to be a guitar on this one.

Guitar enters again on 'Keep Your Lamps Trimmed and Burning' as does a trombone! And why not?! Just when you thought you've gone to Muppet land, there's a surprisingly soft and emotional interlude which seems to grab a lick or two from Amazing Grace before swinging back into Dixieland for a finale.

Next and last song resumes solo acoustic guitar in a bluesy and pleasing picking style which is more what I think of when I think of Fahey (though I may have to re-think Fahey). It ambles along with some nice note-bending over a mixture of picking and strumming. This is 'Dry Bones in the Valley', a very nice tune indeed. It is a little dark and intriguingly somber, alternating between menace and mystery, with little rays of hope spilling in between the grandeur. A song that questions and answers its own questions and then asks them again as it fades. This playing almost reminds me of Robbie Basho. This would be my favorite song (as of now, which is only my third listening - I have to admit that the whole thing is growing on me). I give it 4 stars, though for this last song alone it should be probably be 5. Well, lower expectations leave more room for surprise.. I guess I'll leave it at that. March 24, 2008

Fahey Plus

When I was in art school about half a million years ago, there used to be a saying, "less is more." In this case I'm tempted to say "more is less" -- except that the Fahey adjuncts do such a great job adding joy and life and fine musicianship to the sessions. However... to tell the truth, I'd rather just hear Fahey, or just Fahey and the other guitarist. The dixieland band, although first rate, drowns out Fahey and makes the CD sound almost like excerpts from two different CDs (which it is not). What gives it consistency is the overall mood, which is very enjoyable and not as dark as some of Fahey's playing can be -- which as a diehard Fahey fan I like alot, too. February 26, 2008

An underrated entry in the Fahey canon

Of the initial three albums John Fahey recorded with a Dixieland band, the first two -- "Of Rivers and Religion" and "After the Ball" -- acquired a certain mystique simply because they were so hard to get for a long time. "Old Fashioned Love," the last of the cluster, is far better. The Dixieland stuff is more vigorous and interesting than the previous two albums, and songs like "Persian Market," a piece for two guitarists, break up the format. For me, the reason for owning this record is "Dry Bones in the Valley," a solo epic that features some of Fahey's most exalted music. I own a lot of Fahey records, but this is one of the discs I return to over and over again. October 8, 2004

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