John Fahey - Dance of the Inhabitants...Live @ U of Washington by Steve Palmer

Often the oeuvre of John Fahey is discussed in the context of the

blues, followed by an oblique mention of his influence on acts like

Sonic Youth and his spiritual alignment with minimalist composers.

Generally his influence on these acts is credited to his iconoclastic

and DIY persona. Less mentioned is his direct musical influence on the

experimental acts of today. Fahey was, at times, a drone artist- and

this fantastic, mysterious take of “Dance of the Inhabitants”

illustrates why he continues to remain relevant in experimental

circles.

Fahey bookends this piece with familiar blues references as his slide

meanders through pentatonic riffage, but midway he fully embraces

microtonality and dissonance. This creates a conflict between the

earthy and the ethereal- a conflict that colors much of his best

music. Often it ceases sounding like a guitar at all. This is cosmic

music.

The resonance of the concert hall is to thank for much of the

immensity here, making this particular recording less akin to Bukka

White and more similar to Charlemagne Palestine's "Strumming Music" or

some of the more celestial and percussion-free Glenn Branca pieces.

Here you can hear Fahey not only play the guitar, but simultaneously

play the room and the air- summoning throughout the same overtones of

the drone greats.

The rapturous audience at the University of Washington were lucky to

play aural witness to this private and meditative moment, as are we

some 40 years later. This bootleg is among my top five favorite Fahey

moments (including his studio work) and I believe it stands out as

unique in his discography, bringing further into focus this remark of

Jim O'Rourke from Steve Lowenthal's recently released “Dance of Death”

biography:

“Fahey isn't an Americana thing for me [...] I didn't think of him in

the context of Bukka White- I didn't give a shit about that stuff,

honestly.”

Grab a cup of tea or coffee, find a private place, and enjoy! Give it

space to sink in. Happy Fahey week.

Steve Palmer performs guitar in his hometown of Minneapolis, MN and released his debut 'Unblinking Sun' on Dying For Bad Music in 2014.