William Ackerman - Mesa Amphitheater, June 24, 1986

Here's another re-post from the lost drop.io files...

Ok you hard-core American Primitivists, bring it on.  I know you want to laugh out loud, point and make fun of me for listening to Will Ackerman. 
That's cool, I don't hide it anymore.  I've made my argument for Ackerman and his work.
Though I do have a few more thoughts and a story about why New Age music has always taken such a hit, and it's too bad 'cause some (most) of these artists are really very accomplished musicians.  I don't feel like going through the list but if you were to look at the early Windham Hill catalog and do a 'where are they now' bit of research you might be surprised at how many are still in the biz and doing things like composing movie soundtracks.  Now that ain't 'point and laugh' material.
Ok, so I used to work at a record store (remember those?), and it was the height of the Windham Hill era.  I worked with a guy that was a hard-core jazz drummer, he played 5-6 nights a week with a well respected local that is still going strong these days.  Jim used to get very annoyed about the whole New Age music craze.  And he had good reason.  People would come in and browse through the New Age section and ask for advice on what to buy, usually defining their "musical" parameters of taste by telling us that they wanted something to play in the background.   Often even saying that they didn't really want to listen to it, it needed to be unobtrusive.
Of course as a musician, Jim thought this was just plain stupid.  Why would anyone buy music they didn't want to listen to?  To pay attention to?  Why would any musician want to be thought of that way?  Ouch.  Much to my annoyance, Jim would occasionally suggest that the customer buy a fan if they just wanted background noise. 
Unfortunately a lot of mellow music ends up in the background and the artistry is lost. 
Ok, on to the set at hand.  I think this boot has been around a long time but if you haven't heard it I recommend it.  It's a fairly short set and Ackerman does a lot of chatting between songs that is interesting.  This is just the Ackerman part of a larger concert of Windham Hill folks.  It's an old boot with some noise and over-saturation, not perfect.

Windham Hill-The Summer Concert
William Ackerman, Michael Hedges, Shadowfax
Mesa Amphitheater, Mesa, Arizona
June 24, 1986 Master Tape to CD Version
Transfer Date:
March 2009

1. Processional
2. Anne's Song
3. The Rediscovery of Big Bug Creek Arizona
4. Hawk Circle W/ Hedges
5. The Impending Death of the Virgin Spirit
6. Visiting w/Greenburg of Shadowfax

d/l Will Ackerman

William Ackerman - It Takes A Year

Review by Jim Esch
The lyrical strains of "The Bricklayer's Beautiful Daughter" (the memorable opener on William Ackerman's second album) confirm that the artist was on to something huge in popular music. Nobody knew what to call this new breed of gentle instrumental adventurism. It Takes a Year, like all the early Windham Hill albums, was a breath of pure air at a time when pop music was stuffed with commercialization and irrelevance. Ackerman adeptly blended folk, bluegrass, jazz, and classical influences into an accessible, mild-mannered hybrid style, strong on emotional expression and lyrical depth. Ackerman's solo technique is not showy, and others like Leo Kottke and Michael Hedges may have been more virtuosic in the chops department, yet Ackerman's trump card is his impressionist command of the acoustic guitar. His use of alternate tunings, overdubs, and a sensitive ear for melody helped to trademark this uncluttered sound, tuneful and rich in harmonic overtones. Some of the up-tempo numbers like "The Townshend Shuffle" have a bluegrassy flavor and, in general, the folk influences are readily apparent. But ultimately the music, much of it composed in the early '70s, stands out because it sheds the musical labels and carves its own space — deep emotional sentiments set into calm and reflective backgrounds. It's an open-ended sound, well suited to the spaces of California and the Western U.S. from whence it grew. Although the production quality varies from tune to tune making it a less consistent set than the follow-up Childhood and Memory, It Takes a Year is historically important for new age collectors because it built upon Ackerman's debut and set the mold for things to come.
From http://allmusic.com/

Yeah, I know, wouldn't a little Blind Joe Death be better? Well this one by Ackerman is important to me because I hadn't learned to appreciate Fahey yet. Ackerman took Fahey's music and went off in his own direction, like it or not people it is true. When I heard this I thought it was amazing and like nothing I had ever heard. Fahey's music was so raw, Ackerman's stuff is well produced and I still like the sound of his early works. Eventually I worked my way back to Fahey, for that reason I suppose this work is important to me. Many people can't get past the New Age label and refuse to accept that Ackerman is a good artist. I prefer his first three works and then he clearly went off into his own music, as a musician should. You can't stay at the feet of your mentor forever. Give this one a shot!