John Fahey was an acoustic fingerpicker, guru of Leo Kottke and others. He called his music American primitive guitar. He released almost 40 records over a 40-year period. They vary a bit - some are a little harsh, some very experimental, most showcase his guitar mastery. The 2-CD Anthology on Rhino is an excellent survey of his long career. For some reason he put out 5 or 6 records of Christmas music over the years. I once saw Fahey play at a small club in OKC. He played a good long set, then took a break. He came back from the break and I watched him slowly put his picks on - one on each finger and one on the thumb. He then announced that he had to go to the bathroom. Removed picks, left stage, returned, picks back on, played another set. He was awesome.
Links:
Official Website - www.johnfahey.com
Fahey CDs from Fantasy Records Catalog
Amazon - How Bluegrass Music Destroyed My Life (book by Fahey)
Nels Cline Homage to John Fahey
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This page revised 06/19/05. All links checked/corrected 06/19/05.