Most Popular
Reader's PicksTop RecommendationsA short list of San Francisco's most popular hot spots.
Recent Blog Posts
National Features >
Various ArtistsI Am the Resurrection: A Tribute to John FaheyBy Chris DahlenPublished on March 01, 2006Traditionalist, experimentalist, American primitivist, and overall legend John Fahey influenced a wide swath of musicians, and not just acoustic guitarists. But here he's remembered by a rabble of Americana all-stars, and their contributions follow the usual disjointed pattern of a tribute album: Some artists elucidate buried facets of Fahey's music (Sufjan Stevens uses a chorus to restore the vocals to a hymn); others take a favorite song and play it straight (Pelt, with its hokey arrangement of "Sunflower River Blues"); and still others just get cute (M. Ward's electric ragtime misfire). I Am the Resurrection contains no duds, but it also has few revelations. It's a pleasing listen with more love than ideas, and when Peter Case gives the most loyal performance of the set -- a straight run-through of "When the Catfish Is in Bloom" -- he confirms that this is a eulogy, not an autopsy.
write your comment
|