Death Chants, Breakdowns and Military Waltzes

John Fahey | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 2, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Takoma
• ASIN: B00000C2PF
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #36,134 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #12 in Music > Indie Music > Alternative Rock > Alternative Folk
  • #95 in Music > Folk > Contemporary Folk > Alternative Folk

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

This inspired collection reissues all the music from John Fahey's genre-expansive, groundbreaking 1964 disc Death Chants and its (mostly) rerecorded version from 1967. On both discs Fahey's finger picking is nimble and awe-inspiring, his head afire with ideas both revolutionary and musically pure. His goal was to reconcile a love for American primitive folk traditions and 20th-century classical music; by 1967 he'd largely succeeded. Death Chants is one of the most intense, life-affirming, and visionary recordings of the 1960s, and the clear (and thankfully not digitally messed-with) sound plus context-heavy, insightful liner notes by Byron Coley make the reissue a must even for folks who own the original artifacts. --Mike McGonigal

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you are a guitarist, get it., September 10, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Akron, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Chants, Breakdowns and Military Waltzes (Audio CD)

This was the second Fahey release on Takoma. It followed the legendary Blind Joe Death, and continues on the journey that has made John Fahey one of the most revered guitarists of our time. Fahey is considered the father of the current boom in instrumental acoustic guitar, and this CD is one of the main reasons for that title. As I write this the CD has not yet been released, but if it follows the vinyl album, the the listener will be treated to something very different, and very wonderful in the way of guitar, and music. Remember, Leo Kottke considers John Fahey to be one of his most profound influences.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In short, a miracle . . ., July 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Death Chants, Breakdowns and Military Waltzes (Audio CD)

I cannot imagine having been without these pieces, auditory equivalents of Wyeth paintings-- wondrous strange indeed. This is work that can change one's life-- and it has certainly shaken my very foundations. The older recordings are eerier than those from the '67 sessions, which sound more beautiful. Sometimes, however, the strange is more powerful than the beautiful. What is this "otherness" he achieves? Listening to this album, I can almost smell death.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fahey at His Best, April 4, 2003

By 

Paul of London (London, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death Chants, Breakdowns and Military Waltzes (Audio CD)

A gem of a CD, not only re-releasing a classic LP, but including earlier versions of many of the songs. Several of the numbers here, 'Some Summer Day', 'Stomping Tonight on the Pennsylvania-Alabama Border' -- how about that for a title? -- and 'When the Springtime Comes Again', are exquisite examples of what beautiful music can be played on a solo six-string acoustic guitar.