John Fahey: The Voice of the Turtle

performed by John Fahey (Takoma, 1996), 40 mins, 12 page(s)

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Field of Interest: American Music
Content Type: Music recording
Duration: 40 mins
Format: Audio
Sub Genre: Fingerstyle Guitar, Country/Rural Blues
Label: Takoma
Page Count: 12
Performer: John Fahey
Date Recorded: 1968
Release Date: 1996
Review: Like some of John Fahey's other projects in the '60s, this was actually recorded and assembled over a few years, and primarily composed of duets with various other artists (including overdubs with his own pseudonym, "Blind Joe Death"). One of his more obscure early efforts, Voice of the Turtle is both listenable and wildly eclectic, going from scratchy emulations of early blues 78s and country fiddle tunes to haunting guitar-flute combinations and eerie ragas. "A Raga Called Pat, Part III" and "Part IV" is a particularly ambitious piece, its disquieting swooping slide and brief bits of electronic white noise reverb veering into experimental psychedelia. Most of this is pretty traditional and acoustic in tone, however, though it has the undercurrent of dark, uneasy tension that gives much of Fahey's '60s material its intriguing combination of meditation and restlessness. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide
Subject: American Music, Music & Performing Arts, American Studies, Folk Music, Música Folk
Keywords and Translated Subjects: Música Folk