Charlie Brown’s Christmas gets all the publicity. Well, it’s hard to compete with a soundtrack that you hear every year since TV shows were black and white. Still, next to Handel’s Messiah and Corelli’s Christmas Concert, Christmas Soli by guitarist John Fahey gets more playing on my cd/ipod than just about anything else. It was recorded in the mid 70s when acoustic guitar albums were all the rage. He’s got a traditional yet quirky/eccentric touch to his picking that sounds both rooted in the past and pointing to the future.
By himself, his spacious and homey picking brings out nuances in “We Three Kings” and “Oh Holy Night” that are at once both childlike in their wonder and sophisticated in their harmonies. A wonderful duet with Richard Ruskin on “Carol of the Bells” will ring with Holly cheer. Three songs have him paired with Terry Robb for a cozy “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” and a joyful medly of “Deck the Halls/We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” Perfect for either background for a Christmas party or for practicing your own fretwork. Just like with Vince Guaraldi and Peanuts, this disc is a great intro to the wonderful catalogue of an overlooked artist.
Fantasy Records