various / 14 tracks

14 tracks guided by Takoma

John Fahey's Takoma label was originally set up in 1959 as an outlet for his own recordings, starting with the now legendary "Blind Joe Death" album that was made in a run of just 100 copies in the Washington D.C. neighbourhood that gave the label its name. Takoma's influence would in later years become so pronounced that the school of traditional finger-picked guitar music that it specialised in, known in some quarters as American Primitivism, is now often just referred to as the 'Takoma' sound. This is a defined and established musical universe that's more or less instantly identifiable by steel string guitar rendered along traditional Blues templates, featuring elements of classical, Spanish and Appalachian music both reverential to convention and drawn to the Avant-garde. This week's 14 track selection looks at those artists absorbed in, guided by and taking cues from Takoma's legacy, including material from Fahey himself, contemporaries such as Sandy Bull and Harry Taussig, and modern day protégés such as James Blackshaw, Jack Rose and Sir Richard Bishop. The sound they make continues to exert huge influence not only on the American Primitive school, but also on folk, classical and experimental traditions enthralled by the evocative musical landscapes drawn with these uniquely minimal, rich and endlessly skilful strokes.