years have gone by (ninety years without slumbering)

'many years have gone by, years of war and of what men call history. buffeted here and there at random I have been not able to return to my peasants as I promised them when I left them, and I do not know when, if ever, I can keep my promise.’ - carlo levi, christ stopped at eboli.

horsemouth was listening to days have gone by - repackaged as volume 6 of the fahey experience by takoma from 1967. there is a photo is fahey from oregon in the 90ies - drinking like a fish and into prescription painkiller darvon. horsemouth has found a link to a description of his funeral (his last earthly gig before the great gig in the sky). the photo on the cover of days have gone by is of john fahey when he was a) good looking and b) liked annoying people - the a didn't last very long. the b lasted him to the end of his life

the album opens with an instrumental named revolt of the dyke brigade (fahey annoying people) and ends with the hymn we would be building by jean sibelius. in between there’s a sounsdscape piece with manipulated whiporwill noises and a version of ‘old-timey’ tune my grandfather’s clock (by henry clay work author of marching through georgia) . it allegedly features one r. grubbert gardner on additional guitar.

my grandfather’s clock features in the 1963 twlight zone episode ninety years without slumbering whose pay-off line was the following; ‘ clocks are made by men, god creates time. no man can prolong his allotted hours, he can only live them to the fullest—in this world or in the twilight zone.’

john fahey’s body lies a mouldering in the grave but the truth (of his playing) is marching on - just as the tune of john brown’s body became the battle hymn of the republic.