a r t i s t : William Eaton
t i t l e : Music by William Eaton
d a t e : 2006
l a b e l : EM (EM1059CD)
g e n r e : Folk
r l s. d a t e : Oct/2006
t r a c k s : 18
b i t r a t e : VBRkbps
s i z e : 65,9 MB
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*Ripper's note: there didn't seem to be any track titles, so I
used Untitled.
Japan's EM Records, our new favorite label for totally unknown
reissue surprises -- from singing saw records to electronic
brainwave music to New Age psych -- come through YET AGAIN
with this fantastic album of guitar music by a long-haired,
Viking-looking dude from the '70s named William Eaton! A
gentle soul, judging by his gorgeously mellow music on this
disc, all instrumental, all improvised, originally self-
released on vinyl in 1978 in an edition of just 1000 copies.
The simple drawing on the cover, with the rays of the setting
sun and puffy clouds in the sky, really gets at what these 18
tracks are all about. Languid, blissed-out acoustic and
electric string caresses, music that seems heaven-sent... You
can imagine him sitting, cross-legged, eyes closed, with a
meditative calm belying the virtuosic skill with which he
plays. Rooted in hippy psych folk this is, but with some hints
of more difficult, avant-garde new music, for sure like John
Fahey, and perhaps like a very very listenable Derek Bailey,
or better yet, like FMP-label guitarist and inventor Hans
Reichel. And if we say it's just a bit New Agey, don't let
that scare you off. We think all fans of the whole wonderful
"wooden guitar", John Fahey / Robbie Basho worshipping, neo-
Appalachia, modern day "American Primitive", steel string
guitar improv scene today -- Jack Rose, James Blackshaw, Ilyas
Ahmed, Richard Bishop, Matt Valentine, Sean Smith, etc. --
will really find a lot to like here!!
Another point in common with Hans Reichel, is that the
instruments Eaton plays here he built himself. A mystical
luthier from the Arizona desert, William Eaton crafted some
AMAZING instruments, depicted in the pages of the thick cd
booklet. Totally baroque-looking works of art like his 26
string Elesion Harmonium, or his beautifully sculptural harp
guitar. And just check out the curves of his double neck
Quadrophonic electric... wow.
So, totally recommended. Oh, and this disc is one of the first
beneficiaries of EM's new Japanese AND English liner notes
policy! Yep, English language liner notes, and lots of 'em...
along with the usual full-color photos and album art found in
most EM cd booklets.
http://www.aquariusrecords.org
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01-Untitled [06:16]
02-Untitled [05:21]
03-Untitled [02:30]
04-Untitled [02:58]
05-Untitled [00:50]
06-Untitled [02:56]
07-Untitled [01:15]
08-Untitled [03:43]
09-Untitled [04:25]
10-Untitled [03:37]
11-Untitled [02:10]
12-Untitled [02:50]
13-Untitled [02:13]
14-Untitled [01:14]
15-Untitled [01:53]
16-Untitled [01:45]
17-Untitled [02:05]
18-Untitled [02:41]
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50:42 min