One of acoustic music's true innovators and eccentrics, John Fahey was a crucial figure in expanding the boundaries of the acoustic guitar over the last few decades. His music was so eclectic that it's arguable whether he should be defined as a "folk" artist. In a career that saw him issue several dozen albums, he drew from blues, Native American music, Indian ragas, experimental dissonance, and pop. His good friend Dr. Demento has noted that Fahey "was the first to demonstrate that the finger-picking techniques of traditional country and blues steel-string guitar could be used to express a world of non-traditional musical ideas, harmonies and melodies you'd associate with Bartok, Charles Ives, or maybe the music of India." The more meditative aspects of his work foreshadowed new age music, yet Fahey played with a fierce imagination and versatility that outshone any of the guitarists in that category. His idiosyncrasy may have limited him to a cult following, but it also ensured that his work continues to sound fresh.
The sessions which produced this album took place in Cascade Recording Studios, Portland, Oregon, during November and December, 1984, and February, 198S. This studio was at one time a small church with a tiny pulpit and choir area at the north end. Here, Mr. Fahey and Mr. Robb sat, facing the three omni-directional Telefun-ken 201 microphones which were especially modified by Eric von Helmholz. These micro phones were hung so as to preserve the proper intimate atmosphere. Once the controls were adjusted to the delicate sound of the guitar(s), the microphones were never moved; optimum recording levels were set at the beginning of each session and never changed. These guitar ists, Fahey and Robb, were the persons solely responsible for the musical flow of each per performance. There is no limiting or compression on this recording.John Fahey - Rain Forests Oceans & Other Themes
| 1. Melody McOcean |
| 2. Layla |
| 3. Rain Forest |
| 4. World Is Waiting for the Sunrise |
| 5. Lullaby and Finale from the Firebird |
| 6. Atlantic High |
| 7. Samba de Orfeu |
| 8. Theme and Variations |
| 9. May This Be Love/Casey Jones |
| 10. Intro to Ocean Waves/Ocean Waves |
| 11. Jiroscho Ascopi |
| 12. Saint Patrick's Hymn |
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