There was a time when the New Weird America item in The Wire or the Golden Apples of the Sun compilation CD were not yet part of the music world. That The Internet didn’t replace God and/or Walt Disney and you could tell which season it was by simply looking out of the window.
In that time, and after the folk legends from the 60s/70s/+, people like Matt Valentine, Sun City Girls (at least in my head) and Joshua Burkett were posterboys without being on posters. They played and organised (in-store) shows and/or built a scene. Put out stuff you wouldn’t hear except via friends or crazy radio stations.
A romantic time if you ask me, which even I didn’t experience in full modus. When I started going to underground shows, the little-known scene was maybe a little better-known. But what was best known was the importance of the time when there was less known but still a lot happening. And that you knew a guy who knew a guy who knew.
For me, Joshua Burkett is one of the patient zeros of a quality time we are still having fun with. Fewer flyers nowadays unfortunately, but still traveling with just a guitar and playing in nice non-professional places. With his “free folk” he creates moments instead of songs, playing his instrument like a walk in the park instead of on the pavement. A beating heart, not to pump blood, but to live.
This compilation LP is a toe in the water of a warm bath for people who are not familiar with his old work. But it’s also a warm bath for people who are familiar with his work.
