Robbie Basho’s guitar is astonishing. Basho immersed himself deeply in various musical traditions—Indian, Persian, Native American, among others—but cultural syncretism only works when it results in something truly original. Basho’s sound is. The songs contain shadows of ragas, scales born far from the Wyoming high plateau, chants in a Native cadence; but in the end the music in Visions is, in any meaningful sense, only Robbie Basho. It’s also true that Basho’s vocals are at best an acquired taste. His singing is sometimes hypnotic, pious, and sometimes carefree, undisciplined. Maybe he wanted to emphasize that these sets of emotions are not at odds. That idea works only occasionally (“Orphan’s Lament”), but I’m quibbling. Robbie Basho’s life was tragic, and perhaps Visions is best described as one long miserere, a plea for mercy to the wide open sky. 8 ↑ ↓
Robbie Basho. Visions of the Country. Windham Hill, 1978. Reviewed July 9, 2025. Notable tracks: “Rodeo,” “Elk Dreamer’s Lament,” “Leaf in the Wind.”