Dave Bixby found god one evening in the late 60s — an experience that would deeply influence his life and music thereafter. Looking to attain some form of purity, Bixby renounced taking LSD and all other drugs. His friends, feeling estranged from his newfound sober and piteous identity, abandoned him. Even the local Christian group failed to recognize his personal encounter with god. Overcome with utter isolation, Bixby began to think more personally of god; he wrote Ode To Quetzalcoatl (recently re-released on Guerssen) as a result. Unsurprisingly, the album is dripping with references to god and heaven, though given Bixby’s desolate situation during the late 60s, the whole of Quetzalcoatl is profoundly morose.
Opener “Drug Song” is a downer if there ever was one. “Life used to be good/ now look what I’ve done/ I’ve ruined my temple with drugs/ my mind is stunned,” laments the recently enlightened Bixby. It’s oddly pretty though — Bixby’s vocals do well to channel his solitude; his guitar is soft, yet overwhelmingly emotional at times. Lyrically speaking, Bixby may be singing about god, but his expression is immersed with loneliness rather than faith. Ignorant of his intention, Dave Bixby’s Ode To Quetzalcoatl says more about secluded introspection than it does newfound Christianity. And for that reason alone, I don’t think Quetzalcoatl could be any more beautiful.
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