I want to talk about John Cale.

[Guest Felonies!]

Is Paris 1919 going to be as good as Fear? I really enjoy his voice; too bad he didn't get more lead vocal assignments in the VU. Would've liked to hear him on "The Black Angel's Death Song" or "The Murder Mystery," which is like their Caleyest track of the third/fourth albums.

[ArkhamGlobe]

I personally prefer Paris 1919 to Fear, there's this weird, kind of ethereal mood to the album that I really like. The track "Macbeth" kind of stuck out like a sore thumb for me the first couple of listens, but I don't mind its placement on the album that much anymore. I also, for the most part, really enjoy the arrangements and there are some of Cale's better songs on it. A very good album, I think.

[Guest Felonies!]

I did read that 1919 has a very pleasant, idyllic, low-key quality to it, compared to Fear, which seems to feature Manzanera, Eno, and probably some other guys from the Eno circle of friends, and thus bear some resemblance to the early Eno albums.

 

Oh hey, it finally started downloading. It's hard to find Cale on Soulseek.

 

I expected "Child's Christmas in Wales" to sound different than this. Less drumming, I guess?

[ArkhamGlobe]

Pretty much, yeah. Fear has a colder, harsher and more stripped down sound to it (though it isn't nearly as harrowing as the later Music for a New Society).

[vivalaultra]

I downloaded Paris 1919 about a year ago and enjoyed it. It's literary. I haven't heard much of his other solo stuff, however, so I have nothing more to offer anyone but that passing opinion.

[Gary Floyd]

I've heard a few of the songs he did with Brian Eno. I might get that collaberation album some day.

[Giuseppe Zangara]

This thread inspired me to put on Paris 1919 for the first time in ages, but it wasn't long until I realized I wasn't in the mood for this at all. I might be able to contribute to this thread some other time.

[Annabelle]

i enjoy the vintage violence & paris 1919 over any of his island stuff. while i enjoy the latter, i do say there's something special about the subdued early works. by helen of troy he sorta becomes noise compared to the carefully orchestrated early albums. but really, most of his 70's stuff is worth seeking out. his solo stuff kinda gets muzzled by his vu & loud reed association. its neat to at least hear once.

[Guest Felonies!]

I was really happy with Paris 1919, especially the last track.

[Guest Felonies!]

Still happy. The title track feels like it should've been in The Royal Tenenbaums.

[Annabelle]

no thats gideon's bible from vintage violence.

[Guest Felonies!]

Why yes, that as well. I still maintain my choice.

[Guest Felonies!]

Last week, I bought a concert DVD entitled Fragments of a Rainy Season, which seems like one of those phrases that sounds really cool and evocative but doesn't really have any semantic value. Anyway, it's just John Cale on piano, which improves the laughably busy songs ("Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night") but subtracts from songs where the accompaniment is crucial ("Paris 1919," "Fear Is a Man's Best Friend). I bought this at Tower Records in what turned out to be the tail end of their Schaumburg location's liquidation sale. I went down to the Zs expecting to make a killing in the Frank Zappa department, as they traditionally stocked about 40 of his albums at any given time, but I was beaten to the punch: all that remained were a bunch of We're Only In It For The Moneys and a One Size Fits All. Other interests of mine were similarly cleared out until finding this Cale DVD tucked behind a plastic divider. "Oh, sweet! John Cale!", I exclaimed with more joy than the situation warranted, though to be fair, this was an evening in which I expected to come home with everything but could find nothing. A man that I would say was in his early 50s turned to me and told me that he saw John Cale back in 1979 at the Barn of Barrington in an intimate 200-seat venue. His words, not mine. We then had a spirited discussion about the merits of Cale's solo career vis-a-vis Lou Reed's. For some reason, these things never happen to me at Circuit City and Best Buy.

 

Anyway it's a decent concert, but not essential. Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't have gotten it if it wasn't 30% off.

 

EDIT: Oh, he does a little bit of guitar, too. Interesting take on "Ship of Fools," but it's not as cool without vibraphone.

[Giuseppe Zangara]

Tower isn't worth romanticizing.

[Guest Felonies!]

They had the best inventory of any music store, though. It's not like Sam Goody where they had terrible selection as well as ridiculously high prices. There are better stores in and around Chicago and Madison, but I'd always found good stuff at Tower.

[Giuseppe Zangara]

Oh, I forgot you don't actually live in Chicago.

 

Anyway, Tower had decent selection, but there was something slightly Wal-Mart—in everything but prices, which were always a dollar or two more than any decent store I'd visit in the same city—about the place, anyway. And I say this having been to ones in Atlanta, New Orleans and NYC.

[Giuseppe Zangara]

Oof, look at me brag about all the Towers I've visited.

[Guest Felonies!]

At least they didn't smell like Wal-Mart. They do have an odor.

[Kinetic]

Check it, I got that John Cale live album, too. "Dying on the Vine" is for true heads only, but the rest of that record ain't worth shit. Peep this: I got this John Cale record called Guts that got that righteous-ass title track, plus a cover of "Pablo Picasso" and "Fear is a Man's Best Friend" and "Leaving it Up to You," which is some sick ass shit. It got a cover of "Heartbreak Hotel," too. Shit's crazy.