John Cale
4-22-08 John Cale
CD ACADEMY IN PERIL, THE REPRISE US 2079.2
12" ANIMAL JUSTICE ILLEGAL
CD ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BEGGARS B
CD BLACK ACETATE EMI
LP CARIBBEAN SUNSET ISLAND/ZE
CD DOWN AT THE END OF LONELY STREET pirate ARCHIVIO IT ARCCD 006
LP DRIFT STUDY pirate PIRATE 13485
CD EVEN COWGIRLS GET THE BLUES DANCETERIA DANCD 113
CD FEAR ISLAND
CD FRAGMENTS OF A RAINY SEASON
LP GUTS (Collection) ISLAND
7" HALLELUJAH / (Leonard Cohen Version)
LP HEAR "FEAR" - AN INTERVIEW with JOHN CALE promo ISLAND US IXP 2
CD HELEN OF TROY ISLAND
CD HOBO SAPIENS EMI
CD HONI SOIT A&M UK 394849.2
LP JOHN CALE COMES ALIVE ISLAND/ZE
CD MUSIC FOR A NEW SOCIETY RHINO
CD
CD
CD SABOTAGE A&M/SPY CAN CD 004
CDx2 SEDUCING DOWN THE DOOR (Collection) RHINO
CD SLOW DAZZLE ISLAND
CD SOLO PERFORMANCE,
CDx2 ST. VALENTINE'S NIGHT pirate FIRE POWER FP-035
LP VERY DEAD CHICKEN pirate PIRATE EU 763215
CD VINTAGE VIOLENCE re
CD WALKING ON LOCUSTS
With Eno
CD WORDS FOR THE DYING OPAL US 26024.2
With LCS Soundsystem
7" ALL MY FRIENDS EMI
With Lou Reed
CD SONGS FOR DRELLA SIRE US 26140.2
I had to cut this list down a bit, only leaving in absolutely essential singles. I’ve seen Mr. Cale lots of times – I still maintain that he was the loudest act I’ve ever seen. Lots of fun, too. I met him once, and many of my original LP’s are autographed.
I really liked his recent studio album “Black Acetate”; I wish his single with LCD Soundsystem “All My Friends” was available on CD, but it doesn’t look like it is. And the recently re-mastered “
Still very partial to his “Island Years” – “Fear”, “Slow Dazzle”, “Helen of Troy” and “Guts” (for good measure). “Sabotage” is really great, too – try putting the LP on, turn out the lights, turn it up – and have a beer, standing there is the dark. Magic!
Again, I offer up the scan of some of my many John Cale concert tickets. Yes, I went to all of these shows. Can’t remember which shows were better than others, but…mostly, he was real loud. And good.
posted by Ron Kane @ 7:11 AM
5 Comments:
I saw Cale twice. Once, a fiasco at Sleep Out Louie's where talk had it, $1K and a certain amount of coke booked the deal. A man who taught English at my former Junior High School had booked the show! I never got a chance to ask him about Cale. I'd heard he'd had to take it on the lam due to a trumped up morals charge...moved to the Pacific Northwest, they said.
But I digress. In 1985 Cale was a mess. He could not play the guitar. He could barely play the piano. It was like watching a slow motion car wreck.
By the late 20th century, I had since become a big Cale fan, thanks to my wife insisting we buy more Cale I happened to have many collaborative albums in my collection and she wanted to hear more. I never bought solo material because of that show. Fear was the first thing she bought on her own and that album pushed me over the brink. We then acquired a lot more Cale and I was amazed at the reach of his art. This one man rendered almost everything else obsolete as he was capable of masterful work in nearly every niche rock had to offer.
10-19-2004 We caw an amazing Cale show at The Orange Peel, where he played a nearly 3 hour show for an audience of about 50. Top 5 show for sure. He played everything I had wanted to hear but it was all incredible. Even the few songs I didn't recognize. "Gun" was performed in an incredible 12 minute arrangement, sadly, not the same one on his otherwise ace "Circus" live 2xCD+DVD. The arrangement on that release frankly, bites.
I have never heard a Cale album I didn't love. Heck, even his album of Dylan Thomas poetry set to classical music is a sterling release. Just hearing the dignity in his voice is inspiring.
P.S.
In either case, Cale was not particularly loud. The loudest show? Killing Joke, maybe?
I have seen Cale a real mess a few times (like when I met him in '83 or so). But the Whisky shows from the era of "Sabotage" - loudest thing I ever saw. Louder than Deep Purple.
Jim -- yeah, the KJ show takes the award. I remember us coming out of there (with Tom?) and YELLING at each other in order to be understood, our ears were buzzing so!! :)
As for Cale, I'm shocked that Ron apparently does not have WRONG WAY UP, my favourite record of that year. Cale really brings out the best in Eno.
I don't have much Cale in my collection, and I really must do something about that. I think I've been waiting for a definitive box set ...
... o' God? :)
Chas - Start with Paris 1919, then get Fear, then Slow Dazzle, then Helen of Troy, then Sabotage. Take a deep breath. Then get drunk.
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