NOT CRAP for Fear, Paris 1919, and Vintage Violence. I need to get more.

those records are great. also check out helen of troy & slow dazzle. the island years set combines those 2 plus fear on 2 cds.........

Cale is a remarkably uneven artist who's best work is really hard to top, and his worst is truly rock bottom. Often examples with sit side by side on the same album. Still he has consistently done his own thing and pretty much stuck to his guns over the years. I have heard he can be a pretty intolerable person to be around, which probably explains why he hasn't had too many enduring collaborations.

I got the Island Years set the other day to replace my missing copies of the original albums (what the hell did I do with them?). The thing that struck me after listening was how superior 'Fear' is as an album compared to the other two. I could compile a second album out of 'Slow Dazzle' and 'Helen of Troy' but that would still pale to 'Fear' in my book. I think it has to do with how the really intense numbers like the opening track and 'Gun' are so intense sitting next to innocuous numbers like 'Buffalo Ballad' and tend to imbue the lesser tunes with a sense of foreboding and uneasiness. I suppose I prefer Cale calmly intoning tales of horror and mayhem instead of his death rattling histrionics - although 'Fear is a man's best friend' builds from one extreme to the other quite to good effect.

For 'Fear' alone he rates a solid NOT CRAP.

I picked up this 1977 E.P., Animal Justice by John Cale, a while ago and it is pretty good. The first track "Chickenshit" is excellent, kind of punkish, driven by a monolithic sounding fuzz bass. I think it was a taunt to his band members who left after he decapitated an already dead chicken on stage without telling anyone he was going to do it. The second track is good cover of Chuck Berry's "Memphis".

I highly recommend his collaboration with Terry Riley, The Church of Anthrax. Everyone should own this. It is one of my favourites.



His classical stuff is quite not crap also.

The Animal Justice EP are also bonus tracks on the CD issue of Sabotage/Live, I believe, but neither are really easy to find. Actually, I just checked Amazon and it's there, although a bit pricey.

I don't know about John Cale, I really like a few tracks of his but I can't stand listening to any of his records all of the way through. I'm still going to go with Not Crap, because the song "Hello, There" is so enjoyable that it convinced me to buy Vintage Violence even though the rest of the record isn't really like it. And because Gun rocks even though the riff seems a bit weak after a few listens. And also because he was so angry at the Sabotage/Live part of his career and he wore a hard hat on-stage. That seems pretty bad ass.

The J. Robbins/Channels cover of "Fear is a Man's Best Friend" is terrible compared to the original, though.

I avoided Cale's solo stuff for a long time, because I listened to a few songs years and years ago and wrote them off as cheesy "classic rock". When I was in Chicago a few years back, I picked up a copy of "Ready for War" b/w "Rosegarden Funeral of Sores", because I liked Bauhaus' cover of the b-side. Lo and behold, it is a fine single. After that, I didn't really investigate his solo stuff further until late last year. I bought The Academy in Peril, which I think is good, but not great. I've since found cheap copies of Paris 1919 and Sun Blindness Music and enjoy them, especially the latter. I need to get more of that Dream Syndicate stuff, and meant to investigate it when it was first being issued on CD.

Last Friday, I went used CD shoppin' on my lunch break and found Music For A New Society. I have probably listened to it 15 times since then. For some reason, it really reminds me of Scott Walker's Climate of Hunter, though the Cale album came first. In any case, "I Keep A Close Watch" is my current favorite song. So beautiful.

I ordered that Island Years comp from a seller on Amazon, and unfortunately only got the first disc, which is weird because it was sealed. Once I get my money back, I'm going to buy it again, because what I heard was mostly pretty great.

Salut, John Cale! I think I was wrong about you! NOT CRAP!

not crap for _fear_, _paris 1919_, and _slow dazzle_

really good records, those three. really good.

plus he is one of the coolest looking guys in rock music. still. i saw him a few years ago (show was ok, not great), and he was wearing really baggy plaid pants and a metallic dress shirt. and he had this insane hair cut--it was shaved up to the top of his ears on the sides, tapered up the back of his head in the back, and very choppy and fucked up on top. he looked...great.

tmidgett wrote: he looked...great.

Damn right.

"You're a ghost/La la la/You're a ghost/I'm from the church, and I've come/To claim you with my iron drum/La la la la la la"

N/C

Slow Dazzle...I love this record, almost like a lost Eno/Roxy Music record..."Mr Wilson" such a beautiful song and "Ski Patrol" such a ridiculous song and to be on the same album, salut you wonderful welsh bastard!

also to record a vers of "Roadrunner" w/ Phil Collins on drums, to me this is very funny such a thing exists!

His recent work has been a bit precious for my taste, but the man's high points are incredible. Paris 1919, Fear, Slow Dazzle, Honi Soit, Music For A New Society -- those are some damn good albums there. And anyone who produced The Stooges, Horses and The Modern Lovers is OK in my book. Most certainly Not Crap.