Customer Reviews

Fragments of a Rainy Season

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John Cale, it seems, is often at his best in a live setting. When I saw him in 1995 with the Soldier String Quartet, Cale himself on piano and occasional guitar, and pedal steel player BJ Cole filling out the ensemble, it was one of those rare transcendent occasions where every audience member seemed to be experiencing the same hypnotic glow, held in sway like the tide under a powerful lunar magnetism. A (regrettably) long out-of-print live document, "John Cale Comes Alive," captures Cale's strength on the other end of the spectrum, bashing out brutal rockers with a hot, stripped-down backing band of guitar, bass and drums. In this regard, then, it should come as no surprise that "Fragments of a Rainy Season" (1992) is an excellent set. However, as it covers his work from "Paris 1919" (1973) to "Songs For Drella" (1990), it also illuminates certain songs in Cale's catalog and in effect smooths out a lot of the rough spots in an interesting but erratic career.

Accompanying himself only on piano (and guitar on four songs), Cale reduces each song to its essence. His playing ranges from lyrical ("Style it Takes") to chaotic ("Guts," "Fear"), but the overall mood is a reflective one that suits these songs well. Most of these compositions, in fact, have never been on more effective display. "Chinese Envoy" and "Thoughtless Kind," both from the dissonant "Music for a New Society" (1982), are clear and melancholy in this setting, as are "Buffalo Ballet" and "I Keep a Close Watch." The three songs from the uneven, orchestrated "Falklands Suite" are given a much more forthright interpretation, with "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" coming out as one of those rare cases of a poem set to music without being trivialized. Cale's famous spooky deconstruction of "Heartbreak Hotel," carried along mostly by a slow, repetitive piano figure, shows up as well; his previous versions are fine, but this one squeaks by as the winner. The closer, Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," also trumps the studio version that appeared on the Cohen tribute, "I'm Your Fan." The previous recording seemed rushed, but here Cale takes his time with the transcendently mournful lyrics, his voice at points virtually cello-like in its resonance.

Simply put, "Fragments" provides a consistency and depth that, as a whole, few of Cale's studio albums do. He has done himself as well as his fans a great service, and for those who have yet to discover Cale, this is arguably the place to start. Choosing between this one and the lush "Paris 1919" (1973) requires a coin toss, but anyone interested in the searching, melodic side of this man's very unique work should probably own them both.

Given Cale's background in classical music and the sheer diversity of musical settings that he has performed in over the years, it is oddly ironic that perhaps his most effective recording is of a live concert during which he simply accompanies himself on piano or guitar.

Stripped of artifice, some of these performances surpass the more elaborately orchestrated originals, "Dying on the Vine" and "Hallelujah" in particular. (Not to knock the late Jeff Buckley, but his version of "Hallelujah" is to Cale's as boys are to men.) Despite his limited vocal range and the simplicity of the instrumental accompaniment, Cale manages to convey a kind of hardboiled maturity that virtuosos like Buckley can't touch. And he can still scream ("Leaving It Up to You.")

By this 1990 concert Cale had put behind him some of the problems that contributed to a career that another reviewer correctly described as "uneven," and behavior that might be charitably described as "erratic." He had more than twenty years of output to draw upon, so there is little "filler." Some of the songs are more effective than others (lyrically they range from musical settings of Dylan Thomas poems to free association doggerel). The breath of themes and emotions traversed in these compositions is such that it would be surprising if they evoked uniform responses across listeners. Different listeners will have different favorites. I have mine. Not background music, this disk rewards serious listening.

When you think of John Cale, you think of many different things. You think of his days with the Velvet Underground. The poetry of Paris 1919. The seminal Island Years. His Music For A New Society. His reunion with Lou Reed for Songs For Drella. Fragment's of a Rainy Season is a completely different side of Cale. This entire album is John Cale live with only a piano or guitar, both acoustic. The effect is some of Cale's best recordings ever. Every facet of Cale is on this album. The Island Years, Songs For Drella, Paris 1919, etc. Although all the songs here are great, and done beautifully, there are a few standout tracks. Dying on the Vine is done incredibly. The best version of the song ever. Darling I Need You is also a standout. Also, an incredibly beautiful version of Thoughtless Kind makes the album worth buying. All the other tracks are great, also. This album is more than essential for fans of Cale.

Others have already described this masterpiece more eloquently than I can, but I have to chime in.... This album is stunning, on every listen. If you care for John Cale's music at all, you must own this. A gorgeous solo statement, just piano and a little acoustic guitar, and Cale's incredible songs and voice. And if you are new to Cale, this is a good place to start. I can't call this album characteristic of his work, because I don't think "characteristic" can be used in reference to any of his work (his stylistic swings can be dizzying), and this album sounds like nothing else of his. But there is no purer example of the emotion that he can convey. As others said, many of the performances here greatly surpass the originals. I don't know how to describe the power in what sounds like very simple piano playing and singing, but as I write I am listening to it for about the 500th time, and it still takes my breath away. Cale might be an acquired taste, as he is different than all else, but anyone who loves real music needs to give this one a try. Profoundly moving.

Fragments of A Rainy Season" has graced my CD player more than any other album in the twelve years since it's release. This is the after-hours incarnation of John Cale, not the menacing sabatouer personna that Cale created for himself in the Seventies. This live album focuses on all of Cale's strengths, his lyrical song craft, his tender and anguished voice, his instumental wizardry and his larger-than-life stage presence.

"Rainy Seasons" is ample evidence that Cale's post-Velvet career has outlasted those of his bandmates, even Lou Reed. Cale has always maintained his avant gardist sensibility while Lou Reed, for better or worse, has stuck with his original black leather, NYC street hustler image that marked his Velvet Underground years. Cale's back catalog is a wealth of undiscovered treasures. What is most striking about this live performance is the passion and immediacy Cale brings to all of his classics. It's a revelation that Cale's music is better suited to this accoustic format, because his strikingly original classically influenced piano is not drowned out in a wall of guitar noise. In performances with a band, Cale generally sticks with a guitar, which he doesn't play with nearly as much conviction as piano.Cale's expressive voice simply works better with a piano.

I own most of Cale's albums and the three career retrospectives of his work. I like "Rainy Seasons" better than all of them because this live recording proves that Cale's music stands on the strength of his songwritting and doesn't need a lot of orchestration or post-production "enchancement" to work. The additional tracks that have been piggy-backed onto the original 1992 release make this CD a real dollar value.

It is difficult to begin to explain what a fine singer John Cale has become. He is not endowed with the most powerful, or beatuful voice or the broadest of ranges. He does however have an emotional maturity which takes this album out of the popular music genre into a realm of his own: timeless, elegant, and lyrical. The songs often remind me of literary works such as Steinbeck which are infused with references to relationship between society and the land it inhabits, and evince the formative influences on the artist. I cannot recommend this album highly enough. The music to which he galvanises countryman Dylan Thomas' lyrics creates a remarkable synergy which merits his ambition. This album makes me very melancholic but I am astounded constantly by its sheer beauty and am continually hearing it in my head.

The weaker, or at least less famous, half of the Velvet Underground - bassist, pianist, singer, songwriter, composer, producer, sonic terrorist John Cale - made for perhaps his best single release with this intimate live concert from 1992. Cale never quite made it in the mainstream like his former partner Lou Reed did; though his music was always more melodic than Reed's, it was more experimental and much less accessible. Cale was also always intent on making his own music himself, without help like the one Reed got from people like David Bowie (on 'Transformer') or Bob Ezrin (on 'Berlin'). And so, his albums always sounded somewhat too underproduced and eccentric for the general public, and never reached commercial success. Not that he ever wanted them to, for that matter.

Fresh from his reunion album with Lou Reed - 'Songs For Drella', dedicated to their common friend and idol Andy Warhol - Cale returned from several years' rest with this one-time concert, which proves to be the most accessible recording of his that can be found. Cale appears with nothing but a piano (and occasional acoustic guitar) in this concert, and with all the production, noise and sonic experimentation removed, Cale is revealed as a remarkably talented performer, fantastic musician and especially brilliant songwriter, as his marvelous lyrics and melodies sound better here than anywhere else. Songs like 'Ship of Fools' and 'Thoughtless Kind'- barely audible in the original studio releases - sound incredibly new here.

The 70 minutes of this edited version (the concert, as seen on the DVD, is about fifteen minutes and three songs longer) span nearly the whole of Cale's solo career. Deliberately including no songs from the Velvet Underground, the concert kicks off with a song from Cale's fantastic second album, Paris 1919 - the gorgeous 'A Child's Christmas in Wales', and the excellent title song, one of Cale's best, appears later on. There are numerous songs from his celebrated Island Trilogy ('Fear (is a Man's Best Friend)', 'Buffalo Ballet', 'Ship of Fools', 'Guts', as well as his mind-boggling and gut wrenching version of 'Heartbreak Hotel'); 'Chinese Envoy', one of his biggest hits, from Music For a New Society; three selections from his album of Dylan Thomas poems, Songs From the Dying, which sound a whole lot better here than they did on the album; 'Cordoba', from Wrong Way Up, Cale's collaborative album with genius producer Brian Eno; up to 'Style It Takes', from Songs From Drella; all of it wrapped up with Leonard Cohen's classic Hallelujah, which was a hit for Cale long before it was adopted brilliantly by Jeff Buckley.

Fragments of a Rainy Season is probably the easiest John Cale album to get into; it's an essential for Velvet Underground fans, and is an altogether beautiful and enjoyable album, as well as covering the cream of Cale's work as a solo artist better than any compilation could. Highly recommended, as well as the DVD recording.

The thing about this album I like is that it really shows off Cale's songwriting skills. It's easy when listening to his other recordings to get caught up in the sounds of broken glass and other art-rock touches - here the songs stand alone, and they are very good songs.

I had the privilege of seeing John Cale on this tour, and the CD accurately catches the performance. Especially good is the cover of "Heartbreak Hotel"

The first time I saw John Cale live was with his blistering backup crew of "Honi Soit" in 1979. The concert was a revelation and I became among the annoited Cale fanatics and bought every release by this criminally ignored genius. I own every Cale CD (including four anthologies)and quite a few out of print vinyl editions of his work. Of the 2000+ compact discs I own, "Fragments of A Rainy Season" has graced my CD player more than any other album in the ten years since it's release. This live album focuses on all of Cale's strengths, his lyrical song craft, his tender and anguished voice, his instumental wizardry and his larger-than-life stage presence. Give this wonderful showcase of Cale's brilliance a listen and I promise you will seek more. The additional tracks that have been piggy-backed onto the original 1992 release make this CD a real dollar value.

There really isnt alot one can say. You will listen. And listen. And listen.