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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An all-too-easy to neglect masterpiece, October 18, 2006
I'm somewhat ashamed that I only recently discovered this album for the first time. I've long liked and frequently adored John Cale and always loved Brian Eno, so I can't explain why this collaboration between the two of them didn't grab me when this first came out. My only excuse is that there are only so many hours in the day and so many days in the week. A few gems are always going to slip one by.
This album is somewhat surprising when given the pairing of Eno and Cale. Though neither is always inaccessible and both have at times produced some music that is almost popular in approach, who would have imagined that the two together would have brought out their purest pop tendencies? There is nothing here that smacks of difficult or avant-garde. This isn't Top 40 pop, but it is wonderfully accessible stuff, as if their intent is to delight the most resistant hearer. Not that it is musically simplistic. Far from it. One just has to pay some attention to the wonderfully contrapuntal rhythms interlacing "Spinning Away" to understand that these are masterful musicians. Both performers have done better work than this, but neither has done so frequently. I'd rank this near the best work that either has done. For Cale, I'd put this slightly behind such albums as PARIS 1919, VINTAGE VIOLENCE, HELEN OF TROY, and SLOW DAZZLE, while it is very nearly as good as Eno's four vocal albums (TAKING TIGER MOUNTAIN BY STRATEGY, HERE COME THE WARM JETS, ANOTHER GREEN WORLD, and BEFORE AND AFTER SCIENCE) and his collaboration with David Byrne, MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS. I can't imagine a fan of Cale or of the vocal work of Eno (some who are exclusively ambient fans may feel differently) not almost instantly adoring this album.
Though a couple of songs go a bit darker than the others (for instance, the wonderful Cale number "Cordoba" or the slow, near-cowboy ballad "The River" that ends the album), for the most part these are bright, upbeat, fast tempo numbers. Almost every song on the disc is at least entertaining, but my three favorites are probably the aforementioned "Cordoba" and "Spinning Away" (which I got on a kick with and must have played thirty times in a row), as well as the song that kicks the album off, "Lay My Love." For those who are unfamiliar with both Brian Eno and John Cale, this provides a wonderful introduction to each, though the music as a whole is more typical of Eno's other work than Cale's. But for those unfamiliar with the disc but not the performers, this will be a wonderful surprise.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Overlooked Classic, February 23, 2006
It's good to see this forgotten classic re-issued, with some fine remastering and two bonus tracks. Both these guys brought a lot of talent to the table: Cale as an original member of the seminal-punk band Velvet Underground; Eno as producer-extraordinaire and pioneering ambient music composer. This collaboration (their only one as a performing duo, to my knowledge) came as close to pop perfection as anyone could expect. Recorded on the cusp of the 80's and 90's, it still has some of the former decade's trademarks: heavy on the synths and pop sensibilities. But there are some truly great songs contained here. "Been There Done That" should have been a big hit, with one of the most singable hooks ever. The melodic development of "Spinning Away" fits the lyrics perfectly, with its unfolding cosmic point-of-view. (If I produced rock videos, I would have loved to do a line-drawing-animation of this one, with the artist-narrator of the song orbiting into space). "Cordoba" is a beautiful little ballad with a surprise bit of dissonance. "One Word" and "Lay My Love" are also really fine, rhythmically-driven songs. If there's any weak link, it's in their singing, though when they really click with their harmonizing, it's pretty sublime. The bonus tracks, "You Don't Miss Your Water" (a rather somnambulant treatment of an old blues standard) and the instrumental "Palanquin" (not "Grandfather's House", as shown on the Amazon track listing), are interesting additions, but not quite up to par with the original tracks. Another reviewer said this album is an example of "the whole equalling more than the sum of the parts", and I agree - not that the "parts" themselves are too shabby, mind you. But this CD ranks with the best work either artist has ever done.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic Eno and Cale, November 11, 2005
Brian Eno had been away from making albums full of songs that I had given up hope he would ever do it again. Luckily, he hooked up with John Cale and the two had so much fun they decided to record an album together. "Wrong Way Up" ranks up there with Eno's first five solo albums and with Cale's best as well. It has elements of both songwriters making this a unique sounding album. "Spinning Away" with its ska influenced guitar riff and "Been There, Done That" with one of the catchiest melodies either man has dreamed up are two unique highlights of this album. The opening track "Lay My Love" with its nonsense lyric( "I am the crow of desperation/I need no fact or validation") almost makes sense. Really. Cale's melodic violin lick and the percolating percussion of the track may it instantly catchy. How did radio not pick up on this? The funky "One Word" with with its infectious rhythm guitar and wash of harmony vocals make this song instantly memorable. I have to admit I'm less a fan of Cale and more of Eno but it seems this album captures a perfect collaboration between the two of them. Makes me wish that Eno had worked with Cale on his 2005 release "Another Day on Earth".
I think back to the missed opportunties and wish that Bryan Ferry had hooked up with Eno again a long time back or that somehow they had been able to work together in Roxy Music. Imagine "Stranded" with "Baby's on Fire" or "Country Life" with "Cindy Tells Me". Actually, Roxy's "Country Life" and some of the material on Eno's "Taking Tiger Mountain" are quite complementary which is no surprise given that two-thirds of Roxy appear on the album at one point or another.
This remastered edition has a bit more clarity and detail than the previous version. If you're happy with the original release from 1990, by all means stick to it. The textures sound better here than on the previous editionThe real attraction here is "You Don't Miss Your Water" recorded by Eno and Daniel Lanosis and originally on a movie soundtrack. "You Don't Miss Your Water" is a bit unusual. Written by William Bell, Eno is complimented by Daniel Lanosis on guitar adding nice sonic texture to the recording. If you like this album then picking it up just for these two tracks may be worthwhile.
There is no track here called "Grandfather's House". I have no idea where amazon got that info from. Instead, we get an interesting instrumental "Palanquin" as the final track. I agree with some other folks that it sound a bit unfinished and resembles more Cale than Eno (i.e., it doesn't resemble any of Eno's ambient stuff or instrumental pieces to me). Perhaps "Grandfather's House" was the original title for this track or an alternate track that was rejected for some reason. I can't say for sure.
The new booklet includes all the lyrics and a new cover shot. I would have liked to hear some of the demos for many of these songs but I guess we'll have to wait for some sort of boxed set for that.
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