Reviews (page 7 of 7)
AJ: nyc drug folk orchestral melodies. Sounds pretty good musically, his voice is cool too. Not something I’ll listen to again.
No tää ei ollut ihan mulle. En tiedä onko sattumaa, että VU:kin muuttui enemmän omaan makuun, kun Cale lähti.
Only listened to the first 3-4 songs, but my wavelengths didn't quite settle into these jams
I wasn't aware of John Cale and was surprised to hear this side of a founding member of Velvet Underground. This was okay, but I wasn't wowed. I felt like the album took off pretty slowly and just never really gained momentum. Production quality was also fairly low. The artistic, orchestral quality was neat, as were a lot of the lyrics. Ultimately, it's listenable, I just didn't really vibe with it.
Reminds me of the Bee Gees album I had two days ago. Lots of lush production without much interesting going on with the lyrics. The historical references throughout is an cool concept for an album but I think John's delivery didn't keep my attention all that much. 4/10
Nice enough but background music for me. I really wish I could vote more than just 5 numbers though, guess this would be like a 2.9 but given what I've previously given a 3 a 3 here seems to high.
Yeah ok this is pretty limp. Whimsical and weak. 2/5.
Well crafted music. The singing isn’t terrible, but his voice is boring. He was one of the members of the Velvet Underground. This record is the opposite. Favorite song: Paris 1919.
This didn’t do anything for me throughout most of the listen. My ears pricked up during the second to last song but I forgot to care throughout the day. Inoffensive but dull.
Not my cup of tea
I think the album starts pretty well, and though Paris 1919 is really strong, it becomes apparent that John Cale's voice seems to have a really narrow range. Wherever he seems to have to push his range, the vocals just don't come off well. The Antarctica whisper approach isn't an improvement. This was potential here, but it didn't hit for me.
This album is bouncy and fun. I keep thinking of what to compare it to and then realize I can't think of much except maybe Richard Thompson. I love that warm and friendly blonde Wurlitzer in Antarctica Starts Here.
I know I'm supposed to revel in all the brilliance that is John Cale, but I don't. This album is like attending church so you can avoid going to hell.
The 1919 Paris Peace Conference heralded the end of WWI, and perhaps eventually precipitated the rise of the Nazis in Germany. But in 1919, in Paris, in that moment, the town (and Europe) were surely partying. There is no partying to be found on John Cale's "Paris 1919." After boring us all on the first track, he follows it up by declaring "Hanky Panky nohow." I don't think he is refusing to go down to the banks of the Hanky Panky. I think he's against the other kind of hanky panky. (Jeez, that really is the lamest euphemism there is.) But as many have sang throughout the years, "My baby does the hanky panky." (Best delivered in Sylvan Esso's "Coffee." Does Cale have no baby? No one to share the hanky panky with? I'd be willing to bet there was quite a bit of hanky panky in Paris in 1919, launching their own little baby boom perfectly timed to send those babies off to the sequel. Elsewhere Cale continued to bore, with a minor exception on "Macbeth," though that seemed like it didn't fit and couldn't have been recorded with the rest. I'd rather watch a loop of the movie scene that inspired the Pixies' "Debaser" line "un chien andalusia" then listen to John Cale's "Andalusia" or any of the rest of this album. "Antarctica" didn't start at the last track - I felt frozen by boredom from the start.
His voice reminded me of Belle and Sebastian, but without the jangliness that makes Belle and Sebastian pleasant.
I’m sure I’m missing something here, but when it comes to post-Velvet Underground works, I’m always going to be more of a Lou Reed kind of guy.
I like the songs, but they just werent attention grabbing for me.
Hätte nen sehr gutes Album sein können aber es hört sich iwie so an als wüsste das Album nicht in welche Richtung es gehen will also eher entspannt oder pracgtvoll oder aufregend. Deshalb fehlt bei den meisten songs für mich iwas. Aufnahmen sind auch nicht so wirklich clear. 3-4/10
Don’t like the voice. Liked 2 songs.
Forgettable
A bit middle of the road.
A sensação de um pop bem desenvolvido é altamente perceptível, mesmo assim não me envolve para sentir a importância histórica.
Was a complete daze of an album, until Macbeth kicked it up a much needed notch. Then it fizzles out again towards the end. I'll give this 2 crowns for Macbeth being decent, and the rest being not awful to listen to. 👑👑
Meh.
Best Song: Macbeth. Real dancey rock and roll. Worst Song: Hanky Panky Nohow. The lyrics aren't as bad as I expected, but still the phrase "hanky panky" is insurmountably bad. Overall: This was certainly a collection of songs. Breathtakingly average.
Beetje outdated. Vond het wat aan de saaie kant
Good easy listening, nothing too special for me
Let me say before I start that this was the hardest album to rate that I've listened to yet. I swung throughout the course of it from 1 to 4 and ultimately can absolutely see why people rate it highly. John Cale's work with the velvet underground needs no introduction but this was my very first exposure to his solo work. A casual browse throws up words like avant-garde and experimental. Brilliant I thought a challenging listen in the vein of Robert Wyatt or a proto ambient work in the vein of what Eno was doing at the time awaits me. I don't think that's what this album is. I cant really tell what this album is. Is it a collection of 70's folk ballad nonsense? Is it a very accessible baroque pop album? Is it sublimely stripped down progressive rock? I genuinely can't tell. And therein lies the issue I want it to be more progressive, I want it to commit to being a weird album. However it just manages to dodge the question of if its a work of a mad genius or a singer songwriter going through the motions. Sometimes that enigmatic quality is to be celebrated, most of the time really but with this one it just left me feeling really frustrated. On the good points the title track is a great song and "Hanky Panky Nohow" has somehow wormed its way into the same part of my brain that's usually reserved for things much closer to outsider art. In fact, skipping back through the album, the song writing in general is quite strong. I just wish I could work out what he was trying to say with this album. I'm giving it a 2 but also following it on Spotify to give it more listens, I think that says it all really.
Nonsense, very very old fashioned, not very exciting.
Kind of interesting, but not for me.
bopring
It felt like he was trying out for the Beatles. Not the best.
Boring through and through
not really anything special
It was fine folk, but a bit repetitive.
If in doubt, do a period piece--except the period is so riddled with Cale's idiosyncracies and weirdo visions that it could double as the present (though probably not the future). For the first few songs, his drone floats in a misplaced yesteryear while the tunes exist in the here and the now, but on 'Macbeth', 'Paris 1919' and 'Graham Greene' they come barrelling onto the stage together for a twisted history of the bourgeoisie told in a hodge-podge of The Kinks' sorrowful quaintness and Nick Drake's John Donne poses.
The album was kind of there. Nothing really remarkable or noteworthy about it. I didn't skip any of the songs. I didn't hate it. Probably better than a 2 not really a 3. I will round down.
Je suis quand même surpris de cette écoute. Je m'attendais à quelque chose de plus éclaté de cet ancien du Velvet Underground, quelque chose de plus difficile d'approche. Finalement ça s'écoute bien. Les arrangements ne sont pas plates. La longueur de l'album est parfaite. La qualité de l'enregistrement n'est pas superbe, mais c'est un album à écouter et j'y reviendrai sûrement. Pièces préférées: The Endless Plain Of Fortune, Paris 1919, Graham Greene
Pretty dated sound. Was hoping for something a bit more experimental in line with the Velvet Underground.
Yea it was ok
Meh? Gets an extra star for the song names
A solid #2. Well, maybe not that solid, but it certainly is a #2.
Je reconnais la qualité des orchestrations des chansons, mais celles-ci, en soi, m’ont paru étonnamment ennuyeuses.
I was expecting to enjoy this more than I did. I mean the guy was in the Velvet Underground, after all. I could see (hear) that this hangs together neatly as a body of work, but none of the songs grabbed me much, or were familiar. I would have liked a bit more experimentation - this sounded like standard '70s rock ballad fare, to me, with none of the smarts that Cale’s playing for VU displayed. Black Angels Death Song this is not..
Nothing really there for me on this album. Middle ground 70s soft rock styles.
Minus a song or two, this album was hot garbage.
I can see the talent here, but this is just that bit pedestrian for my tastes.
Weird, John Cale's name came up yesterday. Can't remember why. This had some very nice orchestral chamber pop (is that the term?) moments. I think it's good, but for some reason it didn't truly grab me. Second listen was more enjoyable than the first and third... maybe it requires a specific mood? At the moment: 2.5
Can't say I'm familiar with John Cale. This album is a real mixed bag. Macbeth and Paris 1919 are both great. But Hanky Panky Nohow is awful
This was a really different album and I wasn't really album to fully appreciate it, I think. I found it off putting lyrically, and not always in a bad way, and I never found myself getting wrapped up in it. Still, I thought that it was unique and, sadly, ultimately forgettable. Favorite song: Hanky Panky Nohow
Kind of a James Taylor vibe, but not as good.
Wilde zeggen dat dit als een nachtkaars uitging, maar het is nooit ontvlamt, wat een saaie bedoeling zeg.
Voor iemand die in de Velvet Underground heeft gezeten vond ik dit nogal brave en zelfs enigszins slaapverwekkende muziek.
Gezapig! Met als dieptepunt 'Hanky Panky Nohow'.
Boredom in a glass ready to be sipped like church cordial
Heel saai
This is aggressively ok
The most three star album I've had on this. Two stars
This guy reads books
Pretty forgettable honestly
Not a big fan of this. It sounds like a demented children's album.
laid back
Street struggling to remember it from Friday...
Not for me...
It was fine. Good that it was actual songs. Just not my bag
Meh, didn’t like much. Sorry, pretty sure this is a Velvet Underground Guy… got another one coming up…
Not really a fan of this.
Love the bass on the opener. Annoyingly catchy chorus in Hanky Panky Nohow. Great orchestral arrangement in track 3. The bass has been very cool so far, as have the orchestral parts. The low volume marimba motif in Graham Greene is such a huge call. Not a huge fan of how the drums are mixed though, hi-hats hard panned to the right. Super listenable and with a fair few bold choices, just maybe not enough for me. Highlights were the bass on basically every track, all the orchestral stuff and any time the band got to play heavier rock stuff. But overall it kind of comes and goes without leaving too lasting an impression.
Fine, if unspectacular
This didn't do much for me. A little slow-paced at times and just meh at others.
A bit dull
Nope
Kinda nice. Some really good songs but most just muddle along.
Nah. I could see the appeal, but too much of it was just so wet.
With song titles like half past France and Antarctica starts here you’d think there’d be a lot more to exciting to listen to
eh
Not enjoying this. I’m pretty amazed this was considered good. The music is pretty ok but his voice is awful and lyrics are just dorky
Forgettable
This guy's voice is terrible. I hate this!
Meh
meh
Didn't really feel this one
gave up after two songs. not a fan of artists who are self indulgent. never really cared for the velvet underground either
This was relentless in its dullness. It all sounded pretty much the same, forgot it was on. For a short album it was too long.
I know this said it was 1973, but this got that 60s STANK on it. I don’t need an album by the guy who was in Velvet Underground instead of that another Velvet Underground album. Not like this list doesn’t loooove its repeats
Nice
I don't give many albums the lowest rating, but Mr. John Cale gave me no choice. The production is so bad, it sounds like background music in a movie scene, and it's the cheesiest music one can imagine. There were only a handful of enjoyable moments throughout this travesty. I feel bad for Paris, France. They don't deserve this honor. Favorite Track: "Andalucia".
Just no.
Insipid, dreary nonsense. Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ in part Revisit ❌️ ★☆☆☆☆ (2/10) Total reviewed : 266 Already owned : 61 Purchased : 15 To buy list : 1 Nope : 189
Orchestral art rock and baroque pop built on piano, lush strings, restrained guitars, and calm, melodic vocals unfolds with stately elegance. Listening feels like walking through a quiet historical museum late in the evening—beautiful rooms, soft echoes, and a pace so gentle it almost lulls you to sleep.
found this very strange
Why am I doing this list thing .... Thought I'd find some great new music, but evidently not.
Started out with a fairly open mind about this but by the end I really did not like it. Sometimes it feels almost improvisational like he hadn't fully worked out what the lyrics should be before he recorded it.
Chucked out of Velvet Underground for being too weird, I expected novel things here. Just a drab listen from start to finish. Huge letdown
Not sure what I was listening to to be honest , there was no real melody in his dreadful out of tune voice The music itself was too over the top for the lame songs with stupid names Terrible And to say this on the list of albums to listen to before you die was torturing my soul note by note
Andalusia quite a simple track but one of the more enjoyable ones for me on the album. His vocal style pretty dull though. Production is well done, not a fan of the songs so much though! Macbeth is all over the place , I actively dislike that track, one for US army to use for their sonic interrogation techniques. Paris 1919 has nice orchestration but the lyrics are pure wackiness, speaking of whacky I think Mr. Cale smoked a bit of the old whacky baccy working on this one. The middle 8 string section is nice but a bit out of place, and chorus just more of the same, dull! Half past France is purely forgettable. Antarctica starts here, well honestly what the hell is that, great instrument recording and quality when it kicks it but it seems as though he did the vocal takes at home after his wife and kids had gone to sleep, and he didn't want to wake them up singing the vocal, listen again and you'll see exactly what I'm talking about. As a good friend of mine said, Mr. Basten, this reminds of a cheap version of Paul McCartney, he probably listened to Paul's albums coming out around about this period and thought oh I'll have a bash at that. The lyrics are just odd, and pure Beatles imitation with some of the instrumentation but not executed with the same finesse. For me, forgettable, and has no place to be on a list of albums to hear before you die. Sadly, I will die having listened to it when I could've saved this time reading the ingredients on the back of a cereal box instead, at least I'd have given my eyes a bit of reading practice.
Guff
Absolutely not my bag at all
Oh weh, Cale > Reed? Tatsächlich? Nachdem ich erst schon Cohen fälschlicher weise den Velvets zugeordnet habe war es evtl doch Andy oder Nico? Wo ist das Genie von Underground? c
Unnecessary mushy man pop rock crap.
What the hell is this nonsense?
NOPE..... I just can't.
Imagine if Stephen Fry were a music album. That’s Paris 1919 by John Cale. It’s so far up its own backside and so pleased with itself that at times you can literally (not figuratively) hear the smugness. A combination of fancy words, weird baroque style music and an unspectacular voice, I won’t be revisiting this again. The only positive is this: This project is to listen to 1001 albums you must hear; at no point are we told that it is the 1001 best albums (that’s subjective anyway) and sometimes the album of the day is something out there, something unorthodox. It’s always interesting to hear something different. That doesn’t justify a second star though because this was not an enjoyable listen.
Booooring
I don’t get this album at all. Not one song was enjoyable or interesting to me.
1.5 - Bad
# 549 : Paris 1919 by John Cale Paris 1919 – Mediocrity in a Velvet Suit Pleasant enough, sure—but are you seriously telling me this made the cut over literally any of the other thousands of albums out there? Paris 1919 is like sipping lukewarm tea while reading poetry you don’t quite understand. It’s cultured, it’s composed, and it’s… kind of boring. “Macbeth” is the highlight, but even that feels like the album’s way of saying, “Look, I can be interesting… I just choose not to.” If too much of a good thing is bad, then too much of a mediocre thing is just exhausting. Verdict: A polite yawn in album form. Avoid unless you're curating a list of musical wallpaper. If you have to listen to this, look out for : Macbeth Listened: 19/08/2025
Somebody really needs to explain or justify why this album is on this list. This is why 1001 is really too many albums to consider which leaves the door open for "just okay" albums to get in.
Dont like his voice. Dont like the music. Dont like the album.
Not my pint of beer
just so boring
1 star babeyyyy I only.like barracuda
Not for me. 1/5
Bien naze
I don’t understand why this is an album I should listen to. It’s boring, it doesn’t seem to fit into any evolution of music genres that I care about in any way, it has no redeeming value in my eyes.
Turned off after 2. Nop.e
that was dumb
Not good.
Part upbeat, part melancholy, all kinda boring to be honest.
Pish. I'll stick to the Velvet Underground.
Even the penguins in Antartica should not have to listen to this album. 1 star or F.
Super corny
Gear: Grado Hemp Artwork: 🙄🤵♂️⬜ Production: 🙄🤔🤷 Music: 🙄🎤😴 Rating: 🙄(🙄)/5
Ok singer throughout the decades. No real hits.
Kind of boring, not my thing. There was some varity between the songs but not enough for me to really enjoy this album. 1.5/5 stars.
Title track pretty good, worth it just for the final track
1. uualez - 0 2. panky - 1 3. fortune -1 4. andalucia - 1.5 5. macbeth - 0 6. pariz - 1 7. greene - 1 8. france - 1 9. here - 1.5
Not really my thing. I appreciated some parts but did not enjoy it as an album overall.
Don't like his voice
This was painful. Think I'm going to settle down with a Roger Whittaker palette cleanser... Not a fan of the albums he has produced nor of his solo work. Maybe one day the song "Paris 1919" will grow on me, but I doubt it. This album didn't do anything for me.
No thank you. 1/5
It’s giving friar tuck playing a lute vibes
Not for me
This was shit
Bored the tits off me
Wow a lot of people must have bee wry stoned (or out of their minds) to have actually paid for this audio recording. I still can’t understand how or why so much of this garbage makes it into this list (perhaps people related to the artist). Save your money for Radiohead
Very tedious.
( Boring one track record.
If you were to ask me if I've ever listened to this album, I'd say no, because I have retained no memory of it. Clearly not my jam.
What is this? Un-listen-to-able. 1/5
Feels like the bad cuts that didn’t make it to the Beatles Magical Mystery Tour album
Did not enjoy this. 1/5
SILLY_SING_TALK is what I will call this silly and almost absent genre - singular for its ability to evoke so little. it serves to introduce me to something completely different - job done. Boxed ticked. can we leave now? And I did not quite fall asleep but I got annoyed. So wierdly slow I felt like I was following a forgetful, verbose and mad (but sedated) englishman around their house as they SING-TALK a description of what they do in each room of the house.
Je ne sais pas porquoi
It's not for me
Downright horrible, boring, out of tone.
Paris 1919 is a pretty decent song.... and that's it.
- eh - appreciate that it was short but eh - 1.5 but I need more rating variation so I’ll round down
This guy should try out for the stormtroopers because he can't hit a single note. This is making me groan out loud in disgust. I hate this and it's making me angry. I'm not finishing this one. Easy 1 star.
Awful. Why? Why is this one of the 1001 albums?
Orkade inte ens lyssna klart. Bättre kan du 1001albumsgenerator.com.
I like the 70's dreamy melodies but just wish his voice was better.
Nicht meine Richtung
boring af ngl
meh
Not my vibe. Too relaxed for a crazy morning, felt like i was falling asleep
Somewhere someone may call this brilliant, I call it absolute rubbish. Boring.
Lou Reeds partner i Velvet Underground. Inte rolig alls. Stundtals rätt mediokra arr och sången känns oklar. Ganska långt ifrån nivån med VU.
If it’s going to sound this bad, I would at least expect better lyrics than “Andalucia when can I see ya”. At least it was short
1.4 didn't care for this very much. Will check out his other stuff based on his resume
normal
really did my ears dirty by listening to this. the endless plain of fortune
Not my cup of tea
Öde. Wieder eines dieser Alben, nach dessen Audüre (™️) man sich fragt, warum man dieses Projekt eigentlich noch fortführt. Was man alles so gehört haben soll...
I quit listening when he sang, "Andalucia, when can I see ya." Finito.
hanky panky nohow anyone?
A toothy blowjob in the back of my brother's old van. Thousands of brown spiders swarming my penis and balls as I look on in horror. It hurts.
Noooooooot good.
Oh man Awful
Not good. Very not good
Slow, and kind of a weak voice. Thought it would pick up with “Macbeth” but his voice maintained the weakness even when the band added some edge. Not a fan.
In the realm of interesting and slickness, this is far from rich jalapeños. Mostly dull, Macbeth was ok
Qu´est-ce que c’est que cette merde. Il chante mal, ce n’est pas inovant, rien de tout ça n’a traversé le temps, c’est ennuyant pour mourir. Antartica starts here est la seule toune qui mérite d’être entendue là-dessus.
It’s ok I guess
Not interesting at all, why was this on the list?
Didn’t like
made it to andalucia, nope.
Absolutely not for me. The only song that was anywhere near good was "Paris 1919". "Hanky Panky Nohow" was basically unlistenable.
No joy here
Nah. No thanks. I was bored.
Can’t all be winners
Nope
Tedious
ugh straight 70s generic, plus a song called 'hanky panky nohow'........... I'll pass
Bore
Nie mój kawałek sera
Quite boring
Weird.
Its ok