Words for the Dying

This is an experiment by a classically trained composer to put a literary spin on his usually more music based approach. Cale said that it was Reed who had the literary background whilst he and Sterling in the Velvets had been more interrested in what happened musically. but here Cale takes a great literary source and tries to recreate the poetry of Dylan Thomas as fanatstical orchestrated songs. It must be something in the Welsh blood they share that helps the two great talents mesh together so well. You can tell the effort thats gone into this, not just a talk poem over music thing like Cale's work with Burroughs, but a reall taxing effort. Cale thought that he failed with this project a little because its hard to tamper with the internal music of Dylans words and rhythms, but Cale is forever undeservedly putting his own works and talent down, and this is far from a failure. Not quite in the same league as Music for A nEW society or Artifical Intelligence but still a good solid Cale effort, and with Eno on production you cannot fail.

Being a fan of the record - Words For The Dying - I thought I'd check out this documentary, and see if it gave any insight into the main players and the music.

We kick off in Moscow, and what better material for a documentary maker than John Cale and Brian Eno in one of the world's most overwhelming cities? Unfortunately (for us) it's all a bit dull. Brian doesn't want to be filmed because [paraphrasing] "When I'm on camera I censor myself, and the things I censor are the things that lead to something interesting happening". Thus, the only Eno bits are on a 'surveillance camera' in the hall they're recording, or short bits of interview with him explaining this.

Moscow isn't much shown in its most interesting light - save for the shots of Red Square, you'd guess these were the rushes from an episode of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet. And when you think of that year of recording, 1989, it's all the more of a missed opportunity, given it was the liminal period between the Soviet era and what followed.

At the risk of sounding like a theorist, I think documentaries are hit or miss. Some filmmakers just seem to put a camera in front of things and it all works fine. Others, (example: Martin Scorcese) fashion a narrative like it's sculpture. Whoever it was that directed Words for the Dying, does neither.That's not to say that this is a bad effort, far from it. But the film does lack that sense of psychology and storytelling that would mark it out as something for the general viewer rather than just the music obsessive.

Things pick up a bit after the Moscow section with more recording in the UK. A comedy moment when a choir of kids aged about 11 are singing a poignant line from Dylan Thomas, then a mic stand falls over and all you can hear from the control room is a very large F followed by a very large UCK. Very, very funny.

Another comedy moment occurs in the UK section when John Cale is recording his own vocals with Brian Eno (who's for now allowing cameras). Cale is trying to nail a verse, gets it wrong. Eno says "It seems to me you get off on the wrong foot in every verse by starting your first line too soon". Cale (hopefully): "Are any of the other verses alright?" Eno: "I don't think so, no."

Bits like this are interesting stuff for fans of the record, because John Cale's verses on this track, 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night', are perfect - so it shows just how much of yer 'great vocals' isn't an effortless process. Some judicious editing though would have had the "Brian Eno hiding behind a clipboard and asking not to be filmed" footage dropped. Even watching this, 22 years after release (and 23 years after filming) feels obtrusive, ill-mannered and embarrassing.

There follows a sequence in South Wales with Cale talking to his elderly mother in Welsh. The way she plays up to the camera is very funny, and for me is one of the few proper documentary moments in this DVD.

All in all, worth a watch if you know and love the record.

Here Cale goes orchestral and interprets the lyrics of Dylan Thomas. I must be honest, it's not rock 'n roll but it's very listenable and there are people who will appreciate it more than myself, who love his psychotic rock style as in Slow Dazzle. But there's one track here that's different and incredibly beautiful: The Soul Of Carmen Miranda, a collaboration with Brian Eno filled with mournful and eerie synth sounds, is one of Cale's most magnificent, moving songs. If not here, get it on his compilation Seducing Down The Door.