Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Circus Live, 25 Feb 2007
Don't hesitate. Buy this album. It is magnificent.
New to John Cale? ... this album will make you explore his previous work.
Already know his older work? ....then it gives you such different interpretations of his standards, starting with Venus in Furs.
Feel the drum onslaught hitting your senses when Pablo Picasso segues into Mary Lou. Hear Femme Fatale hypnotically blend into Rosegarden Funeral of Sores.
Listen to Heartbreak Hotel become more chillingly threatening with its less frenetic approach.
Already heard a fan's live recording of this tour? That's like listening wearing earmuffs. Play this version alongside and be in awe. The production combines the technical quality of a studio album with the freshness of a live gig. I'm catching differences on each new listen. Cale's voice will lure you into each track, then the instruments will chug you along.
To add cream on top of this jam the current band gell perfectly with him.
This is ultimately Cale AND band performing.
To paraphrase Cale when he played Wrexham;
"Dai iawn, diolch. Nos da"
Declaration of interest
This is a biased review from a 70's Cale fan who rediscovered him in `06
Tom from Wrexham
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Essential Cale, 16 Jul 2007
This wonderfully presented box set offers a real insight into the range, depth and durability of John Cale's back catalogue.
Of the Reed-Cale duo, Lou Reed has been in the limelight for a long while. Cale has not produced the blockbuster album to match Reed's Trasformer. But steadily, quietly, Cale has put together an impressive back catalogue allowing him to fill two full CDs of live tracks with more spilling over into the DVD. And still you're left wondering how so many classics were left out.
In terms of the tracks, Cale shows a clear passion for the Helen of Troy album and the little known Sabotage album. Both are mined heavily for tracks. But these live tracks aren't straight lifts. My personal favourite, Mercenaries, is no longer a rocky, screamy track. It is slow, hypnotic and menacing. Rosegarden Funeral of Sores, too, as it's never been heard before. And Femme Fatale seems to have a new beat altogether. Some of the DVD tracks are splendid, with Heartbreak Hotel delivered as a terrifying avant garde white noise track. Graveldrive - a new one on me - was pure madness. But at the same time, Cale is able to soften things down for Style It Takes and Hanky Panky Nohow.
I'm dorry Cale didn't find space for some of his 1980s material - from Music for a New Society; Caribbean Sunset and, especially, Artificial Intelligence. But then again, what would you have left out?
This is a lavish presentation - at a giveaway price right now - and will leave you wanting more. If only CDs did encores.
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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Unfamiliar with John Cale?....Then try this., 20 Mar 2007
As the first John Cale item i have ever owned i feel i can give a fresh perspective to this album,untainted by familiarity.First up,this is a beautifully packaged set clearly intended to showcase John Cale,and it does this easily.
Musically,you get tracks from throughout the mans career,[including a staggering Venus in Furs to open the set],as well as tracks from many of Cales solo albums right up to Black Acetate.As a newcomer,i am really impressed with the overall sound of the album,and Cale's band treat the material,with both respect and restraint,and as such the performances sound much more than just a singer and hired guns[in particular,Deantoni Parks' drumming adds a slightly funky edge to the music].
Personally,my favorite track is the subtle,and quite gorgeous,Graveldrive which you will need to seek out on the adequate bonus dvd,[a missed opportunity to provide a great visual companion to the excellent audio].Overall,Circus acts as a very useful introduction to an artist i have avoided in the past [way too much baggage!!!],and has enabled me to reassess John Cale in my own time.For this alone i am grateful for the comprehensive nature of this release.Recommended.
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