Loureed John Cale

With his laid-back rootsy style, J.J. Cale is best known for writing "After Midnight" and "Cocaine," songs that Eric Clapton later made into hits. But Cale's influence wasn't only through songwriting – his distinctly loping sense of rhythm and shuffling boogie became the blueprint for the adult-oriented roots rock of Clapton and Mark Knopfler, among others…

Nico - The Frozen Borderline 1968-1970 (2007) {2CD Set Rhino 8122-74885-2}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 752 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 318 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 30 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1968-70, 2007 Elektra / Reprise Records / Rhino | 8122-74885-2
Rock / Avant Rock / Art Rock / Experimental Rock

A companion to the same label's masterful reissue of John Cale's Paris 1919, The Frozen Borderline remasters the two albums that Nico recorded (with Cale in attendance) for Elektra and Reprise in 1968 and 1970, adding a heap of bonus tracks and the kind of deluxe packaging that fans – accustomed to the cheapness of other Nico repackagings – have previously only dreamed about. Spread across two discs, one per original LP, the two albums sound spectacular. Neither was exactly a production tour de force, their instrumentation dominated, of course, by harmonium, and the handful of flourishes that Cale layered on.

A one-disc, 20-track condensation of Mercury's two-disc, 50-track anthology ANYWAY THE WIND BLOWS, THE VERY BEST OF J.J. CALE is the one J.J. Cale CD to have when you're having only one. Leading off with a new recording of "Call Me the Breeze", featuring Johnny Cash's R&B-playing son John Carter Cash, THE VERY BEST OF J.J. CALE runs through 19 other Cale gems, including the original versions of "After Midnight" and "Cocaine", both made famous by Eric Clapton. The surprise to new listeners used to the more showboating Clapton versions will be how laid-back and seemingly offhand Cale's originals are. That goes for every song on this set. A master of the two-minute blues, Cale plays and sings with remarkable restraint and economy. There's no one like him.

Two artists had an enormous impact on Eric Clapton's music in the '70s: Delaney & Bonnie and J.J. Cale. Clapton joined Delaney & Bonnie's backing band after Cream dissolved, an experience that helped him ease away from the bombast of the power trio and into the blend of soul, blues, pop, and rock that defined his solo sound. Delaney Bramlett helped steer Clapton's eponymous 1970 solo debut, which not only came very close to replicating the sound of Delaney & Bonnie's records from that time, but also had a rollicking version of J.J. Cale's "After Midnight" that was Clapton's first solo hit…

There's an old saying that one is only as good as the people with whom one collaborates. Judging by the list of musical contributors to Hector Zazou's Sahara Blue, Zazou is quite good indeed. Among many others, those adding their own touch to Zazou's album include Bill Laswell, Dead Can Dance, John Cale, David Sylvian, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Tim Simenon. Zazou devised the album as a mix of musical styles set to lyrics/vocals taken from the pen of Arthur Rimbaud. While it might appear like a pretentious undertaking on paper, the album is a cohesive slice of eclectic music-making. Jazzy spoken word songs such as "Ophelie" intermingle with throbbing dance-oriented numbers like "I'll Strangle You" and quiet, peaceful piano-based meditations such as "Harar et les Gallas." Dead Can Dance duo Brendan Perry and Lisa Gerrard work their particular magic on "Youth," exchanging vocals, and on "Black Stream," where Perry's dark, somber synth weeps around Gerrard's stunning vocals and yang chin. Zazou himself mostly stays in the background, providing production and electronic sounds, allowing the players to showcase their abilities.

Two artists had an enormous impact on Eric Clapton's music in the '70s: Delaney & Bonnie and J.J. Cale. Clapton joined Delaney & Bonnie's backing band after Cream dissolved, an experience that helped him ease away from the bombast of the power trio and into the blend of soul, blues, pop, and rock that defined his solo sound…

A smorgasbord album, the cast list includes Bjork, Siouxsie Sioux, Brendan Perry, and long-term sidekick Barbera Googan. As expected, the mood is cold, often somber in tone. Only on "The Long Voyage," a springy ditty fronted by Suzanne Vega and John Cale, does the album ascend from the depths. Some of the gloom works, like in "Havet Stomar," a brilliant slow burner with B.J. Cole's pedal steel guitar and ECM artist Lene Willemark's chilling howls. "Annukka Suaren Neito" presents what must be the closest to an Eskimo rap you can get. Mark Isham provides freestyle trumpet that almost sounds like seagulls swooping the skies. The Jane Siberry-fronted "She Is Like the Swallow" is a beauty, as soft as it is light. Hector Zazou's electronics are in fine check too. The canvas expands to new textures, such as metallic percussion in "Adventures in the Scandinavian Skin Trade".

Special guests on the Live in San Diego release include guitarists J. J. Cale, Robert Cray, Doyle Bramhall II and Derek Trucks. The live album marks Clapton's second collaboration with Cale after The Road to Escondido was released on 7 November 2006. Also, the album features the first new live music from Clapton and Cray following Clapton's 1991 live double album 24 Nights. The album, which is available on compact disc, as a digital download and on gramophone record was recorded on 15 March 2007 at the Ipayone Center in San Diego, California during the "Doyle & Derek World Tour" and features a total of 16 tracks.