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John Cale

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

John Cale is a Welsh musician, composer and producer, born in the mining village of Garnant in 1942. At home he spoke Welsh; he learned English only at primary school. He played organ in church and discovered a talent for the viola, with which he joined the National Youth Orchestra of Wales at thirteen. He studied music in London, became involved in the avant-garde movement Fluxus and left for New York in 1963.

Music and breakthrough

There Cale took part in an eighteen-hour performance of Erik Satie's Vexations, together with John Cage. He also played in composer La Monte Young's Theatre of Eternal Music, which produced long, sustained tones: drones. With Lou Reed he then founded The Velvet Underground. On The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) and White Light/White Heat (1968) he plays viola, bass and keyboards. Tensions with Reed led to his departure in 1968. He then produced the debut by The Stooges and albums by Nico, and made solo records such as Paris 1919 (1973), which is regarded as his masterpiece, and Fear (1974). In 1990 he made Songs for Drella with Reed, a tribute to Andy Warhol.

Influence

Cale brought the avant-garde into rock music. His amplified viola and his love of drones and dissonance gave The Velvet Underground a raw, experimental side that the band largely lost after his departure. As a producer he later worked with Patti Smith, The Modern Lovers and Happy Mondays, and so his influence remained felt in punk and alternative rock.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Venus in Furs (1967) by The Velvet Underground. Notice Cale's electric viola, which lays a scraping, sustained tone beneath the song.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Mentioned in other articles

See also

Categories: ArtistsArt rock