John Cale notable work Paris 1919
John Davies Cale  (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, drone, classical, avant-garde and electronic music.He studied music at Goldsmiths College, University of London, before relocating in 1963 to New York City's downtown music scene, where he performed as part of the Theatre of Eternal Music and formed the Velvet Underground. Since leaving the band in 1968, Cale has released sixteen solo studio albums, including the widely acclaimed Paris 1919 (1973) and Music for a New Society (1982). Cale has also acquired a reputation as an adventurous record producer, working on the debut albums of several innovative artists, including the Stooges and Patti Smith.Solo career
1970s
After leaving the Velvet Underground, Cale worked as a record producer and arranger on a number of studio albums, most notably the Stooges' highly influential 1969 self-titled debut and a trilogy by Nico, including The Marble Index (1968), Desertshore (1970) and The End... (1974). On these he accompanied Nico's voice and harmonium using a wide array of instruments to unusual effect. While meeting with Joe Boyd (who co-produced Desertshore), he came across Nick Drake's music and insisted on collaborating with the fledgling artist. He appeared on Drake's second studio album, Bryter Layter (1971), playing viola and harpsichord on "Fly" and piano, organ, and celesta on "Northern Sky".
In addition to working as a record producer, Cale initiated a solo recording career in early 1970. His debut studio album, Vintage Violence (1970), is a lushly produced roots rock effort indebted to a range of disparate influences, including the Band, Leonard Cohen, the Byrds, Phil Spector and Brian Wilson. The more experimental Church of Anthrax (a collaboration with minimal music pioneer Terry Riley) followed in February 1971, although it was actually recorded nearly a year prior to its release. While his explorations in art music briefly continued with 1972's The Academy in Peril, he would not compose in the classical mode thereafter until he began working on film soundtracks in the 1980s.
In 1972, he signed with au courant Reprise Records as a recording artist and staff producer. The Academy in Peril (1972) was his first project for Reprise. The subsequent Paris 1919 (1973) steered back towards the singer-songwriter mode of Vintage Violence (1970) with a backing band that included Lowell George of Little Feat and Wilton Felder of the Crusaders, as well as the UCLA Symphony Orchestra. Composed of highly melodic songs with arcane and complex lyrics, it has been cited by critics as one of his best.While affiliated with the label, he produced studio albums by Jennifer Warnes (her third, Jennifer), Chunky, Novi & Ernie, and the self-titled debut of the Modern Lovers, which Reprise chose not to release; it subsequently appeared on Beserkley Records, the latest in a series of important Cale-produced proto-punk records. In 1974 he signed to Island Records as an artist, while continuing to produce a variety of artists, mostly for other labels, including Squeeze, Patti Smith and Sham 69. He worked as a talent scout with Island's A&R department.
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