Kevin Ayers-John Cale-Eno-Nico-June 1, 1974

This is a record I bought in 1974 at Village Records at the Tri-State mall in Delaware. According to the liner notes on the back cover Ayers wanted to play a show at the Rainbow in London with his new band The Soporifics. He asked Nico to appear at the show with him and she brought fellow Velvet Underground member John Cale who also brought Eno. Ayers also invited Robert Wyatt who had been in Soft Machine with Ayers, and Mike Oldfield who had been in Ayer’s first band after leaving Soft Machine. Side one starts with two songs by Eno the discordant and frenetic “Driving Me Backwards” with Cale playing the viola and the wonderful “Baby’s On Fire”, shorter than the album version or the one on yesterdays 801 record but the best of the three. John Cale does a slow dirge-like cover of “Heartbreak Hotel” Elvis never sounded like this! Nico’s haunting rendition of The Doors “The End” sung in her monotone German accent accompanied by her playing harmonium and Eno playing synthesizer ends side one. Side two has five songs performed by Ayers. I hardly ever played this side and didn’t know any of the songs. After listening to it tonight it sounds good too. Ayers plays acoustic guitar on “May I?” and Mike Oldfield plays a very recognizable guitar solo on “Everybody’s Sometime And Some People’s All The Time Blues”. The cover photo by Mick Rock was taken in the foyer of the Rainbow before the show. Evidently Ayers has slept with Cale’s wife Cindy, formally of the G.T.O.s, the night before the concert, which might explain the look between the two. The record is a little scratchy sounding but not bad for a record over 50 years old.

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