Remembering the time David Bowie and John Cale got wasted and jammed, 1978 – Far Out Magazine

Were digging deep into the Far Out Magazine vault to bring you a special moment between two of the most influential artists to have ever walked planet earth; David Bowie and John Cale.

David Bowie made no secret of his huge admiration for The Velvet Underground throughout his glittering career. Its a fascination that began after his then-manager, Ken Pitt, had visited iconic artist Andy Warhols Factory studio and returned to London with an acetate copy ofThe Velvet Underground & Nico.

The rumour goes that Bowie began performing songs from the album almost immediately after receiving the record. In fact, he was the first artist to perform the VUs songs in Britain. So, when Bowie eventually became friends with Lou Reed, John Cale and the rest of the band, its little surprise that they ended up collaborating musically. In 1978, during a long, frivolous and somewhat debauched session in New York City, Cale and Bowie put some infamous jam sessions to tape.

On the back cover of one recording of a bootleg single, the 45 rpm 7 description read: On October 5, 1978, David Bowie and John Cale went into the Ciarbis Studio, which is located on top of a house or apartment complex in the city of New York. They recorded some songs there. Here are some results of these unique rehearsals!

According to Cales own words, his artistic relationship with Bowie was so strong that he could never produce his work, as Bowie had done for Lou Reed. Instead, the duo preferred to have fun with it, playing a few live shows and secretly jamming together. David and I didnt actually meet until I first went back to New York, after Id done Patti [Smith]. When we did that bootleg, it was like the good old bad old days. We were partying very hard. It was exciting working with him, as there were a lot of possibilities and everything, but we were our own worst enemies at that point, Cale has previously said.

The Velvet Underground man added: We also played that show for Steve Reich and Philip Glass. That was a lot of fun. That was when we were hanging out, so I asked David if hed like to come and play Sabotage with me. I ended up teaching him the viola part, which he had a whack at and then ended up playing on stage for the first time.

Acknowledging both Bowies and his own ability to fall headfirst into a pool of hedonism, Cale would prefer to keep the session between them purely fun, Did I ever want to produce Bowie? After spending time with him, I realised the answer was no. The way we were then would have made it too dangerous.

Cale continued: He could improvise songs very well, which was what that bootleg was all about. The great thing about when we met and then started hanging out in the 70s was that he would say [puts on thick Welsh accent] Thats Dai Jones from Wales, isnt it? He loved all that. That set us off. We got along really well, but most of what we were doing was just partying.

They may well have been partying a lot but judging by the sessions below there was most definitely a Cale-produced album in there somewhere. It may have produced the same quality of work as the last Velvet Underground/Bowie crossover, Transformer.

Alas, we will never have the chance to see or hear such a thing. That said, we do have these candid moments between not only two of the most influential artists of modern music, but two good mates, David and John. Enjoy a sample of the demos, below.

[MORE] Take a look back at Lou Reed, John Cale, and Nico reuniting on French TV, 1972

(Via: Dangerous Minds)

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Remembering the time David Bowie and John Cale got wasted and jammed, 1978 - Far Out Magazine