June 1, 1974 cover
Released

This one-off “all stars of prog” concert aged way better than anybody expected. Bits of Ayers’ band and Soft Machine all converged to back up Eno and Cale and Nico and the result was sort of the best of all possible worlds. These two Eno tunes feature his most unafraid vocal performances, and Cale’s “Heartbreak Hotel” is his second most important cover, after “Hallelujah” (more than fifteen years in the future at this point). And Nico, alleged ice queen, burns the hell out of a dumb Doors tune and makes it work with her harmonium. Ayers is great because of Ollie Halsall’s guitar playing and despite his own massively creepy song, “May I?”

Sasha Frere-Jones

Recommended by

Suggestions
Hidden Cities cover

Hidden Cities

Horse Lords
Cluster & Eno cover

Cluster & Eno

Cluster, Brian Eno
I Was Real cover

I Was Real

75 Dollar Bill
Wonderland cover

Wonderland

Demdike Stare
Daze cover

Daze

Brood Ma
Con-Struct cover

Con-Struct

Schneider TM, Conrad Schnitzler
Éliane Radigue: Occam Ocean cover

Éliane Radigue: Occam Ocean

Julia Eckhardt, Carol Robinson, Rhodri Davies
Aerial cover

Aerial

Anna Thorvaldsdóttir
Jummy cover

Jummy

Gerry Read
Mythologies cover

Mythologies

Masaya Ozaki, Kaito Nakahori