Fear (1974) was the first of three John Cale albums for Island Records, all of which were released in a period of just over a year. During this time Cale was also producing for other artists, working on albums such as Horses by Patti Smith, one of the most influential of all protopunk records. In addition to his lead vocals on Fear, Cale also played keyboards, guitars, viola, violin and bass, and was joined by Richard Thompson, Roxy Music’s Brian Eno and Phil Manzanera, and other artists signed to Island. Gun features an unusual two-man guitar solo from Manzanera and Eno, with the latter using a synthesizer to process the former’s guitar playing in real-time.
