1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die - #77. Nico - Chelsea Girl (1967)

Nico - Chelsea Girl (1967)

Label – Polydor
Producer – Tom Wilson
Art Direction – Uncredited
Nationality – Germany
Running Time – 45:36

Track Listing (standout tracks listed in bold)

1. Fairest Of The Seasons
2. These Days
3. Little Sister
4. Winter Song
5. It Was A Pleasure Then
6. Chelsea Girl
7. I'll Keep It With Mine
8. Somewhere There's A Feather
9. Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams (And Dream Your Troubles Away)
10. Eulogy To Lenny Bruce

I wonder if I am being punished? 3 albums in a row that were just downright dreadful. During this stretch I asked myself several times – “am I sure I can handle this?” I DO wish I could have the almost 46 minutes back that it took to listen to tis awful record. “Chelsea Girl” was the first long-player from the German-born Christa Päffgen – otherwise known as Nico. Her name was only familiar to me because of it’s association with her involvement with the Velvet Underground.
The band for the record is full of well known names - Jackson Browne, Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison and John Cale, but they do not save the record from being bad.
Nico cannot sing. The songs are aimless, and pointless. I could not wait until this record was over. There is an almost unrecognizable reworking of Bob Dylan's "I'll Keep It With Mine." At the center of the record there is the extended "It Was a Pleasure Then" and the title track that follows. Perhaps the worse music I have ever heard in my life. I wish I was kidding.
I try to be fair when reviewing these records – especially the ones that I have never heard before – but this one no one needs to ever hear. Please avoid it at all costs. Musically, “Chelsea Girl” is best described as a cross between chamber folk and Sixties pop. The musical backing is relatively simple, consisting of one or two guitars or, alternatively, a keyboard instrument. There are no drums or bass instruments. Adding to the chamber folk feel of the music is the strings and flute arrangement superimposed over the initial recordings by producer Tom Wilson and arranger Larry Fallon without involving or consulting Nico. Nico was dissatisfied with the finished product. She had wanted more guitars plus bass and drums, but it was vetoed by the production team. Of the superimposed arrangements, she said she could live with the strings, but the flutes rendered the album unlistenable to her. See - even the artists knows this is unlistenable! And as if you didn’t know already – it is definitely not recommended.