MrRain422 Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 I think that "Sweet Jane" is probably their best known at this point, but "Heroin" is up there, and definately more essential to understanding the importance of the band than "Sweet Jane" is. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cryptique Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 The Velvet Underground and Nico peaked at # 171 on Billboard Magazine's top 200 chartsWhich proves my point. If they'd been invisible, they never would have made it onto the chart at all. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 In 1967 - you listened to this album?Yes I did. My friend David Sandler had a copy. The songs off it were played on an "underground" FM midnight show. Life was rough on us when we were kids, you didn't just hear this kind of stuff anywhere. People did, you know. Not that many, but it's not like VU were completely invisible in the '60s.Not completely, but they didn't get played on the radio either. As mentioned above I heard it on the midnight show in Cleveland on FM, which was a relatively new technology in 1967. I think that "Sweet Jane" is probably their best known at this point, but "Heroin" is up there, and definately more essential to understanding the importance of the band than "Sweet Jane" is.Heroin is not their best known song by any stretch, but it is their most important song artistically. Far more important (but not as fun to listen to) as the pop Sweet Jane (the companion piece to the Association's Along Comes Mary.") My biggest music related regret is that I didn't have the balls to go see the VU when they played numerous gigs at La Cave in Cleveland. This was during a period when they weren't even playing New York, but somehow La Cave was a regular gig for them on the circuit. I have to admit I am shocked they even made it all the way to #171. That is pretty interesting. How many weeks were they actually on the chart period? LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 I think that "Sweet Jane" is probably their best known at this point, but "Heroin" is up there, and definately more essential to understanding the importance of the band than "Sweet Jane" is. Sweet Jane - the Lou Reed solo version that is Personally, I prefer the later after Nico stuff. We have had this discussion before - I like the "nice" non-noisy songs. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
airtaco Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 I would say that any one who considered himself a serious music fan would have to own all of VU's studio records. Their importance is impossible to exaggerate, and I'm sure they've turned many people into music fanatics. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
OOO Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 anyone who considered himself a serious music fan would have to own... hyperbole Quote Link to post Share on other sites
froggie Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 i prefer Venus in furs (especially the 1993 version) oh and i like stairway! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
oceanman Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 I don't really listen to Wilco anymore.I've heard you say this a hand full of times,may I ask why? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MrRain422 Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 i prefer Venus in furs (especially the 1993 version) Really? I hate that version. Mostly because Lou's singing was absolutely terrible on that entire set. "Venus in Furs" is definately one of my favorites though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
froggie Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 Really? I hate that version. Mostly because Lou's singing was absolutely terrible on that entire set. "Venus in Furs" is definately one of my favorites though. i dont know... i like the weird timing on it maybe seeing the video clip at 3am about 8 years ago on TV helped... it was the first VU song i really took notice of Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MrRain422 Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 Yeah, that is sort of a weird version. Perhaps I was already too obsessed with the original by the time I had heard that one, but for some reason it just irks me. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WaronWar Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 I think the best version of "Herion" is found on live 69' album. It's great song, but it pales when compared to "Sister Ray." And with the Bob Dylan thing, he's only full shit during his Christian period. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
froggie Posted May 2, 2007 Share Posted May 2, 2007 And with the Bob Dylan thing, he's only full shit during his Christian period. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 I've heard you say this a hand full of times,may I ask why? I will answer this in private. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jimtweedy1977 Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 I would also say that I was blown away by this song the first time I heard it. I had Polydor's best of Velvet Underground, then later I put together another compilation that had stuff from the albums. I would say that my favorite VU song is "Venus In Furs". It's got such a weird tempo and it's strange that the distortion makes it melodic, but that's the way it feels to me. I'll never forget hearing Heroin the first time I heard it (a friend had the album) as a teenager. I remember the place and the day and the impression it made on me. No one had ever written a song like that before (coupled with "I'm Waiting for my Man"); the VU turned rock completely adult. It was a revelation. in fact the entire album was a revelation, with songs about transvestites, drug addicts, S&M, and other adult stuff. It sure blew the lid off of rock as kids music (bye bye Beach Boys). Songs about hard core drug addiction are now common place. Oh sure there were drug songs before Heroin (Cocaine for example, made semi-famous by Dave Van Ronk), but this one really felt like the people knew what they were talking about. The main difference between the VU version and the Rock and Roll Animal version is that the latter version the musicians really know how to play, which may or may not make it better. LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 I think I may like the pre-Loaded tracks the best in some ways. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MrRain422 Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 In case anyone is interested, here is the live version of "Heroin" that Lou Reed did with Don Cherry that I mentioned earlier. Easily my favorite of the many post-VU incarnations that this song took. http://www.sendspace.com/file/3wnp52 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mountain bed Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 In case anyone is interested, here is the live version of "Heroin" that Lou Reed did with Don Cherry that I mentioned earlier. Easily my favorite of the many post-VU incarnations that this song took. http://www.sendspace.com/file/3wnp52Thanks for that man! Don Cherry is a monster. I've always loved his playing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HighFives Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 In case anyone is interested, here is the live version of "Heroin" that Lou Reed did with Don Cherry that I mentioned earlier. Easily my favorite of the many post-VU incarnations that this song took. http://www.sendspace.com/file/3wnp52 this is great thanks. I never really got into Lou's live albums. seem pretty hit or miss. mostly miss tho. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
yermom Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 The "Between Thought and Expression" set was the first Lou/VU my fella and I ever bought. "Heroin" was definitely a stand-out track for me. I was in high school at the time and I would pop the tape in during my morning drive. The drive was so brief that I couldn't actually fit the entire song into it so I'd skip forward several minutes. When everything starts to build at about 9:15 with the sax and all, my heart beat and breathing pick up and race. It's awesome. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oil Can Boyd Posted May 3, 2007 Share Posted May 3, 2007 the version that Lou does on the "Rock and Roll Animal" live album is no slouch either. That is the first version I heard and I was immediately a fan.I like other versions more (including the 1969 Live mentioned elsewhere) but I still love that one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted May 4, 2007 Share Posted May 4, 2007 I would say that my favorite VU song is "Venus In Furs". It's got such a weird tempo and it's strange that the distortion makes it melodic, but that's the way it feels to me.That's a good one...I heard Black Angel's Death Song on one of the college stations the other afternoon. Also good weird stuff. LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.