Do you like the Velvet Underground

I used to shoot a lot of heroin at their shows back in the day. Took me a long time to climb out of that hole of a life.

I found that they were less impressive once I was sober. Still like to listen to them occasionally.

Why are the velvet underground the most influential band in rock? Even though they may have only sold 80,000 copies, everyone who bought one started a band.

Over rated crap,promoted by pretentious, neverwere hipster douchebags.

aswq wrote:

Over rated crap,promoted by pretentious, neverwere hipster douchebags.

Britney fan?

Lou Reed is a musical genius. After getting through the studio albums listen to live at Max's Kansas City. Art rock isn't for everyone but I'd like to think that people who appreciate music can understand the impact that the VU had on rock and roll.

Sometimes the best music is the kind that challenges you. If there weren't people like Lou Reed pushing boundaries popular music would make no progress.

Heroin might be one of the greatest songs ever.

Too bad there aren't equally good songs about productive behavior.

I am indeed an old-timer. I have began a fan of the Velvets, but it did take awhile for their impact to be felt. They were well outside the mainstream in their time, to say the least, and it wasn't really until Lou Reed hooked up with David Bowie and put out "Walk on the Wild Side" that he had huge commercial impact. I mean...the Velvets weren't exactly part of the countercultural mainstream (itself a contradiction in terms, I guess) in their time, not even in New York City.

As much as I like them, I do consider them over-rated. Their body of work is not very large. As far as "influence" goes, yes, Reed's songwriting had some and so did John Cale's sonics, but there don't seem to be any prominent Nico imitators... which is just as well.

Music history as conveyed by the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame is misleading and even dishonest. Many important acts are ignored while others are deified by a small cadre of rock critics and industry people who now dictate such things. You're going to have to explain to me why Arthur Lee and Love, whose "Forever Changes" is probably the best album of that late '60s - early '70s era, and who influenced the likes of Robert Plant, are not in the Hall.

There's also no getting around the fact that the Warhol scene was extremely, extremely creepy, though the truth about that is also being rewritten after that fact.

cool, what was the big deal with Warhol then?

No, SOS is better: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whzLr2nehYQ&NR=1

You gotta run, run, run, run, run

Take a drag or two

Not a huge fan but Oh, Sweet Nothin is a great song

Loved the first album. "Venus in Furs" and "Heroin", such an incredible sound. Unique.

About as good as any song ever written: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNafWbdriW0

Up to a Brownstone, up three flights of stairs

Everybody's been duped, but nobody cares

He's got the works, gives you sweet taste

Ah then you gotta split because

you got no time to waste

I'm waiting for my man

The Velvet Underground and Nico (Banana Album) may just be one of the best I have ever come across.

Lou Reed fans should see this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TG-JQ1KVTM

Im Waiting for my Man wrote:

Up to a Brownstone, up three flights of stairs

Everybody's been duped, but nobody cares

He's got the works, gives you sweet taste

Ah then you gotta split because

you got no time to waste

I'm waiting for my man

The Velvet Underground and Nico (Banana Album) may just be one of the best I have ever come across.

Album lyrics IIRC:

Up to a brownstone, up three flights of stairs

Everybody's pinned you, but nobody cares

He's got the works, here's your sweet taste

Ah then you gotta split because you got no time to waste

I'm waiting for my man

VU was more about experimentation. Lou Reed is a creative musician, but has not become as wealthy as he could. He is not really interested I think (I could be wrong on this).

Music is a business, but it also has an artistic element. They focused on the latter, and the former through hype and sensationalism to pay the bills.

There has always been a crowd in NYC that will pay for "new" and "radical" art. So bands like this will always make a living in NYC. Lou Reed was fortunate enough to meet some musicians who were more commercial, so he has probably done better financially than say John Cale, who has released +30 albums since VU.

I think the longevity of the careers of band members says a lot about their involvement in music.

I'm sorta old, not velvet underground old, I sincerely think they suck...though admit to limited exposure to them...maybe, like running, they're are an acquired taste.

Try this funked up version of Sweet Jane -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw&feature=related

Awesome. Love Lou Reed.