[gratefulshrink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asterix I just got "Loaded" and "The Velvet Underground with Nico" ... I am listening to the first song on "Loaded" - "Who Loves the Sun?"

I am a MAJOR Velvet's fan. I have pretty much every official release they put out. I would get bootlegs of live shows, but unfortunately, they uniformly suck. There is an "official" bootleg box set, which is pretty listenable.

Did you want any specific reccomemdations?

Also, the band Galaxie 500 (active from aboout 1988-1990) was considerably influenced by the Velvets, and you should check them out if you haven't already.

To seome extent, Yo La Tengo also shows Velvets influence.

 

[boodi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gratefulshrink I am a MAJOR Velvet's fan. I have pretty much every official release they put out. I would get bootlegs of live shows, but unfortunately, they uniformly suck. There is an "official" bootleg box set, which is pretty listenable. Did you want any specific reccomemdations? Also, the band Galaxie 500 (active from aboout 1988-1990) was considerably influenced by the Velvets, and you should check them out if you haven't already. To seome extent, Yo La Tengo also shows Velvets influence.

Yo la Tengo , a band i discovered on head-fi , with some good tunes of mixed kind .. anyhow I've only one album of them and can't quite see where do they get close to VU

 

[gratefulshrink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boodi Yo la Tengo , a band i discovered on head-fi , with some good tunes of mixed kind .. anyhow I've only one album of them and can't quite see where do they get close to VU

Oh yeah, I forgot that the band Luna is another Velvets-influenced group.

As far as Yo La Tengo goes, I pasted in text from the All Music guide. Here is the link if you want to read the whole thing (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p...mfnzffhehok~T1):

"Yo La Tengo was in many respects the quintessential critics' band: in addition to its adventurous eclecticism, defiant independence, and restless creative ambition -- three qualities that virtually guarantee music press acclaim -- the group's frontman, Ira Kaplan, even tenured as a rock scribe prior to finding success as a performer. So frequently compared to the Velvet Underground that they even portrayed the legendary group in the 1996 film I Shot Andy Warhol, the Hoboken, NJ-based unit explored the extremes of feedback-driven noise rock and sweetly melodic pop, shading its work with equal parts scholarly composure and fannish enthusiasm. Prolific and mercurial, Yo La Tengo ultimately transcended its myriad influences to ensconce itself as a beloved institution of the indie community...."

 

[Asterix]

My favorite song so far is "Who Loves the Sun?" - but I'm having a great time with these two albums. Definately a very original sound and lyrics, which is exactly what I was searching for when I picked these at the record store. I used to have a old friend who was into them and something reminded me of the old days and I wanted to hear that band that we liked so much again. I also like the song "I'll be your mirror."

"Loaded" is probably my favorite album of the two so far, esp. that teeny boppy song "Who Loves the Sun?"

I love it!

 

[markl]

OK, so for anyone looking at this thread and wondering-- "what are the best digital versions of the Velvets catalog", here's one answer...

1. VU + Nico: The Deluxe Edition. Sounds great and gives you bonus tracks from Nico's solo albums written by Reed + Cale. You can get away with the 1996 Remastered Edition, it still sounds great but it lacks all of the extras from the Deluxe Edition. A classic from start to finish.

2. White Light/White Heat. Their most extreme album. Get the 1996 remastered edition.

3. Velvet Underground. You need the "closet mix" from the box set of the Velvets, called "Peel Slowly and See". Still, the standard mix on the 1996 remaster is OK, but not the same, not as it was intended.

4. Loaded-- Fully Loaded Edition (1997). A 2CD set remastered. The extras are adequate, but the real attraction here is the remastered versions of the main tracks from this total classsic. This version has the best available digital masters of this classic material. Such a joy from start to finish...

Hope that helps....

 

[Asterix]

I don't like 'VU and Nico' as much as 'Loaded'. I prefer 'Loaded' because it has a lighter sound. What should my next VU purchase be then? - 'The Velvet Underground'?

 

[catachresis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asterix I don't like 'VU and Nico' as much as 'Loaded'. I prefer 'Loaded' because it has a lighter sound. What should my next VU purchase be then? - 'The Velvet Underground'?

For an album full of lyrics about cosmopolitan depravity, 'The Velvet Underground' is a lovely album with an acoustic touch. Lots of fine songs to highlight. But when Lou says that "I've been set free and I've been bound" you know he isn't just speaking metaphorically. . .

 

[Asterix]

Quote:

Originally Posted by catachresis For an album full of lyrics about cosmopolitan depravity, 'The Velvet Underground' is a lovely album with an acoustic touch. Lots of fine songs to highlight. But when Lou says that "I've been set free and I've been bound" you know he isn't just speaking metaphorically. . .

WOW!!!! "The Murder Mystery" ['The Velvet Underground'] has almost put me into tears. Also, I just got the 2cd version of 'Loaded' with the bonus tracks, and 'White Heat.'

 

[Asterix]

Okay, I got this:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...glance&s=music

The first disc which is all acoustic demos is absolutely some of the best music and recording/mastering I've ever heard.

 

[uncle b]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkAngel Actually I like the bands they influenced more than VU themselves....... For instance in 1990's first few Dandy Warhols, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Verve albums I find more satisfying overall.

After seeing the stunning DVD release of DIG!, I have been on a HUGE Brian Jonestown Massacre listening binge, but would in no way place them (and most certainly not the Dandy Warhols) higher than VU!!!

Though I have literally EVERY box set, reissue, repackage, remaster by The Velvet Underground, I still felt compelled to purchase the recent VU "Gold" compilation two-disc set and that thing could be the ultimate introduction/summation/defining statement that anyone could be looking for, new or old fan alike...

Of course, there are always plenty of "deep tracks" left off best-of's, but that the importance of discovery in music fan-dom.

 

[uncle b]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markl OK, so for anyone looking at this thread and wondering-- "what are the best digital versions of the Velvets catalog", here's one answer... 4. Loaded-- Fully Loaded Edition (1997). A 2CD set remastered. The extras are adequate, but the real attraction here is the remastered versions of the main tracks from this total classsic. This version has the best available digital masters of this classic material. Such a joy from start to finish...

LOADED (especially this "Fully Loaded" edition) is one of my all-time favorites, and truly an overlooked gem in the VU catalog. It just showed the ability of the band, though not in it's intial incarnation, to play so many different styles. The guitar work is incredible on this album, with plenty of country-rock, too. Not what you'd expect from the one-time noise mongers.

 

[uncle b]

When you spend a life like many of us here have, as ardent music fans/followers, you are bound to have some music deaths touch you, but for me, one of the saddest days was August 30, 1995, when The Velvet Underground's Sterling Morrison passed away...truly a great man from all acoounts, and a legend.

 

[Asterix]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Asterix WOW!!!! "The Murder Mystery" ['The Velvet Underground'] has almost put me into tears. Also, I just got the 2cd version of 'Loaded' with the bonus tracks, and 'White Heat.'

This acoustic demo version from disc 1 of the box set - 'I'm waiting for the man' - has been going round and round in my head and just round and round.

'I'm waitin' for the man'
'Twenty-six dollars in my hand'
'Up to lexington 125'
'Feel sick and dirty more dead than alive'
'I'm waitin' for the man'

It's so brilliant... the tears just pour and pour when I hear Lou Reed and these guys. Imagine how much better of a world we would live in if this music like this got more attention in the mainstream.

 

[Kikkoman]

I'm a big VU fan to. I prefer the two albums with John Cale better, especially White Light/White Heat which I absolutely love. After he left, while the sound did change drastically, I still like the later material but just in a different way. Some of my favorite tracks are "The Black Angel's Death Song" and "Sister Ray". I also like both Lou Reed and Nico's solo releases, but I've never tried anything from Cale's solo career. Anyone have any recommendations for John Cale solo material?

Also I just have to add a good recommendation for anyone who likes the psychedelic freakout/avant-garde/whatever you want to call it sound of White Light/White Heat. You must get The Red Krayola - Parable of Arable Land.

 

[VicAjax]

loooong time VU fan here. in fact, it was R.E.M. that got me into them...

[FLASHBACK SEQUENCE]i was 15 when Dead Letter Office came out. as i was already a big R.E.M. fan, it immediately became my favorite of their albums... and it included two VU covers. i picked up white light/white heat and nico on cassette and my little adolescent mind was blown wide open. a few months later, i bumped into mike mills and peter buck at the atlanta airport. i didn't have any of their albums with me, but they were gracious enough to sign the inside cover of my white light/white heat cassette. i think i still have it somewhere.[/FLASHBACK SEQUENCE]