Posts Tagged The Velvet Underground
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October 21, 2021 by Simon Sweetman
The Velvet Underground: Film
The Velvet Underground Director: Todd Haynes AppleTV+ Todd Haynes’ brand new documentary that is simply called “The Velvet Underground” started streaming on Apple TV+ over the weekend. John Cale’s abrasive viola strikes filled the room. A split-screen and black and white. I’m sold already.Archive
September 16, 2019 by Simon Sweetman
Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love: #7 – The Velvet Underground, “Squeeze”
The Velvet Underground, Squeeze, 1973 Traitor albums! My cousin told me that Led Zeppelin’s Coda album was not to be listened to because it was “a traitor album” – he surely meant a posthumous album; they existed before Coda, there have been thousands since. But I liked his attempt at purity. Is the faithful […]Archive
August 21, 2018 by Simon Sweetman
Ezra Furman: Lou Reed’s Transformer (33 1/3)
Lou Reed’s Transformer (33 1/3) Ezra Furman Bloomsbury Academic The death of the album – so greatly exaggerated. And the 33 1/3 series of books in tribute to classic albums (old and new) continues to trot out the titles. Here, musician Ezra Furman looks at Lou Reed’s Transformer album in this volume of the same […]Archive
June 5, 2018 by Simon Sweetman
The Vinyl Countdown # 402
The Velvet Underground, VU (1985) I know I’m not alone in thinking that this is the best Velvet Underground album – and yes I know it’s a compilation; posthumous even – one that was responsible for one of the first waves of re-appreciation, or even appreciation. But I bought this pre-internet, when, as a Lou […]Archive
January 10, 2018 by Simon Sweetman
It Was The Best Gig Ever # 16: John Cale, Auckland 2007
Sometimes you just have to be there. You have to get along. To see the legend. Someone that has meant a lot to you – their music, their place in it, and in your life as a result. It doesn’t have to be a mind-blowing gig to make an impact; the real impact is when […]Archive
March 21, 2017 by Simon Sweetman
What Value Do You Place On Recorded Music?
It was a couple of years ago, but I remember being in the local record store when a customer was inquiring about Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew. He wanted to know if it was available on vinyl and was shown a sealed copy of the latest reissue; a double LP. The price? $59.99. The customer – […]Archive
February 11, 2017 by Simon Sweetman
The Velvet Underground’s Loaded: Loaded/Fully Loaded, 45 Years On And Still Going…
Those four studio albums by The Velvet Underground all made a huge impact on me. But the sentimental favourite is Loaded – it was the very first CD I purchased. I was a tape buyer, right through until the early-1990s, I wasn’t going to give up that tape collection…I had a tape-deck in my car […]Archive
January 30, 2017 by Simon Sweetman
Lou Reed’s Mistrial: The Starting Point
Sometimes it’s the first album you hear by an artist – it has you hooked. It might not be that artist’s best album, you might not even know that at the time (and brilliantly, you won’t care) but it will become the one you know best, refer to, remember fondly. It’s your starting point… My […]Archive
January 4, 2017 by Simon Sweetman
John Cale: Leading From The Fringe
I was a fan of Lou Reed first; then The Velvet Underground and then John Cale. Truth be told – and I don’t mind admitting it a) I was young b) there was no internet then – for a while I thought John Cale and J.J. Cale was the same person. I was 12 years […]Archive
October 2, 2015 by Simon Sweetman
The Vinyl Countdown # 816
Lou Reed and John Cale, Songs For Drella (1990) Okay, here’s an album I owned on tape and then CD and now vinyl…there are a few like that, where it’s never enough…it’s always gotta be there. But also, with this one, check it out: A good friend buys me a copy of this as a […]Archive
July 21, 2015 by Simon Sweetman