Velvet Underground, The: What Goes On

by Sean Albiez (editor), David Pattie (Editor)

Though The Velvet Underground were critically and commercially unsuccessful in their time, in ensuing decades they have become a constant touchstone in art rock, punk, post-punk, indie, avant pop and alternative rock. In the 1970s and 80s Lou Reed, John Cale and Nico produced a number of works that traveled a path between art and pop. In 1993 the original band members of Reed, Cale, Morrison and Tucker briefly reunited for live appearances, and afterwards Reed, Cale and briefly Tucker, continued to produce music that travelled the idiosyncratic path begun in New York in the mid-1960s.

The influence of the band and band members, mediated and promoted through famous fans such as David Bowie and Brian Eno, seems only to have expanded since the late 1960s. In 1996 the Velvet Underground were in inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, demonstrating how far the band had traveled in 30 years from an avant-garde cult to the mainstream recognition of their key contributions to popular music. In these collected essays, Pattie and Albiez present the first academic book-length collection on The Velvet Underground. The book covers a range of topics including the band's relationship to US literature, to youth and cultural movements of the 1960s and beyond and to European culture - and examines these contexts from the 1960s through to the present day.

310 pages, Hardcover

Published October 6, 2022

Reviews

[Art · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK, I'll admit that I have been an academic for 30+ years, so I'm very used to reading academic articles. In fact, I was delighted to come across this edited volume focused on the Velvet Underground at my local library and plowed right through it. In fact, the authors don't limit themselves to the Velvet Underground only but spend at least as much time on the solo careers of Lou, John, and Nico (with nods to Sterling and Doug Yule as well). We are treated to chapters focused entirely on Lou's Berlin album (original and 2006 re-recording), on his Take No Prisoners live album (and live performance more broadly), and on Metal Machine Music, as well as a chapter on Songs for Drella (that links back to earlier chapters on the Factory days and Warhol's influence/involvement but also details the tense Reed-Cale relationship). Another chapter focuses on Jonathan Richman's association with the Velvets and the tribute song he wrote about them. Having a pretty strong familiarity with the band and also each member's subsequent careers, I guess there wasn't too much here that I didn't already know. But the academic approach to the material is really weird and delightful and not too difficult for the lay person (I think). Overall, a fun read!