The original quartet was completed by guitarist Sterling Morrison, while on their debut the group are joined by German vocalist Nico, thrown at the group to make them more commercial, but whose effect is the opposite her icy, amusical vocal style is much less accessible than Reed’s hypnotic drawl.Ĭale left after their second album and was replaced by Doug Yule, and the Yule albums are gentler and less experimental. Reed quit the band after their 1970 album Loaded, which is much more mainstream than their previous albums. Drummer Moe Tucker was an excellent foil for the group with her simple and innovative drumming style, largely foregoing cymbals. The other major force in the initial group was Welsh-born multi-instrumentalist John Cale originally from a classical and avant-garde background, his contributions on bass, viola, piano, organ, and celesta, as well as his use of drone notes, push the band into musically adventurous territory. As Reed points out in response to criticism of lyrical content of S&M and drug use, literature had been able to explore these areas so there was no reason why a double standard should apply to rock music. Reed is nasty and decadent at his most ornery, but also capable of sweetness and light. The first incarnation of The Velvet Underground had two primary forces New York-born vocalist and guitarist Lou Reed bore some influence from Bob Dylan in his literate lyrics and dry delivery, but his own unique voice is already apparent by the group’s debut. The patronage of artist Andy Warhol allowed the group to pursue an artier and less commercial agenda and get away with music and lyrics that were more risqué than anything in the rock world prior. Even if the ground rules of the rock album as an art form had been largely written by the time the Velvets’ debut arrived in 1967, there is still a strong argument for their status as the first rock band to exist as an alternative and underground act, as well as the first rock band to include a member with avant-garde credentials. 1960s New York band The Velvet Underground have been cited as an influence by a legion of followers.
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