The Velvet Underground

Pre-career and early stages (1964–1966)

The foundations for what would become the Velvet Underground were laid in late 1964. Singer-songwriter and guitarist Lou Reed had performed with a few short-lived garage bands and had worked as a songwriter for Pickwick Records (Reed described his tenure there as being "a poor man's Carole King"). Reed met John Cale, a Welshman who had moved to the United States to study classical music upon securing a Leonard Bernstein scholarship. Cale had worked with experimental composers John Cage, Cornelius Cardew and La Monte Young, and had performed with Young's Theatre of Eternal Music, though he was also interested in rock music. Young's use of extended drones would be a profound influence on the band's early sound. Cale was pleasantly surprised...

Musical style and influences

The music of the Velvet Underground has been described as a "boldly uncompromising" fusion of rock & roll, the avant-garde, and the "poetic realism of post-beat literature". AllMusic called the band "the first proto-punk group" for their "boundary-shattering lyrical content, their use of feedback, distortion, and white noise, their unpredictable (yet song-centered) experimentalism, [and] their amateurish technique". Mark Beaumont of The Independent labeled them "enigmatic New York art rockers" whose early releases encompassed styles such as dream pop, drone, and transgressive noise rock, with their later albums exploring "intimate" folk and "radio-friendly choruses". Stuart Rosenberg described them as a "groundbreaking group in...

Legacy

The Velvet Underground is regarded as one of the most influential bands in rock history. In 1996 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Critic Robert Christgau considers them to be "the number three band of the '60s, after the Beatles and James Brown and His Famous Flames". In 1998, The New York Times contributor David Bowman called them "arguably the most influential American rock band of our time". AllMusic's Richie Unterberger wrote that "Few rock groups can claim to have broken so much new territory, and maintain such consistent brilliance on record, as the Velvet Underground during their brief lifespan [...] the Velvets' innovations – which blended the energy of rock with the sonic adventurism of the avant-garde, and...

After Hours

"After Hours" is a 1969 song written by Lou Reed and originally performed by the Velvet Underground, "about a timid person watching others having fun and wishing they could join in". It is the tenth and final track on their eponymous third studio album.

It is one of few songs with lead vocals by drummer Maureen Tucker, as Lou Reed stated the song was "so innocent and pure" that he could not possibly sing it himself. Tucker's vocals are accompanied by acoustic and bass guitar.

Music video

In 2014, Universal Music Enterprises held a contest in collaboration with Genero to create an official music video for the song. From 120 submissions, the video by Choking Monkey Productions, directed by Oliver Chen and starring Paloma Lopez, was picked as the winner and subsequently uploaded to the Velvet Underground Vevo YouTube channel.

Run Run Run

"Run Run Run" is a song by the Velvet Underground originally released on the band's 1967 debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico.

Cover versions

Beck covered the entirety of The Velvet Underground and Nico including "Run Run Run" as part of his Record Club project.

Candy Says

"Candy Says" is the first track on the Velvet Underground's self-titled third album.

Heroin

"Heroin" is a song by the American rock band the Velvet Underground, released on their 1967 debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico. Written by Lou Reed in 1964, the song, which overtly depicts heroin usage and its effects, is one of the band's most celebrated compositions.

Critic Mark Deming of AllMusic writes, "While 'Heroin' hardly endorses drug use, it doesn't clearly condemn it, either, which made it all the more troubling in the eyes of many listeners." In 2004, it was ranked at number 448 on Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and was re-ranked at number 455 in 2010.

Writing and recording

In an interview with WLIR in 1972, Reed said he wrote the lyrics while working as a songwriter for Pickwick Records, a budget label that mostly released inexpensive sound-alikes.

Reception

Larry Flick, writing for Billboard, described Idol's version as a "clench-toothed reading of the Velvet Underground classic" with the use of Smith's "Gloria" adding a "spooky incantation". He added that while Idol's rock following "may grimace at his rave musings", the artist's "penchant for caustic sounds and frenetic rhythms makes this track ring remarkably true". In contrast, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic called it "one of the worst covers ever recorded" in his review of Cyberpunk.

Other cover versions

The song has been covered by several artists, including Mazzy Star, Human Drama, Echo & the Bunnymen, Roky Erickson, and Third Eye Blind.

References in popular culture

Denis Johnson's short story collection Jesus' Son, and the film based on it took its title from the lyrics of this song.

Pale Blue Eyes

"Pale Blue Eyes" is a song by American rock band the Velvet Underground, written and sung by Lou Reed. He recorded a demo with John Cale in May 1965.

It was included on the band's 1969 album The Velvet Underground.

Notable cover versions

"Pale Blue Eyes" has been covered by a number of artists in addition to Lou Reed and Maureen Tucker from Velvet Underground:

In popular culture

An instrumental version of the song was used in Julian Schnabel's 2007 film The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. The song was also used in a scene of the 2008 film August, as well as 2009's Adventureland, the 2000 film The Vertical Ray of the Sun, the 2015 film Regular Show: The Movie, and the 2023 film Perfect Days.

Stephanie Says

"Stephanie Says" is a song written by American musician Lou Reed and first recorded by his group the Velvet Underground in 1968.

Reception

Spin said the Velvet Underground version was, "Virtually a direct referral to the first album. Both the melody and the function — another bittersweet homage to the negative girls of fashionable Manhattan —steers it awfully close to "All Tomorrow's Parties II"."

Cover versions

Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth covered the song on Fifteen Minutes: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground.

Sunday Morning

"Sunday Morning" is a song by the Velvet Underground. It is the opening track on their 1967 debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico.

It was first released as a single in December 1966. The song is written in the key of F major.

Recording

In late 1966, "Sunday Morning" was the final song to be recorded for The Velvet Underground & Nico. It was requested by Tom Wilson, who thought the album needed another song with lead vocals by Nico with the potential to be a successful single. The final master tape of side one of the album shows "Sunday Morning" only penciled in before "I'm Waiting for the Man".

Reception

AllMusic's Mark Deming described the song as "dreamy pop", while Cash Box called the single a "haunting, lyrical emotion stirring chant."

Cover versions

"Sunday Morning" has been covered by many artists, including Thea Gilmore for her favorites album These Quiet Friends (2025). Yugoslav punk rock band Psihomodo Pop recorded a Serbo-Croatian version for their 1988 debut album Godina zmaja. English electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) also covered the song on their 1993 album, Liberator.

Sweet Jane

"Sweet Jane" is a song by American rock band the Velvet Underground. Appearing on their fourth studio album Loaded (1970), the song was written by band leader and primary songwriter Lou Reed, who continued to incorporate the piece into live performances after he left the band.

Cover versions

1972: Mott the Hoople on the David Bowie-produced album All the Young Dudes, as its third single.