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| The Velvet Underground Nico | 
 enlarge | Artists: The Velvet Underground, Nico
Label: Polydor / Umgd
Category: Music
List Price: $9.98
Buy New: $5.77
You Save: $4.21 (42%)
Buy New/Used/Collectible from $4.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  (267 reviews)
Sales Rank: 854
Format: Original Recording Reissued, Original Recording Remastered
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.5
MPN: 531250
UPC: 731453125025
EAN: 0731453125025
ASIN: B000002G7C
Publication Date: 1996
Release Date: May 7, 1996
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Above the law October 17, 2005
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
The Velvet Underground and Nico is a record which could more accurately be described as The Velvet Underground and The Velvet Underground and Nico, because on several of the tracks the group acts as a backing band for Nico, and on the remaining tracks they are just a group unto themselves and Nico does not sing or play instruments or do anything. Sometimes I wish that compact discs could be flipped over, because then Polydor records could be The Velvet Underground on one side of the compact disc and The Velvet Underground and Nico on the other. I would not number or label the two sides of the compact disc.br /br /I mention this because some people cannot stand Nico, although conversely in real life many people liked Nico a lot, indeed many men liked Nico a lot and she likewise. Although Nico was very attractive and naturally blonde, she had a challenging voice and was apparently a horrible person, albeit that she was not shy; but then again the same is true of Lou Reed - except that his hair is naturally dark - although this is less of a problem because Lou Reed is a man and men are supposed to be horrible. Women are supposed to be nice. In this respect Nico, as a woman, was challenging gender roles all the way back in 1967, which was a long time ago. I suppose somebody had to. The Velvet Underground's drummer was also a woman, but that might have been just because there was a shortage of drummers at the time, just as how in World War Two there was a shortage of riveters, and women had to be riveters until the war was over. Snakes on a plane.br /br /World War Two had been over for twenty-two years by 1967, which is when this record came out. I give it four stars because "Run Run Run", "The Black Angel's Death Song" and "There She Goes Again" are dull and uninspired, the latter being greatly improved many years later by the La's, to such an extent that the La's' version is now definitive. The name of the band is Talking Heads.br /br /The rest of the record is very good, brilliant even. "Sunday Morning" is a cute song which sounds ominous and foreboding in the context of a record by a band which was famously obsessed with sadomasochism, drug use, homosexuality, leather jackets and drug use. "I'm Waiting for the Man" and "Heroin" are both about drugs, and are almost a miniature concept album in themselves, with act one being about a man who is waiting for another man, and act two being about a man who has taken a big shot of heroin and who is happy about it. "Venus in Furs" is a violin-led soundtrack to a Pirelli advert, and is so over-the-top in its depiction of es and em - both words which are allowable in Scrabble, and very useful at times - as to be hard to take seriously. Close Combat III is the best of the series.br /br /The rest of the good parts of the record feature Nico, who has a hard voice which puts some people on edge. "Femme Fatale" is the most conventional song on the record, in the sense that it is neither so innocent as to be creepy nor is it downright debauched, in that it is about a woman who is nasty in a normal way, i.e. without whips etc, just emotional harassment and general nastiness. "All Tomorrow's Parties" has an epic feel to it, despite being about a woman who is too busy going to parties to buy clothes. There's a moral there.br /br /"I'll be Your Mirror" is a fairly conventional love song, again transformed by Nico's droll vocals, although it is very short. After this Nico went on to a solo career in which she played the harmonium and sang, to nil commercial effect, although her album Desert Shore is atmospheric and creepy in a good way. She is dead, and so is the Velvet Underground's bassist, a man called Sterling Morrison. Of the other people in the band, John Cale played the violin and no doubt thought big thoughts, Moe Tucker played the drums with the ferocity of a recently-uncaged tigress and Lou Reed wrote most of it and played guitar. The band split up a few years later, although none of their following records featured Nico, so effectively this is the only "Velvet Underground and Nico" record out there.br /br /Reading this through for punctuation and style I believe that I have forgotten a song, which is just as well.
 Where music became art September 19, 2005
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
1967 is regarded as an exciting year in rock music. Legendary artists such as Jimi Hendrix, the Doors, the Grateful Dead, and Pink Floyd released their debut albums that year while bands such as The Beatles and Jefferson Airplane would release excellent albums that expanded the genre's horizons. While this was going on, a struggling songwriter named Lou Reed formed a band called The Velvet Underground. Reed, along with John Cale, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen Tucker created a sound like no other. Jangly rhythms, noisy guitar solos, sweet melodies, loose playing, and dramatic compositions were all a part of the band's repertoire. Reed's lyrics, which could express both the beauty of love and the seedy side of life, were among the most creative in rock music. Furthermore, the band could care less about commercialism. Music wasn't about writing songs to get played on the radio. It was about creating art. Like many works of art, it took time for the Velvet Underground's music to be fully appreciated. Today, the band, despite their lack of success during their lifetime, is considered to be one of the most influential bands in the history of rock music.br /br /The Velvet Underground and Nico is not only their best work but also one of the best albums of the rock era. The tracks "I'm Waiting for the Man", "Run Run Run", and the jamming "European Son" are noisy rockers, which along with the bulk of their next album White Light/White Heat, would provide the blueprint for later genres such as punk, grunge, and alternative rock. The haunting "Venus In Furs" and the chaotic "The Black Angel's Death Song" feature Cale's wild viola playing which lays the perfect compliment to Reed's dark and very descriptive lyrics. The songs featuring the husky vocals of Nico, the psychedelic "All Tomorrow's Parties" and the pop songs "I'll Be Your Mirror" and "Femme Fatale", are timeless tracks with "Femme Fatale" being covered by several artists, most notably R.E.M. and Duran Duran. "Sunday Morning" is a soothing lullaby while "There She Goes Again", with its backing vocals, is an ode to Motown although the band's loose performance distinguishes it from the 2-minute well crafted RB songs that were popular at the time. Finally, there's "Heroin." Arguably the band's greatest work, the band's performance matches the track's ever changing mood from a whisper to a scream throughout before entering pure chaos near its end. It is perhaps the most dramatic track in rock history. This is certainly one of the best albums in the rock genre. Newcomers who are not familiar with their work may be put off at first, this is not pop music designed for the masses. Both an open mind and an open ear are essential to truly appreciate their music. Highly recommended. br /
One Not To Miss September 17, 2005
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
There are few albums that come along that just blow you away. The Beatles had "Sgt. Peppers", and the Stones had "Exile," but this one is the best. This is not just an opinion, it could be a fact. The lyrical depth that was achieved here was not common, in the sixties or in any other time. The way Lou Reed would talk about heroin or SM so frankly, that was unheard of.br /br /The albums starts of with "Sunday Morning." One of the strongest songs on an album in which there are no duds, and you scarcely find a song that you don't enjoy. This is a song of deep regret, disguised with a lovey-dovey jingle that would make it seem lighter. The lovely thoughts are automatically pushed out of your head when the John Cale's piano pounding on "I'm Waiting for the Man" starts to boom out of your stereo. br /br /With songs like the aforementioned "Sunday Morning" and the beauty "I'll Be Your Mirror," it is hard to believe that the same fellow wrote "Venus In Furs." The drone of it may scare some of the lighter listeners away, but just make your way through it, the songs delivers. The song is very unforgiving and hard. I still love it, I sit back and imagine all of those stories I heard that when the Velvets were on tour, they had dancers with whips and things do a routine while the song droned on.br /br /The masterpiece of the album is easily "Heroin." The two guitars, constant viola, and the utterly believable lyrics make it so appetizing, it's unreal. br /br /On the song "Run Run Run" you get a bluesy kind of riff. On "There She Goes Again" you get more great Lou Reed lyrics like "There she goes again/She down on her knees my friend." I can't sing enough praises for this album.br /br /br /Yes this album is difficult, and it will take a few listens to really deliver I still suggest it strongly, it is my favorite album of all time. It is still one of the most cohesively brilliant albums ever made. Some albums have a good load of solid songs, but miss horribly on one or two (see U2's "The Joshua Tree"). That situation never arises here. The truth is that I had to listen to this a few times before "I GOT IT." And I can tell you, once you "GET IT," you will not be able to quit listening. Just listen to it, then again don't listen to it. Swim in it. Swim in it and you will be so smitten, you will start to buy it for all of your friends for their Christmas and birthday presents, telling them not to "listen" but to "swim."
not a college music students review.....but i like this album September 12, 2005
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
I don't have a lot of fancy jargon, references, or musicalterms to throw at you like most of these other reviewers. At least I try not to be so pretentious. Anyway, you don't have to be an art school grad to like this record. If you like 60's and early 70's rock, punk, singer/songwriter, acid, psychadelia,(did i spell that right?) or whatever, and have sort of hit a brick wall because you've gone through almost every band you could think of in that era, then this is a great CD to help you delve deeper into old underground music. I'm not going to critique the songs for the risk of looking like a fool, but this is good, different stuff. I'm going to look more into Lou Reed as a solo artist and buy more VU Albums. Although I'm just an impressionable naive 16 year old....what do I know....For future reference I would recommend reading the worst ratings first when you're checking out a new CD, it gives you a better perspective than only reading the "rave" reviews.
Fantastic Debut September 6, 2005
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
There is not much to add about this album that already has not been said. Just an awesome album.
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