The Velvet Underground return with their third album. I wonder if this will be better than White Light/White Heat. Lou Reed said, “I really didn’t think we should make another White Light/White Heat.” Hopefully, he was correct and it is completely different and better.
“Candy Says” the first song has a nice beat, but I am not loving Reed’s vocals on it. It reminds me a little of “Sweet Jane”, but that comes out in 1970. I prefer the Cowboy Junkies’ version over any other version. It is otherworldly and her voice is beautiful.
Sweet Jane from The Velvet Underground covered by Cowboy Junkies.
One of the catchiest songs “What Goes On” definitely has fans in The Strokes. I am sure that Julian Casablancas listened to this album before they recorded Is This It.
I thought “Pale Blue Eyes” was written for me, but after reading the lyrics and the backstory I decided against it. It was about Reed’s first love, but she was married. That is just wrong. More curiously is that it is followed by the song “Jesus“. It lyrics are short,
“Jesus, help me find my proper place
Jesus, help me find my proper place
Help me in my weakness
Cause I’m falling out of grace
Jesus
Jesus”
Did he purposely put this after the song of adultery? Did he really want help from Jesus?
The Strokes definitely listened to this album a lot. “Beginning to See the Light” could easily be a Strokes song. There seems to be a theme on this album with Christian tropes in the lyrics. It continues with the next song “I’m Set Free“,
“I’ve been blinded but
You I can see
What in the world has happened to me
The prince of stories who walk right by me.”
But if you listen to “The Murder Mystery” you have to wonder if he was set free. It is a long chaotic song, but I really like it. It reads like a stream of gibberish which was recorded separately for each speaker.
“After Hours” is the biggest misstep on an otherwise great album. Drummer Maureen Tucker takes the lead vocals, but she cannot sing. It sounds like a little kid who cannot sing, but his parents think he is a great singer. The rest of us know the truth. He sucks or rather she sucks.
This album is mostly mellow. It seems like they smoke a joint, then decided to record it. It is so different than their previous albums. I think I like this one the best. They have grown a lot since the last album. 9.6/10.
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