“Beyond ourselves with delight”: The Velvet Underground song Bono called pop perfection
How do you reflect the beating heart of a city through sound alone? New York has always been at the forefront of artistic movements, but as is the case with a lot of creative development, they cast a thin veil over the realities of a place. New York was seen by many as the promised land, whereas those who live there would be able to tell you that there is much more to it than the glitz and glamour that came with its music scene.
New York was a great city, but it also had its problems. It championed some of the biggest artists in the music industry while also having a large underground scene that many people were drawn to. There is no escaping the fact that both sides of the city existed, and very few artists were able to occupy both of them; however, The Velvet Underground are a great exception.
When Lou Reed and John Cale met, it was clear that they would make exceptional music. The songwriting capabilities of Lou Reed, paired with the experimental underground instrumentation of Cale, meant that what they ended up making was the perfect reflection of the city they lived in. It highlighted the grit and grime of the city while also paying homage to the positive sides of New York.
Despite not seeing a huge amount of commercial success at the time, The Velvet Underground was cemented as one of the best experimental outfits of the time. Their self-titled album is now one of the most notorious on the planet, with an instantly recognisable cover and tracks that have gone down in musical history.
It’s no surprise that many bands that came after The Velvet Underground were somehow influenced by them. This is especially the case for bands with a number of different styles of music that influence what they make, as The Velvet Underground highlights how good music can be when it doesn’t strictly conform to one specific sound. As such, though there aren’t many people hurrying to compare Velvet Underground with U2, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Bono and The Edge are both big fans.
Bono once spoke about how much he loved the Velvet Underground and how he and his bandmates looked up to the band a great deal. There was even one song that he went as far as to describe as perfect, which he couldn’t wait to listen to when the band announced they would reunite in the ‘90s.
“U2 were beyond ourselves with delight when the Velvets re-formed to play some select dates in the early nineties,” he said, “Including some with us. ‘Pale Blue Eyes’ is perfection in pop.” Perfection in pop is certainly high praise, but it’s well-placed when you consider how much of an impact the Velvet Underground had on music as a whole.
