The Velvet Underground song that reminds John Cale of Lou Reed
For anyone listening to rock music in the 1960s, there was nothing to prepare them for The Velvet Underground. Whereas most artists were talking about the joys of tuning into the cultural zeitgeist of peace and love, a couple of punks from New York started to showcase the dark side of what the Flower Generation had to offer, penning songs that were dripping with drug abuse and bondage rather than superficial platitudes. Although the band operated as a firm unit, everything circled back to Lou Reed.
Born and bred in the art rock niche in New York City, Reed became the inner city update of Bob Dylan, writing songs that were open and honest about the layers of abuse that may be going on behind closed doors in ‘The Big Apple’. Although the band may have found a confidante in artist Andy Warhol, it wouldn’t be easy to get their record onto store shelves.
Despite their endorsement from big names, The Velvet Underground and Nico was initially reviled upon release, with the critics slamming the record for being as unprofessional as possible. While some intentional blemishes were left on the finished product, what fans were hearing were the most authentic versions of the artists playing to their strengths.
One of the main shining moments of the album came with John Cale’s viola playing. An unusual instrument for rock and roll, Cale’s avant-garde approach to rock and roll had a massive impact on what the next generations of rock musicians would use regarding sound design, like the massive tension building in the middle of ‘Venus in Furs’.
While Cale would see the music mainly as a group effort, he would cite ‘The Black Angel’s Death Song’ as the most authentic that he has ever heard Reed. When talking about the song, Cale thought the song was most indicative of where the band were at the time while still being a wild experiment to get through.
Rather than have a set tempo, Cale recalled that the whole band was building off of the speed in which Reed spits out the lyrics, saying, “The song was crafted around a rustling viola part and Sterling (Morrison)’s bass part. That sliding guitar part was meant to be the cloud that wrapped around the song. The speed we played it at came from the rate the lyrics were sung by Lou and knitted into a hard pattern that held it all together”.
That off-the-cuff mentality would only continue onto their subsequent records. When working on the follow-up White Light/White Heat, the band made a deliberate effort to sound as distorted as possible, crafting songs drowned in distortion and verging on the edge of chaos like on the 17-minute ‘Sister Ray’.
Though Reed could use his medium to his advantage anywhere, The Velvet Underground would only be around for a few more years, with the songwriter blossoming into a solo career. Cale may have made a name for himself in the music industry in front of and behind the microphone, but the chemistry between his bandmates is exemplified in this tune.
