The Velvet Underground was an American rock band, active between 1964 and 1973, formed in New York The group was briefly managed by Andy Warhol, and served as the house band at the Silver Factory and Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable events from 1966 to 1967. The provocative subject matter and often nihilistic attitudes explored in their music proved massively influential in the development of punk rock and alternative music. Their 1967 debut album The Velvet Underground & Nico featured German singer and collaborator Nico and was called the “most prophetic rock album ever made” by Rolling Stone in 2003. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked the band No. 19 on its list of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 by Patti Smith. (More from Wikipedia)
For those in the know, Lou Reed’s remarkable hit “Walk on the Wild Side” – which peaked at #16 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976 – is a sleazy romp through the world of artist Andy Warhol. As a member of the Velvet Underground – the house band of Warhol’s legendary studio The Factory – Lou Reed was certainly a familiar denizen of the Andy Warhol milieu. However, this background was primarily in-jokes that most listeners knew nothing about, nor did they need to: The song’s under-stated musical arrangement provides an ideal setting for Lou Reed’s deadpan delivery of lyrics about an entire litany of taboo subjects – transsexuality, drugs, male prostitution, and oral sex. And that’s not to mention the chorus line – “And the colored girls go doo dah doo, dah doo, doo dah doo, doo dah doo . . .” – and the use of gay slang like “backroom” and “soul food” (the latter in the line “. . . looking for soul food and a place to eat”).
Allmusic gives The Richmond Sluts 4 stars and says of the Richmond Sluts that “they explored the glam-slam-thank-you-ma’am side of punk”. Jo-Ann Greene comments about their inventiveness on the album in ways that are a little beyond my capacity to figure out: “Since categorization is a necessity in this age of overspecification, punk rock will do nicely, but doesn’t begin to encompass just how cleverly the group churns other genres through its blender. The Sluts connect the dots between ’60s garage punk and old school ’70s style, then toss just a dash of new school into the mix. Variations on this recipe reverberate across the album, and answer a slew of niggling questions along the way. Ever wonder what the [New York] Dolls would sound like covered by a psychedelic band? Kept up at night trying to imagine a cross between the Cramps and the Velvet Underground? Curious what the result would be if a time warp sent Richard Hell circa 1978 a decade into the past? And what if Eddie & the Hotrods were really the Ramones with English accents? The Richmond Sluts answer all these brain teasers and more you’ve yet to even imagine, and they do it without an ounce of pretentiousness or braggadocio.”
The Jesus and Mary Chain formed in Scotland in 1983 and was a highly influential alternative rock/indie band that, like their major influence the Velvet Underground, suffered from low record sales. According to Wikipedia, their tacky name might have been taken from a similarly tacky offering of a gold-colored religious chain on a breakfast cereal box.
(October 2014)
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While this line-up never recorded another album, the Crawdaddys secured their place in the rock firmament with their next two releases (both on Voxx Records): the single “There She Goes Again” b/w “Why Don’t You Smile Now” in early 1980, and an EP called 5 x 4 in August 1980. For my money, “There She Goes Again” is the one Velvet Underground song (written by Lou Reed) that is tailor-made to be covered by other bands. There is an obscure cover of “There She Goes Again” by the Electrical Banana in 1967 which is mentioned by Wikipedia; this is not the same band as the Electric Banana that was a pseudonym for the Pretty Things over several years. However, the only other cover version of “There She Goes Again” that I know of is by R.E.M.; and Peter Buck acknowledges that their recording is inspired by the Crawdaddys version. “There She Goes Again” is included on the Bomp! Records compilation CD Straight Outta Burbank, and that is where I learned about the song. The ”B” side, “Why Don’t You Smile Now” was co-written by Lou Reed and John Cale but pre-dates their involvement with the Velvet Underground; “Why Don’t You Smile Now” was originally released on a 1965 single under the name the All-Night Workers.
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On May 29, 2011, at a Rhino Records pop-up store in San Diego, the Crawdaddys showed up unexpectedly with a reunion concert that included former members Ron Silva, Peter Miesner, and Keith Fisher. After noting the surprise at the Crawdaddys being there at all, the L.A. Weekly report on the concert continued: “Another surprise was how hot and vital the band sounded, even after being dormant for so many years. You could certainly hear where latter-day ’60s revivalists like the Hives got their ideas, as singer-guitarist Ron Silva snarled his way through a set of Crawdaddys originals and vintage covers of primal rock classics like ‘Oh Baby Doll’, ‘Slow Down’ and ‘Let the Good Times Roll’. The group were at their best on Rolling Stones-style blues rockers like ‘Bald Headed Woman’, but they also deftly pulled off poppier tunes like the Knickerbockers’ Beatles sound-alike ‘Lies’ and a yearning, affecting version of the Velvet Underground’s bittersweet ‘There She Goes [Again]’.”
(January 2015/2)
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Since then, I have gotten an acclaimed album, Hollis Brown Gets Loaded that is a cover of every song (but played in reverse order) on the Velvet Underground album, Loaded, including classics like “Sweet Jane”, “Rock & Roll”, and “Head Held High”. The album was released in honor of Record Store Day 2014. A fourth album came out this year called 3 Shots.
(May 2015)
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