Maps of Music

1969: The Velvet Underground Live (1974)

Where the lyrics of 1969: The Velvet Underground Live take you, and where it was really made.

Two 1969 shows were captured with a fan's professional gear and the Matrix's own desk, but the tapes sat untouched until 1974, after the band had dissolved.

Key places

Dallas, October 1969 (1969)

Recording site The End of Cole Ave. — A fan who was a recording engineer brought professional gear to the End of Cole Ave. club in Dallas, where part of the album was recorded. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

San Francisco, November 1969 (1974)

Recording site The Matrix — In November 1969 the band recorded at The Matrix in San Francisco using the club's in-house four-track recording desk, and the tapes went into the album. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• 1969: The Velvet Underground Live is a live album by the Velvet Underground
• Originally released as a double album in September 1974 by Mercury Records
• Recorded during the band's 1969 tour of the United States and Canada
• Most recordings were made by fans with simple handheld recorders, with the band's consent
• Two sets were recorded with professional equipment: the End of Cole Ave. club in Dallas and The Matrix in San Francisco
• All tracks were written by Lou Reed
• The gatefold photo shows Reed, Sterling Morrison and Maureen Tucker at The Factory, but John Cale does not appear on the album

Background

• The band had built a sizeable fan base by 1969
• The band played well over 70 dates during 1969
• The mixdown tapes were kept for reference and left unused until 1974
• The release came after the band had dissolved and Lou Reed had become known as a solo artist
• Mercury Records agreed to release a compilation of the best performances as a double album

Recording

• The Dallas set was recorded on 19 October 1969 at the End of Cole Ave. club
• The San Francisco set was recorded in November 1969 at The Matrix
• The Matrix recording used the club's in-house four-track recording desk
• Some tracks crackle because they were sourced from acetates, since the original tapes were lost
• Little ambience is audible because no audience microphone was used
• Three songs had never been released in any form before this album: 'We're Gonna Have a Real Good Time Together', 'Over You' and 'Sweet Bonnie Brown'/'It's Just Too Much'

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in New York City in 1964; took the name The Velvet Underground in November 1965, from a 1963 book on atypical sexual behavior.
• Classic lineup: Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, Moe Tucker.
• Andy Warhol became the band's manager in 1966 and they were the house band at The Factory.

Members

• Lou Reed (singer, guitarist) and John Cale (multi-instrumentalist, Welsh) were the core partnership.
• Sterling Morrison (guitar) and Moe Tucker (drums) completed the classic four-piece.
• Doug Yule replaced Cale in 1968 and later led the band's final lineups.

Career

• Performed with Warhol's multimedia show Exploding Plastic Inevitable from 1966 to 1967.
• Debut The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) sold poorly at release but is now widely hailed as one of the greatest albums.
• Ranked 19th on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time (2004).
• Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996; received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Lisa Says and Ocean were previously known only from versions on Reed's debut solo album
• New Age and Sweet Jane differ from the eventual Loaded studio versions
• White Light/White Heat is extended from two-and-a-half minutes to over eight minutes of guitar improvisation
• Reed sings New Age and Femme Fatale, and Doug Yule sings I'll Be Your Mirror
• Liner notes were written by Paul Nelson and singer/songwriter Elliott Murphy

Reappraisal

• Many of the band's studio albums were out of print in the United States from the early 1970s through the mid-1980s
• In that period this live album was one of the band's more popular releases

Records

• Spin magazine's Alternative Record Guide included it in its 1995 list of the top 100 alternative albums of all time
• The release followed the band's 1969 concerts and the 1968 departure of John Cale

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The mixdown tapes were submitted to Mercury Records, which agreed to release the best performances as a double album
• The compilation was assembled by music critic Paul Nelson, who was working at Mercury Records at the time
• When the album was released, The Matrix's management filed a lawsuit because they had never given permission for the recordings to be used commercially; the matter was settled out of court
• The album contained liner notes by Paul Nelson and by singer/songwriter Elliott Murphy
• Although John Cale appears in the gatefold photo with the other band members at The Factory, he is not on the album

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Maps of Ages ↗ (mapsofages.com)

Privacy · Contact