The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground
Label: |
MGM Records – 2353022 |
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Format: |
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Country: |
UK |
Released: |
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Genre: |
Rock |
Style: |
Avantgarde |
Tracklist
| A1 | Candy Says | 4:09 | |
| A2 | What Goes On | 3:35 | |
| A3 | Some Kinda Love | 3:35 | |
| A4 | Pale Blue Eyes | 5:40 | |
| A5 | Jesus | 3:24 | |
| B1 | Beginning To See The Light | 4:48 | |
| B2 | I'm Set Free | 4:05 | |
| B3 | That's The Story Of My Life | 2:05 | |
| B4 | The Murder Mystery | 8:35 | |
| B5 | After Hours | 2:05 |
Companies, etc.
- Marketed By – Polydor
- Distributed By – Polydor Records Ltd.
- Manufactured By – Polydor Records Ltd.
- Printed By – MacNeill Press Ltd.
- Published By – Sunbury Music Ltd.
- Manufactured For – MGM Records Ltd.
Credits
- Arranged By, Conductor [Conducted By], Written-By [Composed By] – The Velvet Underground
- Engineer [Director Of Engineering] – Val Valentin
- Other [Convolutions], Photography By – Billy Name
Notes
1971 reissue, LP originally released 1969. Recorded at T.T.G. Studios, LA, California.
Sleeve printed by McNeil Press Ltd.
Sunbury Music Ltd. on labels as opposed to The Velvet Underground that has Oakfield Avenue M. Corp on labels.
Two mixes of this LP exist. MGM engineer Val Valentin completed a clean, bright, evenly balanced mix, but Lou Reed made an alternate (so called closet) mix. Whereas Valentin's mix was used for the earlier 1969 UK issue, Reed's mix was used here.
"Some Kinda Love" is actually a different take.
MGM SELECT 2353 022 appears on spine
Durations from labels ("What Goes On" is 4:52 on sleeve, real duration between 4:30 and 4:35)
Credits (not appearing on sleeve):
Bass, Organ, Vocals – Doug Yule
Drums, Percussion – Moe Tucker
Mixed By – Lou Reed
Producer – The Velvet Underground
Vocals, Guitar – Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison
Vocals - Moe Tucker (Tracks: B4, B5)
Sleeve printed by McNeil Press Ltd.
Sunbury Music Ltd. on labels as opposed to The Velvet Underground that has Oakfield Avenue M. Corp on labels.
Two mixes of this LP exist. MGM engineer Val Valentin completed a clean, bright, evenly balanced mix, but Lou Reed made an alternate (so called closet) mix. Whereas Valentin's mix was used for the earlier 1969 UK issue, Reed's mix was used here.
"Some Kinda Love" is actually a different take.
MGM SELECT 2353 022 appears on spine
Durations from labels ("What Goes On" is 4:52 on sleeve, real duration between 4:30 and 4:35)
Credits (not appearing on sleeve):
Bass, Organ, Vocals – Doug Yule
Drums, Percussion – Moe Tucker
Mixed By – Lou Reed
Producer – The Velvet Underground
Vocals, Guitar – Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison
Vocals - Moe Tucker (Tracks: B4, B5)
Barcode and Other Identifiers
- Matrix / Runout (Side A [label]): 2353022 A
- Matrix / Runout (Side B [label]): 2353022 B
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 1): 2353022 A//1▽420 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 1): 2353022 B//1▽420 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 2): 2353022 A//2▽420 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 2): 2353022 B//2▽420 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 3): 2353022 A//4▽E420 04 1L 5
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 3): 2353022 B//2▽420 04 12 1
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 4): 2353022 A//1▽420 1(backward)1 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 4): 2353022 A//1▽420 1(backward)1 8 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 5): 2353022 A//1▽420 1(backward)1 14 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 5): 2353022 B//1▽420 1(backward)1 13 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side A, stamped, variant 6): 2353022 A//1▽420 1(backward) 1111 04
- Matrix / Runout (Side B, stamped, variant 6): 2353022 B//1▽420 1(backward) 119 04
Other Versions (5 of 150)
View All| Title (Format) | Label | Cat# | Country | Year | |||
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The Velvet Underground (LP, Album, Stereo, Waddell Pressing) | MGM Records | SE 4617, SE-4617 | US | 1969 | ||
| The Velvet Underground (LP, Album) | MGM Records | SE-4617, SE4617 | US | 1969 | |||
| The Velvet Underground (LP, Album) | MGM Records | SE-4617 | Canada | 1969 | |||
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Recently Edited
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The Velvet Underground (LP, Album, Promo, Stereo, Yellow Label) | MGM Records | SE-4617, SE4617 | US | 1969 | ||
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Recently Edited
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The Velvet Underground (LP, Album, Stereo) | MGM Records | 665 114, 665114 | 1969 |
Recommendations
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1972 UKVinyl —LP, Album, Stereo -
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Reviews
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Lou Reed’s closet mix was made for audiophiles, this sounds fantastic and is by far the best sounding VU album out of their core catalogue. You can feel Lou’s presence and is most prominent on Candy Says and Jesus. This is also the only VU album in which the drums actually sound like drums and not tea bags…
I’d say the closet mix is better for side 1, and the Valentin mix is better for side 2. So, if you have this and the 1985 US pressing, you’re completely set.
I’d genuinely like to hear an original US pressing and see if it sounds any different than this one. Its great that I dont have to spend hundreds of dollars to get the mix. -
Edited 2 years agoAlso on this copy/my copy the blue/gold MGM label gives the time of what goes on as 3:35 but the sleeve says 4:52…. -
Edited 3 years agoMy copy of this appears to be exactly the same as this, except it has a (MacNeil printed) laminated sleeve. -
My copy matches everything in the notes EXCEPT that it has red Polydor labels instead of MGM labels per the photos in this entry.
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Edited 5 years agoI agree with the Hoffman forum recommendations that this is the one to get if you're interested in hearing Lou's mix. Price wise it tends to be cheaper too. My copy has some occasional noise, but it seems more indicative of age and care than the pressing itself (which sounds quite good).
Regarding the whole "closet mix" (Lou Reed's mix) vs Valentin Mix, besides What Goes On, Some Kind of Love, and Murder Mystery, the differences in the mix seem incredibly subtle to me. The instruments are mixed more evenly and vocals are further forward (as opposed to guitar forward on Valentin), especially on What Goes On (you can tell right away from the prominent drums).
I like having both versions for a couple of reasons. First, the organ on What Goes On (especially at the end of the song) is much dronier and atmospheric. Lou called Doug Yule's organ playing, "this all-enveloping cloud of heaven music" and I think this mix illustrates that well. Second, the different version of Some Kind of Love is a completely different take and quite good. Murder Mystery has more prominent vocals and the guitars are further back in the mix, which make me prefer the Valentin version. Which is better? I have no opinion. I like them both. -
Edited 7 years agoTestimonials on Hoffman threads consistently state that this 1971 UK reissue (2nd UK version) sounds excellent, many stating that it’s one of the best sounding pressings, if not the best of VU’s 3rd s/t album, especially of Reed’s closet mix... http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/the-velvet-underground-vinyl-comparison-thread.386306/ -
I have a very nice looking copy of this album, with only hairline visible scratches, but it sounds TERRIBLE! Of course, it's largely a very quiet album and so inevitably surface noise will seem more intrusive, but still... are there a lot of poor pressings of this record or am I just unlucky?
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