It truly sounded like a practice session in a garage, but with formidable enough propulsion for the music to morph into some exquisite free-form jams. The overall feel of what became known as “the Banana album” (due to Warhol’s “peel slowly and see” cover design) was decidedly rougher than almost anything else at the time. The group represented an even further move away from pop stoicism than The Rolling Stones had. On March 12 of 1967, The Velvet Underground & Nico Produced By Andy Warhol (as it was presented upon release) was finally in the stores and featured what are now considered Lou Reed standards, “I’m Waiting For the Man,” “There She Goes Again” and “Sunday Morning.” Reed also wrote all the songs that would make Nico a household name, including “Femme Fatale,” “All Tomorrow’s Parties” and “I’ll Be Your Mirror.” The Velvet Underground and Nico then spent some time recording and, while in LA, eventually made a deal with MGM Records, who would release the album on Verve. Holing up in Los Angeles for what was supposed to be a month-long engagement at The Trip on Sunset Strip, the show was closed down after a few nights by the authorities. The Exploding Plastic Inevitable multimedia show developed its revolution at a rented club space called The Dom, in Manhattan, and then brought the entire ensemble to the West Coast in May. She had appeared in Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita and, while in London, became associated with Bob Dylan, who’d passed his song “I’ll Keep It With Mine,” to her for a single release. It involved a troupe of 11 people, including The Velvet Underground, who, at Warhol’s suggestion, had recently added to their line-up a stunning chanteuse simply known as Nico. Andy Warhol had been looking for a group to accompany similar experiments in film, music, and dance, called the Exploding Plastic Inevitable.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |