![]() ![]() The push by the record company for hits and the changing dynamics within the band presented a Velvet Underground that was world’s away from its original incarnation. And no, I’m not going to count the live albums, the compilations or Squeeze, the Velvet Underground album recorded solely by Yule. The previous statement is a little misleading since all four of the Velvet Underground’s albums rank in the Top 250 of the Great List, with Loaded bringing up the rear at a respectable no. It was tailor made for mass consumption so I’m a little surprised it ranks so low in the Velvet Underground oeuvre. Mendelsohn: Yes, Loaded is slightly sweet, kind of corny and a little watered down, but man is it smooth. But Loaded is a quality lager, suitable for drinking in mass quantities year round. Whether Reed simply felt that these songs needed the purer touch of a boy singer or it really was a ploy for mainstream acceptance has never been especially clear to me, but Loaded is obviously taking a far different path than the other albums.Īnd you’re right - their first two albums are ultra-hoppy IPAs that are an acquired taste, the third album is a creamy mellow stout. It’s possible that’s the reason it’s Yule singing on “New Age”, “Oh! Sweet Nothing”, “Lonesome Cowboy Bill” and “Who Loves the Sun”. The Velvets’ manager Steve Sesnick was apparently keen on placing Yule at the center of the group. In fact, Yule’s role within the group seems to be a bit curious as well. Instead, the duties were taken over by still-relatively-new guy Doug Yule, or his brother Billy, or possibly some session guys or studio engineers - record-keeping was apparently sketchy back then. But Loaded may also sound a bit more commercial because we’re not hearing Maureen Tucker’s delightfully primitive drum stylings here. Mendelsohn: That didn’t stop Reed from writing a song about prostitution. It wasn’t, of course, and it ended up being Reed’s last album with the group. So Loaded is kind of a play on words, with the group making the audacious claim that the album was loaded with hits. ![]() Once Verve had finally given up on the group, Atlantic Records’ Ahmet Ertegun stepped in and said he’d sign the group to his Cotillion subsidiary - if they promised not to include any drug songs. Klinger: Well, it might be all of the above. What do you think, Klinger? Is this record a giant middle finger to the music industry? Is Reed playing the part of Ty Cobb - hitting home runs just to show the young guns how easy it is? Or is Loaded the Velvet Underground’s final stab at mainstream success? Whenever I drop the needle on this record, I’m greeted by “Who Loves the Sun”, and the mental image of the Velvet Underground banging out this pretty little ditty while Lou Reed just stands on stage, scowling at the audience and flipping the bird. It’s the album I would expect Reed to write when pressed by the record label to bring the hits, which is what they did. He had the ability to marry the warm sensibility of pop music - the hooks, the undeniable beat - with an undercurrent of seediness, the vague, foul odor of rock and roll. Why? Because Lou Reed was one of the finest rock songwriters of his generation. They could have called it The Velvet Underground Sells Out. But Loaded excels where all those other albums failed - it brings the hits. It isn’t the groundbreaking, Warholian debut with Nico, it isn’t the well-regarded self-titled change of pace, it isn’t even the dirty fuzz box of White Light/White Heat. Of all the Velvet Underground records, I like Loaded the most. Mendelsohn: I’m not going to lie, Klinger. ![]()
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