The Velvet Forum

The 'Perfect Sound Forever' website has an interview with Norman Dolph by Richie Unterberger, done for the forthcoming book:

http://www.furious.com/perfect/velvetun ... dbook.html

Nice. Thanks.

Also, check out Richard Unterberger talking about the book on The WELL website. Some interesting snippets here to wet your appetite -

http://www.well.com/conf/inkwell.vue/to ... age01.html

Plus, for those of you in SF, I came across this -

Richie Unterberger:
White Light/White Heat: The Velvet Underground Day-By-Day
On Wednesday, June 17 from 7pm-9pm, Richie Unterberger will be doing an event for his book ?White Light/White Heat: The Velvet Underground Day-By-Day,? published this spring by Jawbone Press, at the Park Branch of the San Francisco Public Library at 1833 Page Street. The evening will feature rare film footage and audio clips; guest speakers who saw and shared the stage with the Velvets; and slides of all sorts of interesting images from throughout the VU?s amazing career. Signed copies of the book will be available for purchase. Admission is free.

San Francisco Public Library, Park Branch, 1833 Page Street
06/17/2009 - 7:00pm-9:00pm

Still waiting for my copy.

Jez wrote: Still waiting for my copy.

Me too!

Jez wrote:Richie Unterberger:
White Light/White Heat: The Velvet Underground Day-By-Day

I don't know if it has been mentioned here before - anyway there's interesting VU stuff (including large excerpts of the book) at http://www.richieunterberger.com/vu.html.

Just received notification from Amazon - it's been dispatched!

Jez wrote:Just received notification from Amazon - it's been dispatched!

Yay!

Wow, the Unterberger book looks like an impressive production. I had assumed that it would be another clippings job but it looks like he's done a lot of original research and dug up some great stuff. Wonder if we'll ever get to hear that 1965 Pickwick version of Heroin...

olandem wrote:

Jez wrote:Richie Unterberger:
White Light/White Heat: The Velvet Underground Day-By-Day

I don't know if it has been mentioned here before - anyway there's interesting VU stuff (including large excerpts of the book) at http://www.richieunterberger.com/vu.html.

Great link! Now I really can't wait to read this book. tks Oliver

I recommend reading these - great stuff! I particularly enjoyed the 'exploding the myths' part, even though I don't agree with everything.

Having said that, is the myth that Loaded was 'butchered', as perpetuated by Lou for many years, officially dead now? As interesting as those extra few seconds in New Age, and the 'Wine and Roses' verse in Sweet Jane, are, surely nobody can seriously argue that the long versions would have fitted better on the record than the ones that came out in 1970.

DavidH wrote:is the myth that Loaded was 'butchered', as perpetuated by Lou for many years, officially dead now?

It is, and has been for decades now, as far as I'm concerned. Lou played his last gig with the band in late August and the record was released in September. The logistics of mastering and pressing a record, printing a sleeve and setting up distribution make it very impossible to use the few weeks in-between for radical alterings of tracks. Lou must have been aware of all creative decisions and I cannot imagine him left out of the loop in that (even considering Sesnick). OK, maybe he felt he was being pressurised into making the "wrong" decisions, but he had a part in the decision-making process after all and I cannot imagine him, as de-facto leader of the band, not having had veto power. So, just a case of remorse after the fact, I think I'd call it, and then blaming other people.