The Velvet Forum

As a follow-up to the "vu bass" thread, I've decided to start "who plays what" threads with my informed guesses on who plays what on The Velvet Underground albums. "Informed" as in "I've read somewhere/I can deduct/I think I recognise...". Everyone's welcome and expressly invited to exchange views and opinions, the end goal being to put together a web page with the consensus on who plays what, as suggested by Kill Mick.

Update: finally got around to adding Pig Related, Doctor Bob and Elvis Plebsley's insight about I'M STICKING WITH YOU; clarified the rhythm guitars in I CAN'T STAND IT; added piano for SHE'S MY BEST FRIEND.

Part Five, VU:

I CAN'T STAND IT
Reed - vocals, rhythm guitar (left), lead guitars (left, right and center)
Morrison - part/rhythm guitar (right)
Yule - bass guitar, backing vocal
Tucker - percussion


STEPHANIE SAYS
Reed - vocal, rhythm guitar
Cale - viola, celesta, bass guitar, backing vocal
Morrison - lead guitar, backing vocal
Tucker - percussion


SHE'S MY BEST FRIEND
Yule - vocal, bass guitar, backing vocal(, piano?)
Reed - lead guitar, backing vocal(, piano?)
Morrison - rhythm guitar
Tucker - percussion


LISA SAYS
Reed - vocal, rhythm guitar
Morrison - lead guitar
Yule - piano, bass guitar, backing vocal
Tucker - percussion


OCEAN
Reed - vocal, rhythm guitar, backing vocal
Morrison - lead guitar
Yule - organ, bass guitar, backing vocal
Tucker - percussion


FOGGY NOTION
Reed - voice, rhythm guitar
Morrison - lead guitar
Yule - bass guitar, backing vocals
Tucker - percussion


TEMPTATION INSIDE YOUR HEART
Reed - vocal, rhythm and solo guitar, running commentary
Morrison - part guitar, backing vocal, running commentary
Cale - bass guitar, backing vocal, end commentary
Tucker - percussion (two types)


ONE OF THESE DAYS
Reed - vocal, rhythm guitar
Yule - bottleneck guitar, bass guitar, backing vocal
Morrison - part guitar
Tucker - percussion


ANDY'S CHEST
Reed - voice, rhythm guitar
Morrison - lead guitar
Yule - bass guitar, backing vocal
Tucker - percussion


I'M STICKING WITH YOU
Tucker - vocal, percussion
Reed - co-vocal, rhythm guitar
Yule - keyboards, bass guitar, backing vocal
Morrison - lead guitar, co-vocal

Doesn't Sterling sing the stratosphere verse in I'm Sticking With You? I always assumed this, because it doesn't sound like Lou to me.

Pig Related wrote:Doesn't Sterling sing the stratosphere verse in I'm Sticking With You? I always assumed this, because it doesn't sound like Lou to me.

I've always thought so too. And on the 1993 tour Morrison sings that line as well which would suggest that the original line was his.

Yep, I agree that line is Sterl.

(seven years later)

There's a piano on She's My Best Friend isn't there? Presumably Lou?

My money's on Sterling for e rhythms guitar on I Can't Stand It.

peppergomez wrote:My money's on Sterling for e rhythms guitar on I Can't Stand It.

Sure, but the right-channel one. His part starts with the bottom-string twang riff (often confused for a bass guitar by music reviewers ), then moves to plain rhythm guitar in the chorus. The left-channel one is Lou (who later overdubbed lead guitars).

BTW, anyone notice how Lou's guitar sounds are so very similar to "What Goes On", from the choppy rhythm guitar to the multiple "bagpipe" leads? (The solo starts out as one guitar part panned centre, but at its end, just before Lou steps back up to the mic, another one enters in the right channel, which will also do the outro lead.)

Mark wrote:There's a piano on She's My Best Friend isn't there? Presumably Lou?

Indeed there is! Hardly audible but I can hear it best during the "see-hee me"/"be-hee me" chorus bits. Sounds a bit too frolicky to be Lou I'd say - but I'm easily swayed

arjan wrote:BTW, anyone notice how Lou's guitar sounds are so very similar to "What Goes On", from the choppy rhythm guitar to the multiple "bagpipe" leads? (The solo starts out as one guitar part panned centre, but at its end, just before Lou steps back up to the mic, another one enters in the right channel, which will also do the outro lead.)

And of course, there's a third Lou lead in the left channel for the outro, best heard just at the end. Which makes "I Can't Stand It" even more similar to "What Goes On" with their multiple leads, apart from the fact that the leads here have been panned left, centre and right instead of merged as on "WGO".

Question for those who have the "22 demos" rough mix (as I don't) -- are the leads fused together there, or panned as on the VU remix?

"I Can't Stand It" wasn't on the 22 demos tape....or at least not on any copy I ever got.

arjan wrote:

arjan wrote:
Question for those who have the "22 demos" rough mix (as I don't) -- are the leads fused together there, or panned as on the VU remix?