need help finding good VU books and essays

[jazzblaster19]

First off, hi, I'm new here. I love the VU. Kool, so I'm working on a senior thesis for school and I decided to do it on the VU in order to keep myself interested. As you guys know, there are tons of books written about the VU and I just don't have the time to read them all and decide which are good.

I was just wondering what are the best books out there on the VU, in your opinion? I'm looking for two kinds. The first type is one which compiles articles, photographs, posters, and other primary sources. A couple of books in this vein which I have found include The Velvet Underground: New York Art, AYP: The VU in Print, and The VU Companion: 4 decades of commentary. These are great as they provide valuable research sources from the time such as pictures, articles, articles, posters, or interviews. The second type of books are those written about the band by someone else. That is, these books were researched by someone and then written.

So in short, are there any other good collections of primary sources other than the three mentioned? Also, what are the best books written about the band? I forgot to mention that books published on research or university presses would be much more preferable. Finally, any scholarly (they should be researched and have a general argument) essays or articles about the band would also be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

-jazz

[iggy]

Start here
http://www.richieunterberger.com/vu.html

[iaredatsun]

Read Richard Witts's unpopular, contentious but interesting interpretation of the origins of their sound ? 'The Velvet Underground'. It at least avoids the usual trap of being a rock band hagiography. It also places them in an historical context.

[jazzblaster19]

thanks guys. that first book looks especially insane. I'll check emmout through my schools library.

[DavidH]

I agree that the Unterberger book is now the 'gold standard' when it comes to the history of the band. There are a couple of scrabook type books which have reprints of a lot of the original articles - although much of this has been reprinted, I find it helps give a better sense of the historical context to see the physical size of the article, whether there were any photos with it, etc. I bought mine well over a decade ago, so I don't know if they're still available at all.

There have also been at least two fantastic fanzines dedicated to the Velvets over the years, which include a lot of exclusive material - 'What Goes On' published by first Phil Milstein, and later MC Kostek; and Sal Mercuri's 'Velvet Underground'. Sal particularly was one of the first people to highlight the importance of Doug Yule to the group.

There's been hardly any academic writing on VU that I know of, apart from a horrible piece about the song 'Sister Ray' which I think is now available in 'All Yesterday's Parties'. Good luck in producing something interesting!

ETA: Oh, if you don't know about Olivier's page, check out http://olivier.landemaine.free.fr/vu/index.html

[taxine]

Read Richard Witts's unpopular, contentious but interesting interpretation of the origins of their sound ? 'The Velvet Underground'. It at least avoids the usual trap of being a rock band hagiography. It also places them in an historical context.

Agree with you iaredatsun !!!

.....by the way,anyone got this book,does worth paying these prices ??

http://cgi.ebay.com/NICO-LIFE-AND-LIES- ... 2a0bf5e787

[velvetfan]

I would also like to recommend THE best online source for Velvet Underground info, the amazing and extremely thorough: Velvet Underground Web page!
http://olivier.landemaine.free.fr/vu/index.html
The only problem is you may get lost on that site for hours, days, months, or years! I hit that site almost daily to check out one fact or another. If you have a question about a bootleg, or a certain date, appearance, or home recordings even the source of a bootleg video, the VU web page is your spot. I am a bit partial, but it is the greatest web page in the world! Oh the archives on this site can provide a wealth of info too. I hit this forum daily too.

[DavidH]

.....by the way,anyone got this book,does worth paying these prices ??

http://cgi.ebay.com/NICO-LIFE-AND-LIES- ... 2a0bf5e787

I've got this book - it's very good, and quite accurate, as far as I can tell. Not a huge number of photos, but some quite rare ones. Whether it's worth the money is up to how much you want to know about Nico's life in detail. I'm very happy to have it, though.

[jazzblaster19]

Yeah, I found that amazing website already. There's so much info there. I just wish there were scans of fanzines. Anybody know where I can find some fanzines either digital or tangible and free or for sale?

I've also only found one thing on the VU done by a scholar. It's a book called Break All Rules: Punk Rock and the making of a style. The whole first chapter is about the VU and how they are the beginning of punk but it's only one chapter. I've already found so much primary source material but I wish I could find some essays or books done by actual scholars on university or research presses.

[taxine]

.....by the way,anyone got this book,does worth paying these prices ??

http://cgi.ebay.com/NICO-LIFE-AND-LIES- ... 2a0bf5e787

I've got this book - it's very good, and quite accurate, as far as I can tell. Not a huge number of photos, but some quite rare ones. Whether it's worth the money is up to how much you want to know about Nico's life in detail. I'm very happy to have it, though.

Well,I've readed out some of the reviews arround ,but is a kinda mess up ... there're the good and the evil ones... so i am looking for an Nico's life detailed info.and for a solid opinion too...Thank you so much David !!!


Wow,the one of a kind enjoyment for these Christmas eve ....Ho.ho.ho !!!