The Velvet Forum

"I mean, even WE'VE been influenced by the Velvet Underground... I'll tell you exactly what we pinched from (Lou Reed) too. You know Stray Cat Blues? The whole sound and the way it's paced, we pinched from the very first Velvet Underground album. You know, the sound on Heroin. Honest to God, we did!"

- Mick Jagger, 1977

Had to post this - dont know the original (1977) source.....

Searchin´on Google I have seen this mentioned a few times, so must be true. Amazon France credits also this on the Beaggers Banquet album review.

I found this web, were the Velvets are placed 1st on a "Top Artist Overall"

http://www.last.fm/user/jondubois/

Bill Wyman talks about the Velvets and their influence on the Stones in 1968 in his brilliant opus Rolling With The Stones.