The 500 - #293 - White Light / White Heat - The Velvet Underground

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #293

Album Title: White Light/White Heat

Artist: The Velvet Underground

Genre: Noise Rock, Experimental Rock, Art Rock

Recorded: Mayfair Sound, New York City

Released: January, 1968

My age at release: 2

How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #272 (moving up 21 spots)

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist:  White Light/White Heat

I am delighted to welcome a guest blogger to write about White Light/White Heat, the second studio release by New York City rock band The Velvet Underground. It is the second time I have introduced a guest blogger whom I have never met in person, the first being two years ago when Facebook friend Karen Snell stepped in with a post about PJ Harvey’s Rid Of Me.

This time it is another social media friend whom I have yet to meet personally. Using the pseudonym, Various Artists, he hosts a website, blog and podcast under the banner My Life In Concerts. It is a multi-media diary of experiences attending concerts in the Southwestern Ontario region between 1975 and the present.

After reading a couple of his blog posts, it became apparent the author and I have much in common. We are both Londoners of about the same age, with a love of music who (independently of each other) chronicle our interests through blogging and podcasting.

This summer, we chatted about our interests in music and, generally, about our blogging pursuits. About five weeks ago, Various Artists posted a piece about seeing John Cale, formerly of The Velvet Underground, perform in London in 1983. I asked if he would consider guest blogging for the upcoming VU record and he agreed. Here it is.

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I heard Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wild Side on the radio for the first time in early January, 1973. It was life-changing.

From the song’s New York underground demimonde subject matter to its slow, cool, jazzy sound to Reed’s Sprechgesang vocals, it was unlike anything I had ever heard. It was hugely impactful to a young bored-in-the-burbs misfit who found the world and sound of this record intriguing.

It kicked off a life-long love of the music of Lou Reed. However, it wasn’t until 1974 that I found out that Reed had previously been in a 1960s group called The Velvet Underground.

Over the next few years, as I delved more deeply into rock’s history -- especially its “alternative” history—I became increasingly fascinated with everything I read about this way-ahead-of-its time, quintessential NYC band in tandem with a growing obsession with Andy Warhol’s life, art, and milieu, especially his silver ‘60s Factory period that the Velvets initially sprung from.

Warhol, second from left, with The Velvet Underground

I was learning about all this while also reading up on the nascent, contemporary downtown New York punk rock scene that was unfolding in the then-mid-70s.

I was dying to hear what the VU sounded like, which was characterized as dark, abrasive, arty, confrontational music wedded to lyrics with highly transgressive themes. In other words, it was right up my alley.

But it was almost impossible to access their records at that time and I knew no one who owed any. I had an idea in my head of what they might sound like. But I could only guess.

The Velvet Underground (1968)

When I finally got to hear the Velvets in early 1979, I was baffled. It was their largely sparse, introspective, almost folk-ish self-titled third album that became my entry into their music. It was followed quickly by Loaded, their final LP from 1970: a snappy’ n’ catchy collection of pop-rockers. While I immediately adored both albums, they weren’t anything at all like what I was expecting.

Instead, 1968’s White Light/White Heat -- their most menacing, malevolent and uncompromising release -- was the album I had been expecting to hear.

I finally got to purchase and listen to their hugely influential 1967 debut—The Velvet Underground and Nico, my favourite album of all time—upon its Canadian reissue in the spring of 1982, with WL/WH being reissued early in ’83. It seems almost everyone in my music circle was picking up and listening to these reissues while reading Jean Stein and George Plimpton’s oral history of Warhol Superstar Edie Sedgwick, Edie: An American Biography.

The song styles on the debut can be broken down into three categories: discordant experimentation with taboo lyrics (The Black Angel’s Death Song, Heroin, etc.); gentler, reflective material (Sunday Morning, I’ll Be Your Mirror, etc.); and the straight-ahead rockers (I’m Waiting for the Man, There She Goes Again, etc.)

The band then went on to make a trio of albums, with each focusing on one of those three styles.

WL/WH is the dark, paranoid, speed-freak noisefest and boundary pusher. It also takes a lot of cues from free jazz: it’s more improvisational and closer to their live performances of that time than their debut.

And no matter how much music changes, this is an album that will NEVER pass as Easy Listening. Particularly Side Two.

Multiple versions of White Light/White Heat purchased
by Various Artists throughout the years.

With Nico gone and Reed firing Warhol as their manager (although he was back again for the album’s black-on-black cover design), the Velvets hurtled headfirst into the extremes of the band’s sound and preoccupations.

Reed stated that he purposefully wanted to go "as high and as hard as we could”, while John Cale has said it was a “very rabid record” and “consciously anti-beauty." However, the resulting over-amped blur was not exactly what the group members had wanted either. While they were going for loud and aggressive, the high levels of distortion and compression were more the result of production naivete and error.

Lou Reed (left) and John Cale

Regardless, the corrosive-sounding results have influenced noiseniks, feedbackers, and avant-gardists for years, from No Wave bands through Sonic Youth and beyond.

The focus on extremes extends to the LP’s subject matter as well, which was pretty controversial for the late ‘60s. Subjects range from descriptions of euphoric, amphetamine-fuelled adrenaline (the title cut), a smacked-out orgy among drag queens and sailors (Sister Ray); a dead girlfriend (I Heard Her Call My Name); an operation gone horrifically wrong (Lady Godiva’s Operation); a macabre tale of manslaughter (The Gift), and the anticipation of a female orgasm (Here She Comes Now), the album’s only pensive moment).

1968 magazine ad promoting the record

When the band released this album in early 1968, it was so out-there that it fared even worse than its predecessor, barely scraping into the bottom of the US Top 200. This was the antithesis of the peace-and-love hippy vibes of the time (although I love the late 1960s music from both coasts).

While it sold little in its time, it has since gone on to sell half-a-million copies and win critical acclaim over the decades while laying the groundwork for punk and more discordant rock that followed.

Once unavailable, there are now box set and deluxe editions of the album. For a certain type of musician and person, WL/WH will continue to be an inspirational touchstone.

There is a famous quote from Brian Eno: "The first Velvet Underground album only sold 10,000 copies, but everyone who bought it formed a band." Actually, the first album sold a bit more than that, but his point is taken.

Lou Reed and John Cale both moved on to successful, idiosyncratic careers, with Reed dying in 2013. Meanwhile, Cale also went on to produce a number of classic LPs from Patti Smith, The Stooges, and others, and is about to turn 80. He’s soon releasing a new album and going on a celebratory tour. Congrats, John!

Highly Recommended Viewing: Todd Haynes superb 2021 documentary, The Velvet Underground.

The 500 - #294 - Kick Out The Jams - MC5

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #294

Album Title: Kick Out The Jams

Artist: MC5

Genre: Proto-Punk, Garage Rock, Hard Rock

Recorded: Grande Ballroom, Detroit, Michigan

Released: February, 1969

My age at release: 5

How familiar was I with it before this week: One Song

Is it on the 2020 list? Yes, at #349 (falling back 55 places)

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist:  Motor City Is Burning

Kick Out The Jams is the debut record by the Detroit rock and roll band MC5. It is the second album by the band to appear on The 500. I wrote about their second album, Back In The USA, in February, 2020, which, because of the covid pandemic, feels like a decade ago.

MC5, an abbreviation of Motor City Five, were formed in 1963 by singer Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis and drummer Dennis "Machine Gun" Thompson. They are considered one of the most important bands in rock and roll history.

MC5 in 1969

MC5 are known for their "garage rock" sound, best described as loud, ragged and high energy. They have a back-to-basics approach to music that sometimes borders on amateurish. They have also been called proto-punk, a term coined to recognize the groups that foreshadowed the rise of punk rock in the mid-seventies. When one listens to MC5, the influence of their sound is undeniable. So many bands from several genres have identified that the MC5 sound was influential in their development. Punk rock's Ramones and Sex Pistols, hard rock's Motorhead and even the 90s grunge sounds of Nirvana and Soundgarden were all influenced by this Detroit quintet.

Kick Out The Jams was recorded over two nights in October, 1968, at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit. Sounding like a revival tent preacher, the album opens with singer Tyner shouting:

"Brothers and sisters! I want to see a sea of hands out there. I wanna hear some revolution out there, brothers. The time has come for each and every one of you to decide whether you are going to be the problem or whether you're gonna be the solution! You must choose! Are you ready to testify? I give you a testimonial, the MC5"

The band then launches into a raucous version of Ramblin' Rose, a high-energy song originally recorded by Jerry Lee Lewis in 1962. The performance is raw and scruffy; but, it is also confident, brash and unapologetic. The MC5 sound like so many high school basement band I saw in the eighties. When they play, it makes me believe that with a little skill, some tight pants and a lot of swagger, I could be a rock star too.

Detroit's Grande Ballroom in the 1950s

The second track is Kick Out The Jams from which the album gets its name. The song begins with the now famous shout, "Kick out the jams motherf____ers" from Tyner. Consequently, many record stores refused to stock the album and the record company, Elektra, released a censored version. Eventually, the controversy proved too much for Elektra and they dropped MC5. Atlantic Records signed them and stuck with the quintet for their only two studio records, the aforementioned Back In The USA and 1971's High Time.

"Kick Out The Jams" was popular expression in the late sixties. It was sometimes used as a rallying cry to overcome obstacles and defeat oppression. It was also used to refer to a rock band delivering a high energy performance. In a 2018 interview, guitarist Wayne Kramer explained the decision to make the phrase into a song. 

"We were using the expression for a long time, because we would be critical of other bands that came to Detroit that the MC5 would open for. They'd come into town with this big reputation, and then they'd get up on stage and they weren't very good. So, we used to harass them. We'd yell at them, 'Kick out the jams or get off the stage, motherf--ker!' Finally, one day we said, 'I like that expression. We should use that as the title of a song.' "

The only surviving members of the band are Thompson and Kramer, the latter still touring. Recently, Kramer announced that a new album called Heavy Lifting will be released this year. So, nearly 60 years after forming, the MC5 continue to Kick Out The Jams.

The 500 - #295 - Songs Of Love And Hate - Leonard Cohen

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #295

Album Title: Songs Of Love And Hate

Artist: Leonard Cohen

Genre: Contemporary Folk

Recorded: Columbia Studios, Nashville

Released: March, 1971

My age at release: 5

How familiar was I with it before this week: Somewhat

Is it on the 2020 list? No, but a different Leonard Cohen album is at #195

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist:  Famous Blue Raincoat

In the mid-1980s, the music of Leonard Cohen enjoyed a revival, spurred in part by the release of the record Famous Blue Raincoat: The Songs Of Leonard Cohen by singer Jennifer Warnes.

Cover for Famous Blue Raincoat: The Songs of Leonard Cohen
by Jennifer Warnes.

At the time, Warnes was best known for her Oscar-winning duet with Joe Cocker, Up Where We Belong, from the film An Officer And A Gentleman. Warnes had also collaborated with Cohen throughout the seventies as one of his back-up singers. Additionally, she was credited as a co-vocalist on his seventh album, Various Positions, in 1984.

Album cover for Various Positions (1984)

It was their relationship that inspired her to pay tribute to Cohen and his music in 1986, with the single, First We Take Manhattan. Written by Cohen, the record became Warnes' own debut version of the dark, apocalyptic lyrics, powerfully complemented by the blistering electric guitar accompaniment from legendary blues-axeman Stevie Ray Vaughn.  It was a hit in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. An accompanying video was regularly featured on music television

Cover for the single First We Take Manhattan by Jennifer Warnes

It's hard to imagine now but, in the mid-eighties, many restaurants used music television (MTV or MuchMusic in Canada) as background music/entertainment. MuchMusic was, for some households, a specialty channel outside their budget. Consequently, local roadhouse restaurants, sports bars and pizza joints would buy "large screen" televisions and broadcast music videos whenever a hockey, baseball or football game wasn't broadcasting. I worked as a bartender and server at one such establishment at the time when First We Take Manhattan played at least five times a shift on the front-projection "big screen" tucked in a corner.

Warnes and guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughn while 
filming the video for First We Take Manhattan

The success of Warnes' single introduced  Cohen’s music to a new audience -- including me and my girlfriend, now wife, who fell in love with the works of the Quebec-born poet, singer, songwriter, musician and novelist.

Leonard Norman Cohen in 1988

Born to an Orthodox Jewish family in September, 1934, he grew up in the Westmount municipality on the Island of Montreal. He attended McGill University where he was president of the debating club and won the Chester MacNaghten Literary competition for his poems Sparrows and Thoughts Of A Landsman.  During this time, his first book of poetry, Let Us Compare Mythologies, was published.

After obtaining his undergraduate degree, he attended Columbia but found graduate studies unfulfilling, describing them as "passion without flesh, love without climax".

Cohen in the 1950s

He returned to Montreal, doing part-time jobs. These, and a trust fund from his father, allowed him to pursue writing full time. His second book of poetry, The Spice Box of Earth, was published in 1961 and Cohen began to gain critical, but not commercial, acclaim.

Over several years, living as a recluse in a small home he purchased on the Greek island of Hydra, Cohen published three more books of poetry and two novels. The first novel, The Favourite Game, was a semi-autobiographical bildungsroman (coming of age story) about a young Jewish man finding his identity through writing. The second, Beautiful Losers, created controversy because of its graphic sexual content.

In 1967, Cohen was back in New York , trying his hand at folk-singing and songwriting. He connected with the vibrant Manhattan art and music community, including Andy Warhol and the creative collective that frequented his now-famous residence, The Factory, in the Flatiron District of New York City. Later that year, Cohen released his first record, The Songs Of Leonard Cohen.

Album cover for Cohen's debut record

The combination of his powerful poetry, distinctive finger-picking guitar style and a cast of talented back-up musicians was the formula he had been looking for to find commercial success. It became the recipe for 14 more records over the following six decades, including this week's album, Songs Of Love And Hate, released in 1971.

Considered to be one of his darkest records, it led many listeners (including some of my friends) to pigeonhole Cohen as "a downer" and his music as "morbid and depressing". It's a fair assessment, I suppose. However, for those brave enough to dig deeper into the lyrics and the plaintive, soulful music that accompanies them, there is such honest, raw beauty to discover. In particular, the songs Avalanche, Love Calls You By Your Name and Famous Blue Raincoat  are standouts, with phrases and verses that still occupy a romantic and poetic part of my heart.

Shortly after the release of Warnes' tribute record in 1986, Cohen returned to the studio for his eighth record, I'm Your Man. My wife purchased the cassette and it accompanied us on many late night drives and road trips. Our fandom grew, and we continued to follow Cohen's career. We also dived into his back catalogue. Our affinity for him and his music solidified following the 1995 release of another tribute record, Tower Of Song, featuring performances by many of our favourite musicians, including Peter Gabriel, Sting, Billy Joel, Elton John and Willie Nelson.

In 2008, Cohen came out of semi-retirement to tour again. I attended the concert with my wife, her brother and my mother -- who had been a fan of his poetry since the early seventies. The tickets were expensive, but worth every penny. The performance was magnificent. A nearly identical performance was recorded two months earlier in London, England, and is available as a 25-song album entitled Live In London. Along with the memory of that show with people I love dearly, it occupies a special place in my heart.

My ticket stub from the Leonard Cohen concert.

Post-Script

Tom Robbins (Even Cowgirls Get The Blues, Skinny Legs And All) pens a brief tribute to Cohen on the inner sleeve of the Tower Of Song record.

It is one I have read many times and is a wonderful celebration of both Cohen's gravelly, baritone voice and the unique charm and charisma he radiated. It helped me understand the reason that so many women have told me that Cohen is irresistibly sexy.

Tom Robbins quote reads as follows:

"It is a penitent's voice, a rabbinical voice, a crust of unleavened vocal toasts -- spread with smoke and subversive wit. He has a voice like a carpet in an old hotel, like a bad itch on the hunchback of love. It is a voice meant for pronouncing the names of women -- and cataloging their sometimes hazardous charms. Nobody can say the word "naked" as nakedly as Cohen. He makes us see the markings where the pantyhose have been."

Cohen mural on a building in Montreal

 

The 500 - #296 - Meat Is Murder - The Smiths

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by Los Angeles-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. 

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Album: #296

Album Title: Meat Is Murder

Artist: The Smiths

Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Post-Punk

Recorded: Amazon and Ridge Farm Studios, Liverpool and Surrey, UK

Released: February, 1985

My age at release: 19

How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all

Is it on the 2020 list? No

Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist:  The Headmaster Ritual

It was a cold and blustery day one February when I walked into a record shop in downtown London with a specific agenda: to purchase No Jacket Required by Phil Collins. The album, the third solo release by the British musician, would become his biggest, with four singles receiving massive airplay on radio and music television. At the time, back in 1985, I had no idea Phil's record was going to become a commercial juggernaut. He was a member of Genesis, one of my favourite bands, and I was excited to hear his newest material and continue building my collection of albums and solo projects by members of this talented group.

As I entered the shop, I paused by the rack displaying the newest releases. It was there that I first saw the album cover for Meat Is Murder, the second studio release by the Manchester quartet who have four records on The 500. In June, 2019 I wrote a critical account of the group’s debut release. Offsetting my caustic comments, my pal Steve Monaghan praised their compilation record, Louder Than Bombs, in a 2021 guest blog appearance.

Louder Than Bombs (left) and The Smiths' debut recor (right)

As I shook off the cold (and likely stomped slush from my boots), I was struck by the album cover, which featured four identical black and white pictures of a Vietnam-era soldier with the words "Meat Is Murder" (the album's title) crudely printed on his combat helmet.

I've since learned that the picture is of marine corporal Michael Wynn and the text on his helmet was digitally altered for The Smiths’ album cover. The original photograph was from Emile de Antoino's 1968 documentary In The Year Of The Pig. Previously, Wynn's helmet read "Make War Not Love".

The original picture and slogan, with
jacket text added for the film documentary.

In contemporary North America, becoming vegetarian for ethical reasons is a fairly common phenomenon. However, in 1985, those who eschewed animal-based protein in their diets were a quiet minority and people who espoused animal rights were a subset. Consequently, the title, Meat Is Murder, grabbed my attention. I can remember the thoughts that ran through my head when I first read that provocative statement:

"Meat is Murder?"

"Wow! That's quite a title!"

"Meat is Murder?"

"Well, I guess it is, if you think about it."

"But, we have to eat meat to survive?"
"I suppose we could be vegetarians?"

"But, we need protein...we have canine teeth after all."

"hmm...anyway"

"Where's that Phil Collins record I was looking for?"

Despite that moment of arrested attention upon seeing the album cover, I did not become a vegetarian or a Smiths fan that afternoon. I gathered  my Phil Collins record and went on with my day.

The Smiths in 1985(l-r) Andy Rourke, (Steven) Morrissey,
Johnny Marr & Mike Joyce

Now, 37 years later, I am starting to come around to the notion of going meatless. My wife and I have reduced our meat consumption for ethical and environmental reasons. We stopped buying pork a few years ago and we are fortunate to be able to afford to purchase much of our meat from ethical sources – farms with chickens or cows raised on quality food, with room to move and socialize. At least the animals have good lives before a sudden, very bad (and relatively pain free) moment.

At home on the range

I am also coming around to The Smiths’ music. Meat Is Murder is my favourite of the three records by the band that I have heard. I particularly liked the opening track, too. The Headmaster Ritual is a scathing critique of the Manchester school system in the 1970s and its reliance on corporal punishment as discipline.

Packaging for a single release of The Headmaster Ritual

The caustic lyrics are disquieting, depicting educators of the time as callous, violent and cruel. The lyrics further suggest some of the teachers were jealous of the youth under their charge, with a subtext suggesting sexual overtones.

I am an educator who has never raised his hand (and rarely his voice) to reprimand a student. However, I was a child of the 70s and attended both the Canadian (Ontario) and the Greater Manchester school systems. I can remember friends who returned from “the office” red-faced and tear-streaked after receiving the strap. There was also one particularly unpleasant principal who used to poke me hard in the chest when he wanted an explanations for some minor indiscretion in which I had been involved.

British schoolboy receiving "the strap"

Those incidents aside, it is the 45-second instrumental jam that opens The Headmaster Ritual that really seized my attention. It is a dynamic and engaging introduction to the record. Guitarist Johnny Marr revealed in interviews that the song was three years in the making. He had his guitar tuned to open E, which means the E chord will sound if the strings are strummed without any fingers on the fretboard.

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Marr also disclosed he was inspired by George Harrison's playing on The Beatles' song Daytripper, and that it is supposed to sound like something folk artist Joni Mitchell might have played "if she was a fan of (hard rock band) MC5".

Marr in a YouTube instructional video on how to play 
The Headmaster Ritual.

I'll now admit, much to my friend and guest blogger Steve's delight, that I'm becoming a fan of The Smiths. We even had a humourous exchange about it through text messages this week.

A chunk of our text exchange. I have also
rethought my "so so lyrics" comment.

Of all the members of the band, I think I am more a Johnny Marr fan. His live version of The Headmaster Ritual on YouTube is superb. Sample here. This summer he performed in Toronto in support of The Killers, a contemporary band who cite The Smiths as an influence. My pocketbook compelled me to reconsider attending. Post-pandemic hotel prices are outrageous and the 200 km drive, fighting traffic, to get back to London is a depressing prospect at the end of a good night of entertainment.