The Velvet Underground and Nico

Upon first hearing the throbbing sound of The Velvet Underground and Nico in high school, I loved it instantly. Still do. The individual songs are a mixed bag, but it hardly matters. I just play the best ones over and over and ignore the rest.

The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967), produced by Andy Warhol, features Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, and Maureen "Moe" Tucker as the band and Nico as chanteuse, with her singing lead vocals on three tracks and backing vocals on another. The rest is pure VU.

Track list:

Sunday Morning
I'm Waiting for the Man
Femme Fatale
Venus In Furs
Run Run Run
All Tomorrow's Parties
Heroin
There She Goes Again
I'll Be Your Mirror
The Black Angel's Death Song
European Son

Tracks two and seven are the killer Lou Reed-penned songs (he wrote or co-wrote all of them), but I'm also partial to tracks three, four, six and eight. The last two are a little two nutso for my tastes. Reed brings a literary flair to his songs, beautifully written poetry with the jagged edge of short fiction. The overall sound of the band is unmistakable -- and utterly cool.

Latest fortune cookie: Your spirit of adventure leads you down an exciting new path. Hmmm.

Today's Rune: Harvest.

Ciao! Manhattan!