Project 1001: White Light/White Heat by The Velvet Underground
First impression after first two songs: I hate this.
After track 3: getting better, but still doesn’t grab me.
I’ve listened to this whole thing…and I can’t stand it. For me, the vocals are like nails on a chalkboard. It’s a terrible listening experience other than a couple of nice moments. “Lady Godiva’s Operation” is an ok song. I kinda liked it and by comparison to the rest of the record it is a standout. The closing song is the meandering and extended (seventeen-and-a-half minutes!) “Sister Ray”, which is considered a classic by those who revere this album that has been called co-founder John Cale’s “greatest masterpiece”.1 I found the first half of the song to be a continuation of the dissonance of the rest of the album. But it builds to a pretty good crescendo with some interesting, fuzzy guitar soloing leading to a frenzied climax featuring some manic keyboards and lightning-quick rhythm section (although there was no bass on this song apparently).
My favorite part of this album: it’s over.
This is one of those times when my sensibilities divert completely from the consensus.
Billboard in a contemporary review predicted White Light/White Heat would be a “hot seller” and featured “intriguing lyrics”.2
Maybe, but for me the record is a mess. Maybe this is a manifestation of the dissention within the band at the time. They had a new manager who was distrusted and thought of as “a snake” by some members. And Lou Reed was already planning his exit to a solo career, “regarding a band as a necessary but supportive evil.”3 He even went so far as to secretly remix one song to make his voice more prominent at the expense of the rest of the band. “There was a lot of intrigue, a lot of duplicity, and a lot of talking behind people’s backs, a lot of plotting.”4
Despite Billboard’s enthusiasm for White Light/White Heat, the record was received poorly. Most radio stations refused to play it because of the lyrical content. Rolling Stone refused to review it. And the flood of new artists in the pop market provided stiff competition crowding out alternative music like VU.5
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Manish Agarwal wrote:
“…in terms of over-amped attitude and raw exhilaration, there is nothing quite like it.”6
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
Prime Playlist: 186. White Light / White Heat by The Velvet Underground
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For details about this project, read this: Project 1001 Albums
Charts
• Peak on Billboard 200 album chart:
• Singles on Billboard Hot 100 chart:
• RIAA certification:
Released on January 30, 1968. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: “Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)” by John Fred & His Playboy Band7
• Number one album: Magical Myster Tour (Soundtrack) by The Beatles8
• Number one movie: Valley of the Dolls by Mark Robson9
• Most watched TV programs: The Andy Griffith Show, The Lucy Show, Gomer Pyle USMC, Gunsmoke, Family Affair, Bonanza, The Red Skelton Hour, Dean Martin Show, The Jackie Gleason Show, Bewitched10
• NYT bestseller, fiction: The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron11
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: “Our Crowd”: The Great Jewish Families of New York by Stephen Birmingham12
Some other albums released that month
• Sing Me Back Home by Merle Haggard
• The Notorious Byrd Brothers by The Byrds
• From Sea to Shining Sea by Johnny Cash
• Nefertiti by Miles Davis
• Boogie with Canned Heat by Canned Heat
• The Graduate by Simon & Garfunkel (incidental music by Dave Grusin)
• Gris-Gris by Dr. John
• Heavy by Iron Butterfly
• Lady Soul by Aretha Franklin
• Spirit by Spirit
• Steppenwolf by Steppenwolf
• Did She Mention My Name? by Gordon Lightfoot
• Horizontal by The Bee Gees
• Everybody Knows by The Dave Clark Five
• Om by John Coltrane
• Something Else Again by Richie Havens13
Sport
• Jan 28 Goose Goslin & Kiki Cuyler elected to Baseball Hall of Fame.
• Jan 29 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Australian Bill Bowrey wins his first and only Grand Slam title; beats Juan Gisbert Sr. of Spain 7-5, 2-6, 9-7, 6-4.
• Jan 29 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: American Billie Jean King beats home favorite Margaret Court 6-1, 6-2 for her 13th Grand Slam singles title.
Notable Births
• Jan 28 Sarah McLachlan, Canadian Juno and Grammy Award-winning folk singer-songwriter (Fumbling Towards Ecstasy; "I Will Remember You"), born in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
• Jan 29 Edward Burns, American actor, director, writer (Brothers McMullen, Saving Private Ryan), born in Queens, New York.
• Jan 31 Doug Pederson, American NFL coach (Super Bowl 2017, Philadelphia Eagles), born in Bellingham, Washington.14
Historical Events
• Jan 21 The Battle of Khe Sanh - one of the most publicized and controversial battles of the Vietnam War - begins at the Khe Sanh Air Base.
• Jan 21 US B-52 bomber with nuclear bomb on board crashes in Greenland.
• Jan 30 Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese launch the Tet offensive against South Vietnamese and US forces.15
Notable Deaths
• Jan 3 Earl Swope, American jazz and big band trombonist (Woody Herman, Stan Getz, Jimmy Dorsey, Louie Bellson), dies at 45.
• Jan 22 Duke Kahanamoku, American swimmer, surfer (Olympic gold 100m freestyle 1912, 20; 4x200m freestyle relay 1920), dies of a heart attack at 77.
• Jan 26 Merrill C. Meigs, American newspaper publisher (b. 1883).16
Bockris, p. 151.
Agarwal, Manish, 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Fifth printing, ed. by Robert Dimmery p. 127.
Ibid.