Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Kitty Empire

Lou Reed: Words & Music, May 1965 review – revelatory early cuts

Lou Reed, second right, and John Cale, right, with their Primitives bandmates, c1964.
Lou Reed, second right, and John Cale, right, with their Primitives bandmates, c1964. Canal Street Communications, Inc Photograph: Canal Street Communications, Inc

This is the sound of Lou Reed and John Cale in a room, laying down demos for what would become some of the Velvet Underground’s best-known songs. Here, in splendid embryo, are I’m Waiting for the Man and Heroin, plus a dozen more original cuts; just vocals and acoustic guitar, with occasional harmonica on top. A recognisably nasal Reed introduces each song with variations on “music and lyrics, Lou Reed”.

Their Bob Dylan cover – Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right – sets the tone. Much of this compilation is heavily in thrall to the folk era, and yet Reed’s signature sound is unmistakable. Recorded on reel-to-reel, the demo served as a cheap way of proving copyright when he mailed it to himself. The envelope remained purposely unopened until it was found among Reed’s effects in a storage unit. Previously unheard on any other archival release, these versions genuinely add to his already considerable myth. Pale Blue Eyes changed a lot between 1965 and its inclusion on 1969’s The Velvet Underground LP. A song called Men of Good Fortune would end up on Reed’s Berlin album, but this is a radically different folk song. Perhaps sweetest of all is a doo-wop cut, Too Late, that finds Reed and Cale larking about.

Listen to Men of Good Fortune by Lou Reed.
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.