Velvets' Albums Ranked...

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by workinsteamin, Jun 26, 2016.

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  1. Dave Thompson

    Dave Thompson Forum Resident

    Right now, my #1 would be either that or the Quine box... followed by the Sceptre acetate, the guitar amp tape and the third album closet mix. But maybe I've played all the others way too many times.
     
  2. 926am

    926am Senior Member

    Location:
    rochester, ny
    VU and Nico 10
    WL/WH 9.5
    VU 8.5
    Loaded 8.0
     
  3. rnranimal

    rnranimal Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    I don't believe the patches are any different on the 45th than on Peel/Fully Loaded. On the hi-res download, the whole track, not just the patches, are sourced from 44.1khz digital (most likely 44/16). This indicates they were surely the very same digital creations done in the 90s. If these were new edits, at least the bulk of the song would've been real hi-res. "Sweet Jane" and "Rock and Roll" are like this. "New Age" extended is real hi-res as that version is vintage. HDtracks and Pono were both informed of the two up sampled tracks, but neither changed their description to indicate that these two tracks are upsamples. So they are either are knowingly selling up sampled tracks without saying (well, Pono isn't selling anything now) or they were later given real hi-res versions of the songs. Even if the latter, the ones on the CD box will be the first versions sourced from the old edits. I would be interested to know if the current HDtracks offering still has the up sampled tracks.

    I have gone back and forth on WL/WH. I have a 1st press LP, 80s CD, 90s CD, MFSL, 45th. None of the digital ones sound like the LP, but that's ok because the LP doesn't sound so good. At one point I liked the Peel/96 over the MFSL and then when the 45th came out, I liked that. Most of my preferred versions of other albums haven't changed with different equipment, but maybe that has affected WL/WH for some reason. I do like the MFSL a good bit more than the rest now and it does sound different, but I can't say it is better. It's just what I like now, so I'd have a hard time suggesting someone pay $50, especially without hearing it. If you happen to already have the Peel/'96, I'd just say to stick with that one unless you want the bonus stuff on the 45th.

    You're welcome.
     
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  4. mr.datsun

    mr.datsun Incompletist

    Location:
    London
    I don;t know about patches, but for me, the remastering on the 45th version of Loaded is superior in every way to the other versions. Better than my Atlantic vinyl LP. Somehow the new revealing remaster (the guitars) makes it feel a more like the VU than before. I'm not the hugest fan of Loaded, but this version made it a lot more interesting to listen to for me. I even took a bit more notice of Sweet Nothin' . I have two CD versions - one with the orig. LP tracks and one with the Sweet Jane bridge. I might even prefer it to '3rd' these days. But I have no time for the remix :)

    Has anyone checked the Rhino 2015 LP? Is that the 45th anniversary remaster on vinyl?

    The MFSL has always been the version for me. But the 45th is the one I now play most often switching between the mono and the stereo versions. Someone pointed out that there is less distortion on the mono - like the title track. Certainly the mono CD is more quietly mastered for some reason. There is also a Russian 'fake' version of the MFSL that can be had a cost-effective price - they have made it look like a Japanese copy with obi.
     
  5. boyfromnowhere

    boyfromnowhere Senior Member

    Location:
    missouri, usa
    That's pretty much exactly how I feel.
     
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  6. bcaulf

    bcaulf Forum Resident

    I rank them best to worst in order of release but they're all great.
     
    Fullbug likes this.
  7. yesteryear

    yesteryear Wild Honey Laureate

    Location:
    Dallas, Texas
    Didn't want to start a new thread just to mention this.. but does anyone else have the Vinyl Lovers release of White Light/White Heat? It contains bonus tracks "Stephanie Says", "Temptation Inside Your Heart", and "Hey Mr. Rain", but interspersed between the other tracks. I love it because, for me WL/WH was always lacking something that the other albums had.. and adding these extra tracks does it for me.
     
  8. mr.datsun

    mr.datsun Incompletist

    Location:
    London
    I already had the album and the extra tracks. When I saw that (the Vinyl Lovers version) in the racks one day, I wondered how they fitted the extra tracks on to an already full album without compromising sound quality.

    Personally, I dont think WLWH lacks anything. It is it's own pure statement. But it's nice to have a CD with the extra tracks at the end.
     
    Last edited: Nov 17, 2016
  9. JohnnyQuest

    JohnnyQuest Forum Resident

    Location:
    Paradise
    1. The Velvet Underground & Nico
    2. The Grey Album
    3. Loaded
    4. White Light/White Heat
     
  10. Drew Munson

    Drew Munson Well-Known Member

    Location:
    bozeman
    "another view" doesn't get a mention until post 59, way after squeeze, which doesn't even have any original VU band members in it.... john cale's paris 1919 is more of a VU album and I don't know why you wouldn't count transformer, new york, or berlin b4 squeeze.

    perhaps the craziest thing though, is that after "another view" was mentioned for the 2nd time, it was immediately mentioned again and both posters ranked it above VU&N. I suppose the 2nd guy was just emphasizing the ridiculousness as some kind of joke b/c these ppl don't just exist like that. I once heard someone say that bowie has 6 albums better than ziggy and one of them was let's dance. until today that was the most puzzling opinion I've ever heard.

    VU&N is easily #1 - objectively, I'll add, b/c I'm a douche like that. but you know it's a fact :p

    throw in VU, another view, lou reed's solo stuff, nico's solo stuff, john cale's solo stuff, and try to rank them like that if you've got what it takes! I know I haven't listened to it all.
     
  11. Drew Munson

    Drew Munson Well-Known Member

    Location:
    bozeman
    sounds like blasphemy to me, that is NOT what noise rock needs.... on a related note I once saw a picture disc vinyl version of VU&N with a bonus track at the end. and even though it was on the end, after the album's already over, I found even that to be blasphemous and didn't buy it. I've never considered that maybe the nazi procedure of mass-burning certain media was ever warranted until I read your post.
     
    yesteryear likes this.
  12. mrzpliff

    mrzpliff Forum Resident

    Location:
    sweden
    1. The Velvet Undergound and Nico
    2. Loaded
    3. The Velvet Underground
    4. White Light/White Heat
     
  13. In this order:
    1.The Velvet Underground
    2.The Velvet Underground & Nico
    3.Loaded
    4.White Light/White Heat
     
  14. yesteryear

    yesteryear Wild Honey Laureate

    Location:
    Dallas, Texas
    Hahaha I figured I'd get a response like this. I hear ya, man. I agree to a certain extent that you should listen to an album the way the artist intended it, and I own the original record too, but if I'm in more of a "songs kinda mood" I usually reach for that one because I enjoy it more than the comp I have of theirs. The last part about the mass-burning gave me a good laugh. Thanks for that.
     
  15. Chrome_Head

    Chrome_Head Planetary Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA.
    There was a time I would've said The Velvet Underground and Nico hands down, but the self-titled album is just such a sublime piece of work, with some of the best songs Reed ever penned. I seem to appreciate it more and more over time.

    They're all great, hard to rank!

    I would rank them like this:

    1 - The Velvet Underground
    2 - VU & Nico
    3 - White Light / White Heat
    4 - Loaded
     
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  16. Baba Oh Really

    Baba Oh Really Certified "Forum Favorite"

    Location:
    mid west, USA
    "Squeeze" comes in at a very close #5.
     
  17. Baba Oh Really

    Baba Oh Really Certified "Forum Favorite"

    Location:
    mid west, USA
    OP: You forgot "Squeeze", bud.
     
  18. bunglejerry

    bunglejerry Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto, ON
    I'd call Nico and Third an unbreakable two-way tie, followed by Loaded, then WL/WH.
     
    DTK likes this.
  19. workinsteamin

    workinsteamin Well-Known Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Interesting to look at the most played Velvets songs on Spotify...

    Sunday Morning 19.5 million
    Pale Blue Eyes 16 million plays
    Oh Sweet Nuthin' 6.5 million
    Rock And Roll 7.1 million
    Sweet Jane 6 million

    Surprising to me that R&R and SJ are so far down the list and that OSN is so high.

    SM and PBE must be on one or another of the service's more popular curated playlists. One can easily imagine upwardly mobile 30 somethings, cup o' Joe and New York Times in hand relaxing to "Weekend Morning Music" or whatever it must be called.
     
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  20. alexpop

    alexpop Power pop + other bad habits....

    Party album :
    Loaded
    Always in the kitchen at party's album:
    3rd
    Sunday evening diner (small group of friends ) party album.
    VU& Nico
    Black leather thong party album
    WL/WH
     
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  21. alexpop

    alexpop Power pop + other bad habits....

    Their most classy ...
    &Nico
    Most classic....
    3Rd
    Best production ....
    Loaded
    Off your head in a club ...
    WL/WH
     
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  22. anth67

    anth67 Purveyor of Hogwash

    Location:
    PNW USA
    Today, at this moment, that's my order, too.

    The Velvet Underground
    Velvet Underground & Nico
    White Light/White Heat
    Loaded
     
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  23. DTK

    DTK Forum Resident

    Location:
    Europe
    There was something magical about the chemistry of the band. There's just an infectitious joy of making music that makes you want to pick up a guitar.
    I am a big fan of Lou's and Cale's solo careers, but neither ever recaptured that sound and feel again. Actually, Moe Tucker's solo albums are those that sound like Velvets the most. Guess the drummer mattered.
     
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  24. mr.datsun

    mr.datsun Incompletist

    Location:
    London
    Although I usually rate Loaded below 3rd, I have found myself playing it more often these days due to the 45th remaster. It seemed to bring the guitars out. Even Oh Sweet Nuthin'. I can enjoy that too. Perhaps 3rd one has slipped a bit.

    Yes. I have to agree. The VU were a band and working with (even seasoned) session musicians can almost never capture that magic.

    John Cale's solo New York in The Sixties box though is superb and I play it often. I feel parallels with the sound of the early VU in there.
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2017
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  25. jpmosu

    jpmosu a.k.a. Mr. Jones

    Location:
    Ohio, USA
    1. The Debut
    2. Loaded
    3. The Velvet Underground
    4. White Heat

    #1 and #2 are easy picks. The other two are a toss-up (and so different musically!).
     
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