Tags
Alan Jenkins, crazytrain, Die Buben im Pelz, Isaac King, Jason Alarm, Joe Ladyboy, Keith Klingensmith, Lou Reed, Nick Luna, picondemulo, The California Honeydrops, The Feelies, The Velvet Underground, The Velvet Underground and Nico, TM Collective
Back in the mid-1980s Polydor started re-issuing the Velvet Underground’s back catalogue on a budget line series. I stumbled across a promo copy of the famous banana cover debut while doing time at my early morning show on the University of British Columbia’s CITR student radio in Vancouver. The cover initially grabbed my attention but it was the tunes that sent me to A&B Sound after the show to buy up the band’s first two albums. I was both intrigued and confused. Songs like “There She Goes Again” and “Sunday Morning” were totally in my melodic rock wheelhouse but others like “I’m Waiting for the Man” and “All Tomorrow’s Parties” were a bit out there for me. I was certain of one thing though. This band was cool personified. Four decades later The Velvets remain a touchstone for indie bands who continue to cover their tunes as a rite of hip passage. This post draws from a wide range one-off song covers and VU tribute albums to recreate their 1967 debut with Nico.
Things kick off with Austrian band Die Buben im Pelz’s version of “Sunday Morning,” sung in German (rendered as “Sonntag Morgn”). Their take is more muted than the original but still just as sunny and wistful. The band actually give the whole album a German twist, even replacing the iconic banana with a bratwurst sausage. New Jersey’s The Feelies cover a wide range of the Velvet’s material on their live Some Kinda Love LP, including a propulsive take on “I’m Waiting for the Man.” By contrast, the Chrysanthemums lead guitar man Alan Jenkins has put together a great collection of instrumental covers of VU songs, including a trebly take on “Femme Fatale” that leans heavily on the whammy bar. Jason Alarm takes a different approach to covering the band, keeping their lyrics but abandoning their tune on “Venus in Furs” for his own more rollicking composition. Another departure from form comes The California Honeydrops whose version of “Run Run Run” slows things down and gospels things up. Side one closes rather quietly with crazytrain and a whisper folk treatment of “All Tomorrow’s Parties” that really highlights just how pretty this tune is.
Side two should start with a cover of “Heroin.” But try as I might I couldn’t find any version that did not emulate the original a bit too closely. So instead we go back to the source – Lou himself – and a 1965 demo that Reed and Cale recorded and mailed to themselves as kind of ‘poor man’s copyright’ protection. 50 years later the unopened envelope was discovered and had to be released so here is Lou Reed pre-covering himself. Next up a Spanish language rip through “There She Goes Again” from picondemulo, complete with Bond-esque intro guitar work and fun sing-along background vocals. TM Collective are cover song superstars so when they turned their attention to the Velvet Underground I had to give every track some serious scrutiny. Here I love Keith Klingensmith’s jaunty run over “I’ll Be Your Mirror,” with its sunshine pop vocals, guitars and keyboards. For something a bit different there’s Joe Ladyboy’s synth-driven interpretation of “The Black Angel’s Death Song.” Wrapping things up on side two, another selection from the TM Collective VU covers collection, this time Isaac King doing “European Son.” But wait, there’s more. A tribute wouldn’t be complete without something a bit kooky. How about barbershop Velvets? Got it right here with Nick Luna’s “Velvet Underground Barbershop Medley.” Take that hipsters.
In our ever changing world some things remain constant. I mean, as long as young people search for authenticity in popular music there’s always going to be someone covering the Velvet Underground. See, there is hope.
Poprock Record 