![]() That it didn’t work had as much to do with the time when the album was released (time never favored the Velvet Underground, and not even “Sweet Jane” and “Rock & Roll” scored) as the fact that even at his most commercial-minded Lou Reed could not repress his imp of the perverse. Sure, Lou had worked this territory before, especially on 1969’s The Velvet Underground, but Loaded marked his first concerted Eric Carmen-like attempt to make a big hit record, one that everybody’s got to know etc. Gone were the experimental tracks, the in-your-face primitivism and lengthy forays into S&M, hard drugs, depravity, and feedback what’s on offer on Loaded are straight ahead rock and pop songs. That said, what really distinguishes Loaded from its predecessors was the fact that it constituted a determined effort to produce hit songs the album title is short for “loaded with hits,” and not, as I long assumed, a blunt statement on Lou’s (then very elevated) drug toxicity levels. Still, I will argue until the end of my day’s that Yule’s oversized presence gives Loaded a unique feel. Hell, for a long time I thought that was Lou singing on “Who Loves the Sun”–he didn’t quite sound himself, it’s true, but I wrote it off to an oddly adulterated batch of methamphetamine. It can be argued, of course, that the only real “listenable” difference lies in Yule’s newfound prominence as a singer, and that even this is no big deal seeing as how he and Lou sound so much alike that even The Village Voice’s Robert Christgau saw fit to praise Lou’s vocals on “Lonesome Cowboy Bill” when it was actually Yule singing. Oh, and he also plays drums on half of the album’s songs, as Maureen Tucker was on maternity leave and didn’t play on the album, although she’s credited on the LP for doing so. ![]() Yule may be an outlier in your standard Velvet Underground hagiography, but he sings lead on four of Loaded’s ten songs, plays lead guitar on some more, and plays some of the LP’s most fiery solos–and all of this in addition to playing bass, piano, and organ. ![]() Why? Because for a multitude of reasons that have yet to be explained–although I’m certain poor mental health, burnout, business worries, and galloping drug abuse had a lot to do with it–on Loaded Lou Reed saw fit to offload a lot of the heavy lifting on to Doug Yule, the rather faceless fellow who stepped into John Cale’s shoes at Lou Reed’s behest in 1968. I mean, everybody KNOWS who their favorite Beatle is, but if you’re like me, your fave VU album varies in response to a whole lot of variables including mood (Angry? Gimme White Light/White Heat! Euphoric? Make mine The Velvet Underground!), romantic status, drug intake (Bad trip? Gimme White Light/White Heat again!) and for all I know barometric pressure.Īt this moment in time 1970’s Loaded, the Velvet Underground’s final studio album (if you don’t count 1973’s Squeeze, that Doug Yule solo LP featuring none of the Velvets we all know and love) is at the top of my list, and this despite the fact that in many ways it’s the least “Velvet Underground” of the VU’s quartet of great studio albums. Ed.Ĭhoosing your favorite Velvet Underground studio LP (and I’m talking here about the famous four released between 19) is a helluva lot tougher than choosing your favorite Beatle. Celebrating Doug Yule on his 75th birthday.
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