Song of the Day-The Murder Mystery

The old cliche about the Velvet Underground was that their first album "The Velvet Underground & Nico sold only 2,000 copies, but everyone who bought one started a band." Probably not literally true but it is clear that the Velvet Underground were a huge influence on the punk movement of the mid-70s. It is also true that David Bowie, who was a huge fan of the Velvet Underground and Lou Reed specifically cites them as a major influence going so far as to record live versions of "White Light/White Heat" and "I'm Waiting For My Man."  Lou Reed and John Cale, the main creative forces of the Velvet Underground continue to actively record today with Lou doing his controversial project with Metallica and Cale releasing an EP just last September.

"The Murder Mystery" is the penultimate track on the Velvet's self-titled 3rd album. Cale has departed to be replaced by Doug Yule. Reed is clearly in charge from here on out, and the Andy Warhol influences get scrubbed too. The focus becomes the fine vocals and songwriting skills of Mr. Reed who writes every track. The instrumentation and sound become a little softer and Lou shows off his more "soulful" if not downright, romantic side. This track is, however, a throwback to the longer compositions of John Cale, and is probably the most experimental track on the album. The mood is subtle and trance like, with voices murmuring out of each speaker in the stereo mix, in counter-point to each other. Definitely a track that would never have made sense in the era of monophonic recordings. Nothing poppy or even particularly "rocky" about this track but with a good pair of headphones, it is a hypnotic listen that transports the listener to another place entirely.

They would hit their commercial sweet spot with the release of 1970's "Loaded" which was probably their most accessible effort, with tracks like "Sweet Jane" and "Rock and Roll." Their entire catalog is available on the Spotify. This was a great band, and the Lou Reed of the late 60's was a great songwriter and great singer (though his voice not to everybody's taste, ala Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash). Check 'em out!