Jimmy Page’s opinion on Velvet Underground and Lou Reed

The British guitarist and producer Jimmy Page was one of the most important figures in music during the 1960s—first as a session musician, and later as a member of The Yardbirds and, of course, as one of the founders of what would become Led Zeppelin. In the early days of his career, he played on records from many different genres, which kept him constantly exposed to a wide variety of musical styles, something he continued to explore throughout his life.

Over the decades, he spoke about many acclaimed bands he had the chance to see live, including The Velvet Underground, the influential American group fronted by Lou Reed.

Jimmy Page’s opinion on Velvet Underground and Lou Reed

Although The Velvet Underground made a different kind of music from Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page has been a huge fan ever since he first heard them. The first time he met one the band members of the group was in 1965 when the singer Nico recorded a version of Gordon Lightfoot’s song “I’m Not Sayin'” and the original track “The Last Mile”. The guitarist played the 12-string guitar and also produced the single. He recalled in an interview with Classic Rock in 2020 that he only had the chance to see the American band playing a few years later when he was with The Yardbirds in New York City.

“I went to the Scene Club, which was decorated by Andy Warhol, and it was decorated with Bacofoil on the walls, because he said that was the colour of speed. And suddenly you hear this band doing this drone stuff, and Lou Reed’s writing was just out of this world. They were just phenomenal, and they sounded just like that first album.”

Jimmy Page continued:

“I only saw them when I was going through New York with The Yardbirds. Everyone talks about The Velvet Underground, but at the time people did not go to see them, and I found that odd. I loved The Velvet Underground, and it was such a thrill to have done that single with Nico, having written something with Andrew Oldham and going in there and just doing The Last Mile, which was really cool,” Jimmy Page said.

The British musician had the chance to see the classic line-up which had Lou Reed (Vocals, guitar), John Cale (Bass), Sterling Morrison (Guitar) and Moe Tucker (Drums) playing live on “three or four” occasions. The musician told Interview Magazine in 2019, that he had an incredible connection with Lou Reed during their first meeting and that they spent a lot of time talking. “I’d seen The Velvet Underground on more than one occasion. They were almost like a resident band. Andy Warhol was keen for them to be there. I can tell you exactly what it was like.”

He continued:

“When I heard the first album, it was just exactly what they were like. They were just like that. It was absolutely phenomenal. The other thing about Steve Paul’s and The Velvet Underground was that it didn’t really have too many people coming to hear it, which I found extraordinary.”

“Hardly any people (went to see them). Like, nine, a dozen people. It was so radical, such a radical band. You know, Maureen Tucker just playing the sort of snare drum. And the fact that there was the electric viola with John Cale. You just didn’t get this sort of line-up. It was really an arts lab. As opposed to pop music, (they had) this wonderful glue, this synergy between them that was dark. It was very dark,” Jimmy Page said.

Jimmy Page called their debut album cinematic and their musicianship groundbreaking

The band was formed in New York City in 1964 but their praised debut album was only released in 1967. Called “The Velvet Underground & Nico”, that record had the famous “banana” cover created by the artist Andy Warhol. All the songs were written by Lou Reed, who also recorded the vocals. But some of the tracks also had the German singer Nico as the vocalist. “Waiting for My Man” is one of the most famous songs from the album and was even covered by The Yardbirds in 1968. Other praised tracks are “Sunday Morning”, “Femme Fatale”, “There She Goes Again” and “Venus In Furs”.

In an interview in the book “Loaded: The Life (And Afterlife) of the Velvet Underground, Page called that album cinematic and also praised their musicianship. “When I eventually heard the album it was exactly as they had sounded when I saw them. I’d never heard music go into those areas before, and it all made sense on record.”

Jimmy Page continued:

“The material on the first album is almost cinematic. Each song is so different, each song has such a strong identity. The crafting of it is absolutely incredible. The musicianship is just groundbreaking. There were just so many ideas on that album. Lou Reed doing “Sunday Morning.” There were just so many layers and so many colors. Even if all the colors were dark,” Jimmy Page said.