The Velvet Underground - A Discography

By Author: Jan Weidenbach
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Ranked 19th in the Rolling Stones list of "Greatest Bands of all time", the Velvet Underground was one of the most influential rock bands ever. Although they have never been commercially successful while together, the band has produced a large number of albums that were very important in the development of Rock'n Roll and punk music. This article wants to give a broad overview over the musical inheritance of the Velvet Underground.

The Velvet Underground has produced five studio albums: The Velvet Underground - Nico (1967), White Light/White Heat (1968), The Velvet Underground (1969), Loaded (1970) and Squeeze (1973).
The most successful studio album was their debut album "The Velvet Underground - Nico" , the album contained famous songs like "Sunday Morning", "Venus in Furs" and "Heroin". The album was collaboration with the German singer Nico who sung three songs on the album. Produced by Andy Warhol and Tom Wilson, the album was named as one of the most influential records in rock-history, although it was largely ignored on its release and peaked #171 on the Billboard charts only.

The second studio album ...
... White Light/White Heat was the last album with bassist and founding member John Cale. It was recorded in two days and never was a commercial success. It made it to the Billboards Top 200 for two weeks only peaking on #199. Nevertheless in 2003 it was ranked #292 on the Rolling Stones List of the 500 Greatest Albums of all time.

The bands third studio album was called "The Velvet Underground". It was recorded 1968 in TTG Studios in Hollywood California. Like all the other Velvet Underground albums it was no commercial success. Even though, it was released in two different mixes. The first mix was the one made by studio engineer Val Valentin. The second mix was made by Lou Reed and dubbed "The closet mix" by guitarist Sterling Morrison.

Alum number four was called "Loaded". It was the first album to be release with Atlantic Records, and the name reflected the Label's strict order to produce an album "loaded with hits" and make profits. Shortly before the album was release lead vocalist and songwriter Lou Reed left the band because of creative differences with Doug Youle. The album didn't achieve the success that was planned by Atlantic Records but it contains two of the most popular The Velvet Underground songs, Sweet Jane and Rock'n Roll that are still played on classic rock stations today.

The fifth and last studio album of Velvet Underground was released in 1973 with the name "Squeeze". It was primarily written and produced by Doug Youle. Like all the other Velvet Underground albums it was only a modest success.

Besides their five studio albums the band also released five Live albums and eight Best-of compilations. The band also released a five box set called "Peel slowly and See". The box set contains all five studio albums of the band including the "Closet mix" of the "Velvet Underground " album.
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