The Velvet Underground - The Gift

[exeuroweenie]

Always struck me as total junky music.Nowadays though,it could just be a narrative of flying coach.

[Admin5studios]

such a fun bass line

[peacesellsstevebuyin]

the velvet underground=when you're too intellectual for led zeppelin but you don't like jazz

[fruitbatrepublic]

@peacesellsstevebuyin yeah i like led zeppelin and vu and jazz so whatever

[kgoodies008]

@peacesellsstevebuyin PERSONALLY i like all three, but hey, that's just me. each their own.

[Pokerking4128]

im from russia nand cant understand it well but instrumental is cool

for me its like a really difficult listening comprehension but also really cool

[matteogege92]

this is art.

[chasebizzy1]

Waldo's death spared him from the crushing humiliation he would have experienced otherwise.

[truedude86]

I just listened to this without Lou Reed voice, very cool too.

[unfamous13]

@truedude86

Thats John Cale

[andeegreen]

@truedude86 It's John Cale not Lou Reed - Cale is from South Wales - listen to the accent boyo.

[stevobath]

Amazing track.......

[joegoldorak]

WAAAALDDDOOOOO !!!! wuaf wuaf wuaf wuaf whatta a looser !!!!

[MrPost1987]

Sadly, my right headphone is broken.

[dreamquarter]

Her sworn vows overcome by liquor and smooth soothings of some neanderthal

[andresherce]

Amazing

[BradWest96]

Poor guy.

[TheCorazyCam]

I wish more audiobooks were this awesome.

[willonz]

the first speaker plays the music and the left plays the speaks the story, for those who want to listen to each separately; both are good!

[planetraptor420]

is that andy warhol talking???

[RussMoxham]

@planetraptor420 John Cale

[MrEedward]

@planetraptor420 No, the voice is that of Sterling Morrison.

[maggsayy]

@MrEedward it's john cale, not sterling.

[callipposhots]

@MrEedward

what is this. Of course it's Cale. I guess Yanks don't know a south Welsh accent when they hear one.

[PeregrineTrousers]

It was more than the human mind could bare... wey hey man !!!

[acnikon]

in fact it is bilingual, the guitar talks as well, convincingly commenting, at times swallowing itself in withdrawal, leaving things unsaid better left unsaid

[mjtisc1]

"suddenly, rough hands gripped his package"

...teehee

[Sandbagger300]

God D@mn this thing! LOL

[PabzGLRP]

Nice to know somebody finally found Waldo... and killed him. :(

[MaxStirner4Lyfe]

@PabzGLRP It's okay. It was only involuntary manslaughter.

[imakeawishforapotato]

her sworn vows overcome by the swooning of some neandethal ...

[exeuroweenie]

Total junkie music.Or,at least it makes me jones heavily,and I only tried the stuff a few times decades ago.

[vegimite2010]

wonderful !!

[tuli213]

That's not nihilism, that's realism. Waldo got caught slipping up.

[watever4201]

oh my god...i read the lyrics

[PinkcoltheGIRL]

"Shee needed him and he wasn't there"

[armandsdamanhoo]

@PinkcoltheGIRL no chance at the top comment lass

[wizareac]

guys - it ain't nihilism at all - it's game between thought, expression and act. read badiou or žižek for more details

[radioheadsundays]

love the indifference/nihilism in this.

[fadux1]

Used to play it with the bass too high on my old knackered record player could barely even hear the words but it was magic (even better with the bass normal though)

[CinemaZebra]

My left (or right?) speaker isn't working, so it's interesting to hear just the story without the music.

[Misterpopkiller]

actually its a genious short story of Reed and it could be Poe's if he was writing in the 20th century XD

[astroboirap]

@Misterpopkiller its not by reed. its by cale. he wrote it.

[Misterpopkiller]

@astroboirap Hmhm well eveywhere its cited that its by Reed, but i cant be 100% sure. If u have any reference that its by cale i would appreciate it!

[Wilster1989]

My God, you must need a power drill to get this open

[karler]

Im just speculating here , But is this where the beatles got the bass for come together , its noted they had to the bassline to come together at the last moment to avoid a law suit related to chuck berry.

[Johnzoil]

I had this album but the cover was white with a WW1 soldier outline

[locote031]

great song but what i dont understan the lyrics

[zwal01]

Poor Waldo.

Poor captainjimkirk.

Toutes, Ivre, Détruite.

Cale is really pretentious, but god, what a band!

If only every band threw pianos down stairs.

[maybenotme1994]

an awesome song, also doubles as a good sound check for your speakers or earphones to see if they both work right...

[BowskiBig]

@maybenotme1994 That and you can seperate the song solo, or the story solo. Both are great tripping.

[ObeyTheMuse]

this is how we should look at music n get better at it right?

[Shapper8]

The last sentence is just fabulous xD

"... which split slightly and caused little rhythmic arcs of red to pulsate gently in the morning sun..."

[BitchinnShoes07]

@Shapper8 HOORAY FOR SPOILING!

[Nobodie92]

I remember doing this narrative for the school talent show a couple years ago with a drone of instruments behind me. We got boo'd the first 3 minutes of the song, but we kept going. No one picked up on the subtle nihlism in the spoken words/lyrics of The Gift. The principal then at around 6 minutes tried to tell us to get off the stage. We kept playing for another 4 minutes. We got yelled at afterward for taking up the next acts choreagraphed version of boom boom pow. Dont think they gotit

[CaptainJimKirk]

@Nobodie92 Great story! :)

[HeadyDreadyTeddyBear]

@CaptainJimKirk

awesome haha

[UHandsomeDevil]

@Nobodie92 : Great story, sir!!

[BowskiBig]

@Nobodie92 I would have payed to see that and would have been cracking up the whole time. Don't worry though, sooner or latter, they'll realise not everything has to make sense, or be in the right place. Thats how I see this song, just a dont give a fuck attitude about it, were going to tell an eight minute long story while theres a kickass song in the background. Haha brilliant.

[kojongau]

@Nobodie92 you should bring a gun to school and shoot the fuckers that were gonna do that shit

[DangerMcDeathface]

@Nobodie92 sorry for voting you down, careless error...

[rclarked]

@Nobodie92 it's sometimes a feat of strength to open up the human mind. Never stop prying!

[GallagherWellerBrown]

@Nobodie92 Did you do it in the Welsh accent?? Cos otherwise it wouldn't work :-)

[pupdon]

@Nobodie92 I do believe I love you.



[Allenkeylighting]

@Nobodie92

2deep4u

Hipster faggots..

[ilikemonkeys100]

@Nobodie92 pretentious much?

[KrokanteSok94]

@Nobodie92 cool story bro ;)

[ChaseSpross]

@Nobodie92 you tube hero for now

[acnikon]

@Nobodie92 wished I had thought of doing that, down in 1974

[TheCorazyCam]

@Nobodie92 Maybe you needed to re-enact the story on stage in order to grab the audience's interest. That would be pretty awesome, honestly.

[andresherce]

@Nobodie92 If somebody play this on my school I'll get crazy

[jannyrcobs]

@Nobodie92 They'll NEVER get it. That's the way these things go.

[akahappy100]

@Nobodie92 hahaha BRILLIANT!

[Ibroadcastmyself17]

this song is hilarious...especially when the monotone narrator says the girls' dialogue

[kaskapubenfu]

@Ibroadcastmyself17 its john cale who narrates the story.....

[monsterwheel]

"My god, he was like an octopus. Hands all over the place." I love that part.

[veiolex]

my favourite bedtime story

[gremby]

best song ever

[percy888ferry]

Fuckin' awesome.

[mobyboy]

this song is the real gift. real orgasem

[Zyra555]

This is orgasmic.

[BboyFlimsy]

"She needed him, and he wasn't there." (Aawww).

Best part of the song.

[CaptainJimKirk]

@BboyFlimsy Yes, I love that bit!

[Mr11MUSICMAN]

This is the greatest song of all time.

[WoodRatGirl]

Sheila sounds like me, when I say "GOD DAMN!"

[bobsinclair6]

he had intuitively grasped every nook and cranny of her psyche. this line makes me feel "icky"

[CoralChannel]

this was the first velvet underground song i had ever heard. needless to say they soon became one of my favorite bands.

[MaxTerrazos]

0:34 - 0:37: It sounds like 'Raj' speaking (The Big Bang Theory)

[bottlecapsacin]

it would be soon.

[Julieannkent1974]

cales voice...lou's mind

brilliance. epic love story. wicked bass.

without the velvet underground, lou is a master songwriter/storyteller.

with the velvet underground, you enter a different realm when listening.

[jabaltar84]

Moral of the story: Love CAN kill!

[muffinwithsprinkles]

It's sort of shitty how every calls Lou Reed a genius, and never appreciates how good of a musician, and how influntial John Cale was. Overshadowed talent.

[therealbp]

@muffinwithsprinkles

so true!

[bubediscuss]

He had his yellow and his green slips of paper signed and left with a fifteen cent tip that marsha had gotten out of her mothers small beige pocket book in the den

[appbadder]

Turn your speaker balance left then right then left....

[lovenugs]

@appbadder the guitar is amazing, isn't it?

[1brotz2]

Ms Bronson was my 3rd grade teacher. What a great place and time to grow up .60's-70's in Wisconsin

[Mrtabledaddy]

hahahahahahahahhahahaha zoolander voice

[ThreeKingFisher0]

2:48 - 3:00

Heavy!

This song is something incredible, I never heard something similar, absolutely unique.

[evilalbert]

this is a very cool song

[Bumbumawangis]

A didactic masterpiece.

[purrr88]

that final line gives me shivers,Cale's voice fits perfect..

White Light/White Heat is a masterpiece of noise and daring beauty.

[ImSpiFF]

omfg that bassline is so heavvyyy

[seth25846]

@ImSpiFF Probably my favorite part of the song. So chill.

[AviatorAndyK]

i can't fucking believe how good this is. Lous voice sounds a little like derek zoolander here

[ReadSchopenhauer]

@AviatorAndyK dude that's John Cale not Lou

[elurseeknay]

@AviatorAndyK i dont think its derek zoolander that lou's voice sounds similar to but actually John Cale.

[AddEmergency]

I'm gonna come back and listen to this song while I'm high...it will probably blow my mind.

[snafupenguin]

@AddEmergency thats how I came across this in my itunes library, along with Sister Ray, and Lady Godiva's Operation - mind FUCKING blown. I sat, open mouthed, nearly drooling, in awe.

[Gekaatje]

@AddEmergency :lol: it sure did mine, in those days when I heard it the first time

[Gekaatje]

It sure blew mine, the first time I heard the album

[folkhippy]

Listened to this on Ex & A back in the day...I specifically recall levitating. One of the coolest jams ever written, not to mention the lyrics...

[alexgillespie1]

how can i make this mono?



[lovenugs]

1:28...awww. lol!!

[DrSquidley]

poor waldo jeffers:-(

[MrAlexRavell]

Trully Madly Deeply, la diferencia de la escucha en auriculares y la escucha en baffles es genial. Soy fan de la velvet.

[iluvflagunlaws]

As he pictured Marsha, her sworn vows overcome

by liquor and the smooth soothings of some Neanderthal,

Finally submitting to the final caresses of sexual oblivion.

It was more than the human mind could bear.

[genesisrock43]

I love john cale's welsh accent :) it sounds so light and friendly haha

[mariposasization]

holy shit it just discribed my life exept for my feelings about my own girl holy crap .....almost word by word O_O i just got the chhills.... holy crap HOLY CRAP ITS STILL GOES ON AHHHHHHH xo

[yardsausage]

i have been searching for this song for years, now i found it, it evokes so many memories..thanks for posting it!!

[fingee12]

Gawd, I remember listening to Lou Reed and TVU 40 years ago at the Music Shed , (Music Barn, Tobacco Barn I Don't remember what it was called) in Deerfield, MA. long, long before Lou Reed became LOU REED. Used to trip on acid and belladonna for his shows. I remember getting there, but I don't remember getting home. GREAT FUCKING TIMES. THANKS LOU.

[SpamBanjo]

Listen to this track through headphones or I will keeeeeeeeeeeel you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[putdownan8dude]

"my god, you need a POWERDRILL to get this thing open!" ...that kills me

[a1stooge]

@putdownan8dude it killed waldo jeffers

[ukshelf]

just wonderful...great to hear again.

yeh. lovin' it hahaha.

[mobyboy]

keep this wonderful noise in my head....

[SaneLunacy]

This song.

[brilloart]

peace love and feedback

[touchandgod]

*thunk*

[ilovesurreyclowns]

i like putting it way on the right channel and blaring this song, i put it just enough to the right channel so you can hear the voice but can't make out the words

it's like your in a complete daze and someone's trying to talk to you, but your too busy in your own world to pay attention to john cale's words

ah music, what a wonderful illusion you are

[breenfantwo]

Imagine what happened when Marsha and Sheela got the box open...

:O

[bubediscuss]

@breenfantwo

a murder mystery perhaps...

[RedBryn]

I was reminded of this song recently, when a news story appeared about a Polish burglar who mailed himself, boxed-up, to courier depots......he would wait until the staff had gone home & then come out at night, helping himself to various valuable items before climbing back into his box & being mailed back to his own address. It worked well for him a few times before the staff cottoned on & posted him to the local police station!

You really have to admire his guile, though..... :-)

[germanroots]

Crunchy overdriven bass ... mmmm...nice

[chadricka]

ok, i want to know if anyone has ever done this.

At the end of this song, i always say in a melodic tone.

And that was the Gift.

lol

[goof47]

great song, but it's hard to follow the narrative when you're high

[SubwayZombie]

@goof47 Use headphones, but only have the left one in. That's how I do it when I'm blazed.

[ErnieandBert1]

I like how this song leaves it to your imagination about what occured afterwards...

[sonofdrella09]

Sounds like DIck in a Box for the 60's.

[MDS13MDS]

@sonofdrella09 Oh boy, we sure improved musically since the 60's huh....

[AnaFitzBeaumont]

Super stuff.  :-))

[LTBL88]

the bass tone on this is soo nice

[QueenetBowie]

reminds me of donovan

[MowgliX]

As you've probably figured out, the narrative is all in the left audio channel, and the rock'n'roll in the right channel. So you kan just turn the balance knob and choose "all narrative", a mix, or "all music". Clever, and so simple.

[ilovesurreyclowns]

i love turning off the left channel and hearing the instumental

[a1stooge]

me too my 1976 ford f100 truck only has the right channel, the instrumental is a pretty raw song

[lemonlorry]

I never even knew John Cale was Welsh!

[loopreeze]

oook... english is not my native language and i dont understand the whole of this song... what is this sentence trying to say? "There was nothing but a circular from the Amalgamated Aluminum Company

of America inquiring into his awing needs." awing needs? does it mean that having no feedback from his girl made him feel awed?

[tobideshiy]

an awning is like an attachment to a building that provides some sort of shade, u can google it to see some images. and a circular is like a memo or note, giving information about a particular thing. so all the singer is saying is that he was sent a circular - which could also imply "junk mail" telling him about the company hat provides awning sevices.

[loopreeze]

oooh! thanks a lot. i was missing an "n".

[wiljjHeigl]

simply genius!

but, who recites the song? Lou Reed or John Cale?

[JiffyNo0b]

Cale. Apparently it was made when Reed was too sick to perform with the band.

[HeyyyGuyyy]

@JiffyNo0b Lou wrote it. originally a short story and had cale narrate it.

[JiffyNo0b]

Ah, I see.

[UJ96LFA]

It´s John Cale with his ´deliberately distinctive´ Welsh accent.

[jackhillty]

maybe Bill will call......

want one? supposed to be better than steak....

[dopefishman08]

maybe my favorite vu song. sounds too fucking brilliant on vinyl.

[Phersephoie]

hahahahaa the splatter song!!!! :)))

[Bizarronumber4]

Classic song!!!!!

[Dogofwarno7]

The ending made me laugh my ass off!

[prehensiledream]

This is absolutely fantastic.

[govtqueso]

I take it she thought Fragile was French for something?

background stuff was cool though

[SupaflyTNT777]

Legendary bass distortion. Love. It!

[phideas]

Great story, and most definitely GREAT background trippy ass music. VU RULE!

[W0lframTarant]

This is hilarious :D

Great guitar too.

[Sleazymush]

Am I getting deaf or something? I don't hear any guitar.

[Phersephoie]

it's stereo, on one speaker there's lou reeds voice nd on the other's the guitar, check ur speakers ;)

[Rambo29]

@Phersephoie John Cale actually read the monologue but Lou Reed wrote it. But you got the picture :)