| Author | Message | ||
     Stuart Wilson Member Username: Stuart Post Number: 914 Registered: 10-2006 |
For the history of music as I know and like it now, he was probably its single most important figure. I was fascinated by Walk on the Wild Side when it came out, being about 14, having no idea who this weird guy was, and having listened mainly to progrockish stuff up till then. Then they rereleased Sweet Jane on the back of the success of Wild Side and I heard it being massively praised on Roscoe’s Round Table on Radio One one Friday evening: although I understood it to be called Sea Jade, which made next day’s frantic hunt up town around the local record shops pretty difficult. Finally after a track by track listen through a VU anthology album, I realised my mistake. Prog rock faded gradually into the background and I suddenly discovered I was part of a very select group: the only two others at school into the Velvets were a slightly camp, fey guy who was yet too cool to get beaten up, and the prettiest girl in my year. For a very brief instant, for the only time in my life, I was, in my own little sphere, ahead of fashion. I still got beat up, but at least I could go back home and listen to Pale Blue Eyes or Heroin. I revelled in the wit and bite of his lyrics, the way frailty and knowingness were blent in his voice, the mesmerising tunes that could explode into equally mesmerising noise. This, I realised, was what music should be. | ||
| Rob Brookman Member Username: Rob_b Post Number: 1739 Registered: 08-2006 |
Hard to know where to begin, but Stuart gets it about right. He was my very favorite musical artist ever and this is a bit of a gut punch. I got into him through "The Blue Mask," still one of my favorite albums, and when the VU stuff got re-released a few years later in 84 it kind of changed my (musical) life. I was so into his stuff I've been getting condolence messages from friends. Can't quite believe he's gone. |