The Velvet Underground
Live performances and rehearsals
The unanimous opinion was that we were 10 times better
live than we were on records (Sterling Morrison, Apr. 1981)
1971-73
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January ?-23, 1971 Week engagement. Line-up: Doug Yule / Maureen Tucker / Sterling Morrison / Walter Powers Press article: Velvet Underground at The Alpine in Valley Signal (?). Reproduced in NYROCKER July/August 1980 (p. 27) and The Velvet Underground & Lou Reed (Mike West, Babylon Books, 1982). "The band at the Alpine this week is none other than The Velvet Underground, the group that was originally organized by Andy Warhol for his travelling show, "The Exploding Plastic Inevitable". There have been a couple of changes in the four-member group over the years, but the constant has been an important one - pretty Maureen Tucker on drums. Others by name are Doug Yule, lead vocal and guitar; Sterling Morrison, lead guitar and Walter Powers, lead vocal and bass. The group has always laid down a heavy sound, and like the Jefferson Airplane, for instance, has amassed a following even though it has never produced a hit single. Like the Airplane, they write all their own material. They have two albums to their credit, one on Verve which is a year or so old and another just released on Atlantic titled "Loaded." Under promotion - minded Atlantic, they expect to release a single for the hit market soon. After this week's Alpine engagement winds up on Saturday night (the 23rd), they will head back to New York for a January 29-30 appearance at The Electric Circus. They are expected back at The Alpine the first week in February for the Wednesday through Saturday engagement." Photos: the Valley Signal article comes with a photo which could be from The Alpine. MOJO #75 (p. 44) has a different photo shot at the same place. Doug Yule: There's very little difference between a ski lodge and a bar - a ski lodge is a bar in a ski country. We played at one place where I met my first wife; we played on a stage that was as big as a dining-room table, in the corner. It was jammed with people attempting to dance and attempting to drink themselves into oblivion; it was, in fact, one of the more popular ski bars. We played the Alpine in North Conway [New Hampshire] for weeks, many weeks. We played there so long that I learned how to ski. There was no record company footing the bills and Sesnick was having trouble booking the group. So he got whatever he could. [in Afterhours: the twilight of the Velvets, MOJO #75, February 2000, p. 44] |
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January 29-30, 1971 23 St Mark's Pl, New York, NY 10003 Mentionned in Velvet Underground at The Alpine article. Handbill: 10½ x 8½ inch, black and white. Reproduced in The Velvet Underground - New York Art (p. 315). Ad: in The Village Voice, January 28, 1971 (p. 48). |
February 3-6, 1971 Mentionned in Velvet Underground at The Alpine article. |
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March 12-13, 1971 23 St Mark's Pl, New York, NY 10003 Ad: in The Village Voice, March 11, 1971 (p. 48).
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April 23-24, 1971 50 Austin Blvd, Island Park, NY 11558 with: Hog Heaven, Cactus. The Rock Pile was formerly The Action House. Ad: in The Village Voice, April 22, 1971 (p. 48). |
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April 28, 1971 with: The Blues Project Handbill: 11 x 8½ inch, on thin purple paper. Reproduced in The Velvet Underground - An Illustrated History Of A Walk On The Wild Side (p. 150). |
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May 1, 1971 With: Alice Cooper, Brownville Station Announcement: in For What It's Worth | "The Lovely Alice Cooper" by Jim Jannes an Bill Shapiro, in The Jambar (Youngstown University student newspaper), April 27, 1971. Article: Top Bands Headline Rock Concert Saturday in Youngstown Vindicator (Youngstown OH), April 30, 1971 (p. 35): "Andy Warhol's famed group, the Velvet Underground, will make a guest appearance, doing their new album, "Loaded."" Ads: in Youngstown Vindicator (Youngstown OH).
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May 2, 1971 71 E Indianola Ave, Youngstown, OH 44507 With: Biggy Rat Ads: in Youngstown Vindicator (Youngstown OH).
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May 5, 1971 with: Bittersweet Poster. Jim Laverty: The VU played a club named The Music Palace in the St. Louis Missouri area on Weds, May 5, 1971. I was the drummer in Bittersweet, the opening act that night. |
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May 1971 Mentionned in Velvet Underground resurfaces in Cleveland by Anastasia Pantsios, in The Scene, May 6-12, 1971. |
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May 8, 1971 With: Mutzie, Salvage Mentioned in The Motor City Music Archives. |
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June 1971 Mentioned in I was a Velveteen by Rob Norris. Line-up: Doug Yule / Moe Tucker / Sterling Morrison / Larry Estridge (replacing Powers on bass who had fallen down some stairs in Detroit and had broken his jaw). Doug Yule [about the guy replacing Walter Powers] : His name was Larry Estridge and he filled in for Walter for a few gigs. We were travelling in a bus at the time, a dreary road trip. |
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June 15, 1971 With: Formerly Joe Cocker's The Grease Band, Tea The date is listed in The Motor City Music Archives, but The Velvet Underground is not mentioned. Poster. |
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June 18, 1971 1024 Newport St, Detroit, MI 48215 With: Guardian Angel, Magic Ring, Coming (Grand Reopening!) Mentioned in The Motor City Music Archives. Card: 7.25 x 4.40 inches, original art by Collins, black ink on pink card. |
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June 24-27, 1971 874 W Lancaster Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 Line-up: Yule/Tucker/Morrison/Walter Powers The Velvet Underground is mentioned on this date in the listing of all the artists who performed at the Main Point included in the 10th Anniversary publication.
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July 10, 1971 OH-18 & Hough Rd, North Baltimore, Wood, Ohio 45872 With: Paul Butterfield. Poster: 25 x 19". Ad and review: in Toledo Ohio Blade. It says "New Concept in Outdoors Concerts July 10th 1971 - 2 P.M. Featuring PAUL BUTTERFIELD, VELVET UNDERGROUND, UP, BRAT, NIGHT WATCHMEN, RAIL". The review has some pictures of the concert. It is mostly concert goers and a picture of Rail performing. The review talks about the event and only mentions the Velvet Underground as being from NY. |
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August 20-21, 1971 The show on the 21st was Sterling's last before leaving the band and heading up to Austin. Liberty Hall, 1610 Chenevert, was a converted movie theater that seated maybe 200. Touring bands not big time enough to play the Music Hall would perform there. It was on the edge of Downtown Houston. Flyer: "2 shows nightly!". Orange ink on yellow paper, 10.25" x 7.75". Exists also as poster.
Press ads:
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August 22, 1971 Phoenix House "Festival of Life" Mentioned in Phoenix House 'Fest of Life' Set in Billboard, August 28, 1971 (p. 3). Press article: same article without mention of The Velvet Underground.
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August ??, 1971 |
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September 3, 1971 With: Jam Band, Heresy, Elephant. MC: Mr. Belvedere!! Mentioned in The Motor City Music Archives. |
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September 6, 1971 Route 18 & Hough Rd, North Baltimore, Ohio With: Savoy Brown, Cactus, Atomic Rooster. Handbill: 11 x 8½ inch concert handbill designed by the legendary Grande Ballroom and MC5 artist, the Motor City Master, Gary Grimshaw, advertising shows at The Park in North Baltimore, OH on September 3, 1971 by the Amboy Dukes, Parliament Funkadelic and Sweet Tain, then on September 6, 1971, Savoy Brown, Cactus, Velvet Underground and Atomic Rooster. Signed in pencil by artist Gary Grimshaw. Poster: 22 x 17 inch, designed by Gary Grimshaw. |
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September 17, 1971 With: Quicksilver Messenger Service, Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band. Poster: same artwork as the one for the September 18 show. Flyer: 11 x 8½ inch, on blue paper, unknown artist. Ad (?): reproduced in What Goes On fanzine No. 3. Ads: read "The Velvet Underground start things off with an hour set at 7:30PM".
Ticket:
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September 18, 1971 With: Quicksilver Messenger Service, Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band. Poster: approximately 22 x 16 inch. Reproduced in The Velvet Underground - An Illustrated History Of A Walk On The Wild Side (p. 150). Announcement: in Quicksilver and the Captain in The Gateway, September 16, 1971 (p. 9). Review: in Beefheart in The Gateway, September 21, 1971, 1961 (p. 9). |
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September 19, 1971 The VU possibly played at the Foothills Arena in Calgary, Alberta on this date with Quicksilver Messenger Service and Captain Beefheart. Both QMS and CB played in Calgary on that date. VU played with both of them on the 17th in Vancouver and the 18th in Edmonton, so it would seem a logical continuation. | |||
Late 1971, UK/Netherlands TourLine-up: Willie Alexander / Walter Powers / Maureen Tucker / Doug Yule
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The England/Continent tour is announced in American Talent's Blacker in U.K. Deals in Billboard, August 7, 1971 (p. 22). Same issue has a news item in From The Music Capitals of the World - London (p. 50). The tour in Netherlands is announced:
1971 tour dates are given in the following UK music papers:
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October 8, 1971 Poster. |
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October 9, 1971 Penrhyn Road, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KT1 2EE, United Kingdom Mentioned in Lowdown on the Underground in New Musical Express, October 30, 1971. Ad: in Melody Maker.
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October 10, 1971 Announced in From The Music Capitals of the World - Amsterdam in Billboard, August 14, 1971 (p. 53). Ad: in Aloha no. 11, September 24, 1971, Netherlands. 
Review: by Laurie Langenbach in Aloha no. 13, 1971, Netherlands. A concert hall filled to the brim where no VU shows up. When I come home (at 'Aloha's') I am told that they have just arrived in the hotel 'Trianon'. And they are hungry. Marjolein proposes to cook them a meal. I leave to get them. To my surprise I meet a bunch of 'fresh' looking, everything but junky types. No likeness whatsoever to the morbid atmosphere coming from the first albums. They are completely taken aback having missed this Amsterdam concert. The greed of their managers is to blame, they made the group travel in a little bus for fourteen hours because they didn't want to pay for a flight. The dinner is cozy but short..... our guests are very tired. The Next day I go with them to the NOS studio. There I meet their female drummer Maureen Tucker, for the first time. She way she looks is hard to define. Long red hair tightly bound into a pony tail, stern figure, manly walk. She's got her baby Carrie with her. One of the nicest children I have ever met. The recording takes place in a enormous and empty space. No atmosphere at all. To make the disaster complete the singing can't be heard at all. That makes playing not much fun for a band. I stand, with the baby on my hip, watching. She kicks with her leg along with the rhythm, and applauds when it is over.
At seven o'clock p.m. we are with Wim van der Linden at home looking at the results of the hours in the studio. It is watched with scrutiny, because the band hasn't seen itself on television for a long time. Doug looks away in agony every once in a while. He thinks he sings terribly and says 'I look like my baby brother'. Laurie Langenbach [Thanks to Chris Van Tuyll for translation.]
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The group consists now of Doug, Maureen and two darling boys from Boston: William Alexander on organ and Walter Powers on bass.
October 11, 1971 Rolf Asselman: In 1971 The Velvet Underground made a TV appearance in the Dutch programme Top Pop with Rock And Roll. In the book Avro's Top Pop written by my friend Richard Groothuizen there is a picture in color of this appearance wich was in AVRO (Dutch broadcast) studio in the city of Hilversum.
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October ?, 1971 Review: by Richard Williams, in Melody Maker, October 16, 1971. |
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October 14, 1971 Elephant and Castle, London, U.K SE1 6SB, United Kingdom with: Spring Poster: 60 x 80 cm. Run of 50 designed and printed at the London College of Printing. Ad: in Melody Maker.
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October 15, 1971 Reading University, Reading, England |
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October 16 or 19, 1971 Lodge Ave, Dagenham, Greater London, UK with: Vinegar Joe |
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October 20, 1971 Strathclyde University, Glasgow, Scotland |
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October 20, 1971 With: Formerly Fat Harry, Henry Cow |
| October 21, 1971 Warwick University, Warwick, England |
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| October 22, 1971 Southampton University, Southampton, England |
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| October 23, 1971 Manchester University, Manchester, England |
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| October 26, 1971 St John's College, Oxford, England |
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| October 28, 1971 Bristol University, Bristol, England |
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October 29, 1971, Lancaster University, Lancaster, England With: Gravy Train, Pink Custard Lights |
October 30, 1971 |
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November 2, 1971 With: Graphite. Ad: in Melody Maker.
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November 4, 1971 |
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November 5, 1971 Tape: audience, 65 minutes, B. Source: Final V.U. 1971-1973 disc 1.
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November 6, 1971 According to the Live At Leeds | 14/02/1970 | 17/06/06 booklet, this show was cancelled. |
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November 11, 1971 |
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November 12, 1971 Borough Assembly Hall, Market Square, Aylesbury, United Kingdom Support: Gothic Horizon. Poster. Ad: in Melody Maker.
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November 13, 1971 Hull University, Hull, England |
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November 14, 1971 Mentioned in "Velvet Underground The Janitors of Lunacy - on the college circuit" by Geoffrey Cannon in Time Out, London, October 8-14, 1971 which has a short tour date listing some of the upcoming London shows. |
November 18, 1971 with: Humble Pie |
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November 19, 1971 Listed in "konsertagenda" section in Aloha no. 15, November 19 - December 3, 1971 (p. 29). Tapes:
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November 20, 1971 Listed in "konsertagenda" section in Aloha no. 15, November 19 - December 3, 1971 (p. 29). |
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November 21, 1971 Hereweg 49, Herewegbuurt, Groningen, Nederland Announcement:
Press article: Velvet Underground by Wim Jassies in Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, November 19, 1971 (p. 35), including full 1971 line-up photo. Ad: in Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, November 20, 1971 (p. 6)
Poster [thanks to Koen van Krimpen] Review: The Velvet Underground werd pas laat wakker by Wim Jassies in Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, November 22, 1971 (p. 10). |
October or November 1971 Review: in French magazine Rock & Folk N°59, December 1971 (p. 9 & 11). | |
January 13-16, 1972 With John Prine. Announced in From The Music Capitals of the World - New York in Billboard, December 18, 1971 (p. 17). The Velvet Underground is however not listed on this date in the listing of all the artists who performed at the Main Point included in the 10th Anniversary publication. | |
Late 1972, 'Squeeze Tour', Great BritainLine-up: Doug Yule / Rob Norris / George Kay / Mark Nauseff |
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November 18, 1972 With: 9.30 Fly / Sidewinder Ad: in Melody Maker, November 18, 1972 |
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November 20, 1972 With: Budgie, Iguana Ticket: light pink card, 75 x 85 mm, and only lists the venue, date, time, price and the phone number of the venue. |
November 22, 1972 With: McKendree Spring / Noble Savage Ad: in Melody Maker, November 18, 1972 |
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November 26, 1972 With: Thank You / Sullivan Ad: in Melody Maker, November 4, 1972 (immediately below an ad for Lou Reed at the Pheasantry Club, King's Road, Chelsea, November 2, 1972!). Rob Norris: We had one really rough time in Cardiff - the club was supposed to pay us cash up front and they didn't, and our road manager said, "Well, then they're not going to play." We were in the dressing roomand this real sleazy, low-brow guy with the club went on-stage and got these skinhead types all revved up, like "Well, they're here but our money's not good enough for them." They came after us and tried to bang down the door. It was George Kay who said, "Shit-ass punks aren't gonna bother us - we're gonna go out that door, we're gonna get in the car and get out of here, and they're not even gonna touch us." We formed a 'V' with the guitar cases, burst the door down and moved through the crowd, and they didn't bother us. But I was fearing for my life. [in Afterhours: the twilight of the Velvets, MOJO #75, February 2000, p. 47] |
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November 30, 1972 supporting E.L.O. Ad: full-page poster-size (approx. 16 x 11"), in New Musical Express, November 8(?), 1972. Ticket.
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December 2, 1972 With: Fusion Orchestra / Pugma Ho Ad: in Melody Maker, December 2, 1972. Review: by Meredith Noel, in Melody Maker, December 9, 1972: "The evening at Words in St Albans City Hall last Saturday turned out to be a night of rock 'n' roll. (...) |
December 4, 1972 With: Fat Grapple Ad: in Melody Maker, November 25, 1972. |
December 6, 1972 Tape: audience, 64 minutes, B. Source: Final V.U. 1971-1973 disc 3.
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December 9, 1972 with: McKendree Spring, Gnidrolog. Ad: in Chronicle & Echo, December 6, 1972.
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From The Music Capitals of the World in Billboard, January 13, 1973 (p. 14 & 16): "NEW YORK -- The Velvet Underground, headed by Doug Yule will be going on the road again in the U.S. The group's upcoming tour is being booked by ATI." May 27, 1973 For a long time considered as the final appearance as The Velvet Underground - see below for additional dates. It was the booker's idea that they were billed under that name. 2 sets. Line-up: Doug Yule, Billy Yule, George Kay, and Don Silverman. Tape: from first set. 40 minutes, B+. Last three tracks appear only on the original tape recorded by Joe Viglione. Source: Final V.U. 1971-1973 disc 4.
Doug Yule: "There was a cover band in 1973 - me and my brother and two other guys, doing rock 'n' roll tunes both Velvet Underground and non-Velvet Underground, and some original tunes. We met somebody who started booking us around New England. He was supposed to bill us as featuring me from The Velvet Underground, but he wasn't supposed to say it was The Velvet Underground. We played next to [Boston's] Fenway Park in Kenmore Square, probably our second-to-last show. The last show was some ski-place in Vermont or someplace; we drove in, saw "The Velvet Underground" and said, "That's the last straw." Plus, the place turned out to be a real dive. It was one of those places you hear (in whining voices) "Can you turn down? Can you play Louie, Louie?" We didn't even play the second night; the guy asked us to leave." [in Afterhours: the twilight of the Velvets, MOJO #75, February 2000, p. 47] Rob Norris: "(...) I stayed on in England for a while before ending up in New Hampshire in early '73 where I found one last version of the Velvet Underground about to perform in Boston without Sesnick's consent. |
June 1-3, 1973 19 Bryant Ave, Roslyn, NY 11576 Ad: in The Village Voice, May 31, 1973 (p. 62).
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Thanks: Gordon Lyon, Aral Sezen, Chris Van Tuyll, Mark Skobac, Jeff Blake, Koen van Krimpen, Nick Huckle, Arjan de Weerd, Jeff Gold, Doug Yule, Rolf Asselman, Jim Laverty, Nick Blakey, Phil Gammage, Rob Cutler, Tom Z. by Olivier Landemaine ©1996-2013 The Velvet Underground Web Page |
