Originally published in French in 2016 by Éditions La Découverte.
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Welcome to America -- Reed and Cale, the art of childhood -- New York spirit -- Birth of the Velvet Underground -- Factory years -- Reinvention of the Velvet Underground -- Legacy.
. - "At the heart of New York's 1960s avant-garde was the convergence of Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, and Moe Tucker, heralding a new musical revolution, the Velvet Underground. Fueled by visual arts, poetry, and stage performance, as much as by ideas of sexual transgression and subversion of social norms, the Velvets, as they came to be known by their small but fervent fan base, re-defined what a rock 'n' roll band could be. Compiled from archival ephemera, unpublished photographs, film stills, album covers, posters, fanzines, letters, testimonials, and poems, this monograph, edited for the U.S. edition of the 'Velvet Underground Experience' exhibition, gives the reader an inside look at New York's underground scene in the 1960s, where extravagances were the norm. This updated English version, which includes contributions from Lester Bangs, John Cale, Julian Casablancas, Tony Conrad, Jonas Mekas, Sterling Morrison, Lou Reed, Merrill Reed Weiner, Adam Ritchie, Stephen Shore, Andy Warhol, and Doug Yule, as well as photographs by Fred W. McDarrah, explores the genesis and history of a group that, despite its colorful collaboration with Warhol, was denied commercial success during its brief existence (1965-1970). Too radical, too transgressive, and too uninhibited for their time, the Velvet Underground became a cultural phenomenon through the years, one that continues to fascinate listeners around the world to this day"--Back cover.
