Whatever You Do, Take Care Of Your Shoes

It was quite an eventful morning as I traveled down to the Village to partake in the annual Record Store Day.  I’ll be the first to admit, I do not have much of a vinyl collection, having built the majority of my music catalog in the CD form.  That said, I was intrigued by a few releases being put out today, especially Phish’s Two Soundchecks.

I arrived around 9:15 at Other Music (down on E. 4th) to an already patiently waiting crowd of people.  Other Music would not open its doors until 11am, but already people were eagerly waiting and talking about the treasures they found earlier in the morning at some of the other NYC hole-in-the-wall record stores.  I was clearly late to the game.  I met a few really interesting people…all friendly, and all so passionate about music.  Everyone had their fingers crossed to be lucky enough to grab limited editions of releases from everyone including Phish to Bad Brains to Nirvana to The Rolling Stones to The Velvet Underground.  I listened in on a guy who claimed to have a friend that produced the latest Foo Fighters record, and said that an engineer wanted to bring a computer into the studio to polish some takes only to have Dave Grohl tell him he’s be fired if he did so.  In a world dominated by pop music and auto-tunes, it’s refreshing to know that there are artists who still insist on recording analog, and a legion of fans who know that music just sounds better a certain way. 

I was granted admission to Other Music just after 11am.  Not to my surprise, the Phish EP was gone.  They had only received two copies and they flew off the shelf instantly.  I did manage to score three gems; Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band’s Live From The Carousel 10”, The Velvet Underground’s Foggy Notion/I Can’t Stand It 7”, and a reissue of Pearl Jam’s Immortality/Rearviewmirror 7”.  I ventured over to Generation and Bleeker Street Records only to hear more of the same with regards to Phish.  I’m not giving up.  I’m sure I’ll get a copy eventually.  And, I’m not giving up on music out there.  Today was a refreshing breath of fresh air in seeing a great crowd of people with a common interest and releases from a stellar bunch of artists who all want to save the dying breed that is the local record store.  Pictures of my winnings and the line outside Other Music below.

Photo courtesy of the New York Public Library

Last night, Lou Reed, Maureen “Mo” Tucker, and replacement bassist Doug Yule reunited at the New York Public Library for a rare interview with Rolling Stone’s David Friske.  While no music was played, the audience (limited to 500) was treated to some insight from Lou and company ranging on topics from Andy Warhol and Nico to their portrayal in the media.

Probably most interesting was Reed’s response to his feelings on Andy Warhol.  While the band eventually severed ties with him for greater creative control, Lou Reed still has admiration for the man that launched the group into the spotlight.  “Warhol is one of the greatest people I’ve met my life. Without him, it’s just… it’s inconceivable, the path [the Velvet Underground] took.”  What’s interesting is that Warhol is credited as producer on their debut, The Velvet Underground & Nico, but as Reed and Tucker put it last night, the extent of his production was telling the band to “don’t change anything.”

As for Nico, she was brought in by Andy Warhol because he believed no one in the band was good looking.

While the mainstream media snubbed the band (and in my opinion still does), Reed’s statement of the evening sums his feelings up.  “To this day, I don’t think there is anything that touches what the Velvet Underground did. Not in this universe.”