Yes it’s Lou, he is a founding member, main songwriter, guitarist and lead vocalist. And you are spot on about the music being timed to simulate the experience, and especially mo tucker’s drumming which was to simulate a heart beat. Super perceptive!

When a close friend was given a hard time for listening to this song he said "Lou Reed sang honestly about his experiences so that I can partially understand that side of humanity without having to go through it myself." Thanks Harri

Maureen Tucker on drums. A nice Catholic girl mixed up with Lou Reed. She's one of the most creative drummers ever. Welshman John Cale, the avant garde classical musician, on the viola making that chaotic squeal. Sterling Morrison and Lou on guitars. Oh yes, that's the Velvets.

Lots of paths to take with Lou and VU-the chanteuse songs with Nico, the noise jams, the beautiful melodies, the drone epics…so much amazing material.

Great reaction! Lou Reed was an amazing writer who was ahead of his time. He wanted to inject Rock n' Roll with the kind of adult themes and taboo subjects previously only found in literature. The Velvet Underground didn't have much chart success, as the music industry was not ready for them, but their influence was monumental, and carries on to this day. In this song, Lou Reed puts himself into his subject with sensitivity, and without judgement. He was likely able to draw somewhat from his own experience, dabbling in narcotics, but as he once said, "If I did everything the characters in my songs do, I would have been dead years ago."

If I had to make a list of just 10 best songs of all time this masterpiece sure gets in! No doubt!

Haven't heard this in a long time. Great the way the tempo changes with the Tom simulating a heartbeat. It speeds up my heart rate just listening. I hope most of you don't understand how clever it is. Thanks for posting. Missing those who aren't here to listen. 🐉🖤

Written in 1964! Recorded in May of 1966. Timeless brilliance. (Thank you, Andy.)

Like all great bands, the Velvet Underground had a wide range of sounds.... the same album also has some gentle, beautiful songs on it, like "I'll Be Your Mirror", and "Sunday Morning".... and another song on it, "I'm Waiting For The Man", is a key precursor of the early punk rock of the mid to late 70s. The VU is one of the most important bands of all time, and had an enormous influence.

Fantastic expressive stuff from a GREAT band! It’s Lou Reed’s deadpan delivery that gives this song much of its power.

Best band ever, hands down. Please listen to more! I miss Lou a little bit more every day.

It was my bag. And it took a good 20 years to stop dreaming about it wishing for it and hoping for that slow death. Can’t tell you. Life is better now, but I can tell you life is more sane.

It's Lou. He wrote the song. You nailed this right on the head. Reed, in particular, frequently denied any claims that the song was advocating use of the drug. The lyrics were more meant to focus on providing an objective description of the topic without taking a moral stance. Fans would sometimes approach the band members after a live performance and tell them they "shot up to 'Heroin'", a phenomenon that deeply disturbed Reed. As a result, Reed was somewhat hesitant to play the song with the band through much of the band's later career.

Lou ended up living a long life and lived clean. Like his peers david bowie and iggy pop who lived the same lifestyle back then and cleaned up. But there was a lesser known musician a little after them named Peter Laughner who overdosed at a young age. He wanted to be Lou Reed. They were just expressing their realities and werent trying to glamorize it.

It is Lou Reed. He wrote that song as well. I love The Velvets.

Great reactions breakdown. The drums representing a quickened heartbeat & the chaoticness of the 'rush' along with the lyrics make this one of Velvet & Lous most powerful performances. Intense stuff!

I haven’t heard this until today, but I’m definitely adding it to my playlist. Keep up the content Harri!

One of the most influential bands of all time. And the greatest

This band was WAY ahead of its time....

Great reaction! Best I've heard of this song.

This song is so powerful. So real. Lou Reed was just out of the clasp of the addiction, but it's always there. Primal shit man. Thanks for the reaction. Definitely hit up more VU songs. Some reason when I was in HS this song was riding with me hard. Other addictions of life I suppose.

my favourite band of all time. Can you imagine this when it came out in 1967 no wonder they would not play it. Try other stuff by them like 'Pale Blue Eyes' , 'Over You', 'Waiting for the Man', 'Venus in Furs' or Murder Mystery.

Velvet, Lou.... LOVE It ! one of my favorite songs ever

Peace within, Peace on earth.

I’m late to the party, but I figured you’d be the only reactor brave enough to tackle this one. Bravo! An amazing song, Lou Reeds’s masterpiece, and a very astute analysis.

Saw Lou many times over the decades, from the early ‘70s on. I miss him/hearing his music live so much. We once met on a very cold night in a NYC subway station, waiting for a local to go one stop. It was 2:30 a.m. We sat on the steps of a staircase and chatted for 20 minutes until the train came. After that encounter-because we lived in the same hood for a few years -we would occasionally run into each other, smile, say hi, exchange a minute or two of pleasantries. Several times we ran into each other at a local eatery. Whether he was there first or I was, neither of us invited the other to sit with. I assumed he wanted to read the newspaper and be left alone. But who knows? I regret I never even tried. I can’t seem to find a live performance of my favorite song, Fly Into the Sun, from New Sensations. I know I once heard it within a concert on KZfaq. But I don’t remember the details. So I will have to hunt by listening to concert after concert (there aren’t that many available; and who knows if that one is still up) until I hopefully find it. If anyone has a memory or a clue, I’d be grateful. Lou❤️!!

'The vocalist reminds me of Lou Reed' - that made me laugh!

Re-hearing this made me think of the whole of Patti Smith's album Horses. which was a whole eight years later. Just shows the originality of the Velvets.

Yes, he was on Heroine throughout the creation of this absolutely amazing album, and furthermore all the way to his death.

Not seen any mention of John Cale, classically trained Welsh violinist and viola player, also guitar and keyboards. Into avant garde noise forms of mid 20th century classical music, eg John Cage. Founding member of VU with Reed. His electric viola provided the original drone sound with the deliberate intention of not sounding poppy and meaning to sound painful on the ear. Music for people with traumatic childhoods who couldn't put it out of their minds. John Cale went on to have the more interesting career and still touring in UK 2022. No point in glorifying heroin addiction but it was relatively hip in Beat circles in 1950s to early 1960s before heavy duty crime arrived on the scene encouraged by heavy-handed legislation and policing. April 1966, Beatles recorded 'Rain' with a drone sound effect without Indian instruments but conveying the drone mood of some Indian music.

John Cale on electric viola (the droning background through much of the song, and the freaky dissonance later))

This is from VU's 1st album, recorded in 1966 it sat on the record company's shelf for nearly a year before being released in 1967. I still find this song very moving every time I hear it. I recommend reacting to 'Femmne Fatale' from the same album, Nico sings lead with the group providing backup.

Listen to Velvet Underground at the Retinal Circus

Great song and great reaction and comments !!

what great analysis

Well of course one can imagine being caught up in all that because Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground are doing such an amazing job of describing it......art......go figure.

Listen to John Lennon's "Cold Turkey" (original studio version) for the other side of the heroin experience. John wrote it about his heroin withdrawal in early 1969.

I have been clean for 13 years

Mo Tucker kills it on this song. Very original. She played huge Tom Tom drums. In their later reunion, she plays like orchestral drums with mallets standing up.

Congratulations you're one of us now, but you'll never have another warm summer

The late great Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground - the music I grew up with Lou, Iggy Pop and Bowie all amazing writers and performers ! your reaction to this song Heroin was excellent and absolutly spot on with your perception of what was going on !!

Written by Lou Reed from first hand experience when at College he was briefly on Heroin for about 6 months and wrote this before forming Velvet .

Great observations and great articulation throughout. Great reaction video. Also this song is just phenomenal. One of my favorites of all time.

You never disappoint ! Thank you !!

Holy shit, Amazing. You got a sub with this one. So much realness.

Hard to believe they cut an album with this song on it in 1966....

My dad lived with sterling in the 60's.

Interesting to note that lou Reed became a tai chi expert later in life. This is one of the most powerful songs ever written.

Heroin sounds like a fantastic drug! Just save it for retirement :)

I discovered this song when I was 12 watching The Doors movie. Loved the song but knew for sure Herion was not ever going to be a drug for me. Still have always loved the song always.

Yes!! Growing up, the folklore was, if u were high, ur heart would beat to it.

Lived this tune.

The truth is ALWAYS better than a pretty lie. Always. Preach it Lou. Preach it. Preach the truth.

You are correct bruv' , it is Lou Reed .

Best reaction of probably the most complex song ever.

and still no other song comes close to what this does. he was a genuine poet. studied under delmore schwartz i believe. one of our musical prophets.

You got the point! Lou is trying to describe a heroin rush. Listen to I'm waiting for the Man from the same album. It is about going to Harlem and copping dope.

Reminds you of Lou Reed - coz it is. I agree with what you say about heroin itself. So, it's maybe ironic that Reed himself pulled through it.

This song was used in Oliver Stone's movie "The Doors".

One of the all time great albums. Very few sales on release but went on to be possibly the most influential rock album, check out Pale Blue Eyes from this one. I believe Lou wrote the song. A fantastic documentary about The Velvet Underground came out recently by Todd Haynes, it's a wonderful film about the scene at the time even if you're not a fan of the band.

2:14 - This guy nails it, flexes his musical knowledge.

Heroin, Live, on "Rock 'n' Roll Animal" is even better than this great, original version imho. Post-Velvet when Lou went solo...one of Rock's Best Live Albums of All-Time. "Sweet Jane" is another highlight song on RnRA.

I did a lot of different drugs in my youth, but I never trusted heroin. Although in the end , that "dirty cocaine" almost got me. I was fortunate to walk away from it . Heroin took down many rock stars. Many were lucky they only lost time and not their lives.

It IS Lou Reed!🤣

Very nice indeed.

I love that he goes from "I /guess/ that i'm not aware" at the start to "/Thank god/ that i'm not aware" at the end. That's basically the problem

This song may not be the first to use discordance, but there may not be a more effective one. "Waiting for My Man" is another one from the Velvets written about addiction.

I rarely get to this point of the album. It doesn't glorify the experience, and it was probably the definitive take on it, but after one listen, I felt I "got it".

I've never taken drugs and subscribe to New Model Army's "Only Stupid Bastards Use Heroin" school of thought but I've always thought that this is a great song. The lyrics are very well written, Lou Reed's voice sounds wasted but his guitar sound is sublime. Mo Tucker's heartbeat drums add a whole new dimension to the song and a feeling of panic and John Cale's viola as things fall apart is very effective. The lyrics themselves are very much a documentary chronicling the downward spiral of a junkie who loses his grip on reality as he loses himself in his addiction. Lou Reed was a junkie as I would imagine that most of the band and their hangers-on, including Andy Warhol, were. The band was a celebration of indulgence and decadence. I'm not interested in that but in the short time the band existed, it wrote and recorded some wonderful music.

A classic comment, 'The vocalist reminds me of Lou Reed'. 😂

It is Lou

As far as I know, Lou and the other two male band members were all using heroin at the time they recorded this. The drummer, Mo Tucker wasn't.

Have you reacted to Velvet Underground/Loe Reed's - Sweet Jane ? Or if you had try - Cowboy Junkies cover of Sweet Jane

Have you done his 'Perfect Day'?

Good harry!

try it bae

this guy reminds me of Harri Best

It's valuable to hear the original Velvet Underground recordings. But more powerful and entertaining versions of these songs can be found on the classic Lou Reed live album, Rock n Roll Animal. The guitar playing on this album is fantastic.

I will say I like the Rock and Roll Animal solo version better but this being the first...it's pretty cool..check out the other one too.

Everybody screams at once::::: it is lou reed

That shows great musical knowledge, knowing it was lou Reed. ❤️ x

Andy Warhol's world band. That art world back in NYC back then.

This is Lou reed.

Check out a song, give me power,it's by kings something,

never shot before only snorted but this almost makes me wanna try though i know i shouldnt so i won't

I gotta admit i prefer the version lou did a few years later on rock and roll animal. Just more polished with more dramatic ups and downs

My girlfriend shot up and i couldn't tell the difference, (usually). Another one OD'd in a car park - that hit me.

Substitute Fentanyl for Heroin for a modern version. Different drug, same result.

I'll be double six's my next birthday. I got turned on to Lou and the VU in 1975 I think, when I was 19. I read a review in RS which was a good mag at the time a review of Coney Island Baby. I quickly escalated to the VU and I turned on my bestfriend on to what I had "discovered". We got the VU/Lou bug bad and from then on went to see Lou every time he was in LA. Lou, I miss your irreverent ass every damn day.

Oh and one more important point: Lou was a heroin user, and his boyhood was traumatic and featured electro shock therapy administered at the behest of his parents who (among other things) feared he was gay.

Do yourself a big favour and listen to Lou Reed's best (in my opinion), 'I'm Waiting For The Man'. Classic.

I have to say, if you've never taken it you have no reason or right to comment because you're commenting on something you know nothing about. Every single person I ever knew who was into heroin never regretted it and never hated the drug and loved it and there were no nightmares at all. The only issue was you had to score all the time, but otherwise, the best years of my life.

When the Beatles Sgt Pepper came out and was hailed as the 1rst drug album. Lou Reed said excuse me?

The lines in this song are in my opinion, like most of Lou Reed's lyrics very cynical, bordered on the sarcastic. Heroin was discovered by the German pharma company Bayer and named Heroisch (sp?) as the chemists that discovered it believed it a person feel heroic - referenced in the line "Makes me feel like I'm a man"? Or perhaps by scoring again he was able to stop the withdrawals that come 16-24 hours after the last dose and now feel human. I like your analysis but I think you firstl comments on drug users is straight out of the 80s/90s "Just say no" era. By the time someone is addicted to hard drugs like heroin it's not pleasurable any more, they need the drug to just feel normal. Heroin has never been a party drug and has been called a drug of despair, if you ever have the chance to talk to a long term drug addict 99% of the time they've some trauma and start taking the drug to block this out in the same way alcoholics use drink. Addicts may feel temporary relief when they take a drug but it's like self harm in that each time they take it they feel all of the self hate and shame that's pushed them towards this drug in the first place. These drugs destroy not just the users life but that of their family and partners as well, and framing this as a pleasure seeking approach is wrong and ignores the real solution - not alienating people from society and giving them the counseling and mental health support required to help them heal whatever has led them to this point. It's a clichéd line and downplays the issues they face but but it's still pretty true - addicts are sad not bad . Just my views anyway, keep up the good reactions.

I like you and your reviews, but I hate the blasphemous song. He should leave Christ's name out of it!!!

I loved this band. Bought their first album in Cambridge Massachusetts in May of '67. I had never heard them, but the album cover caught my eye and when I saw it was part of an Andy Warhol project I bought it out of curiosity. I was hooked after the first time I listened to it. Only about a week later I got to see them live at the Boston Tea Party. After that I saw them another 4 or 5 times at The Tea Party and a performance at the Boston opening of the movie "The Happening" at the Savoy Theater in Boston late '67. All were among the best live performances I've seen in my lifetime! Almost forget to mention, that was a good an insightful reaction!

This song on the Lou Reed Rock and Roll Animal, live album is epic! That whole album is fire! ✌🤘

Great songs and great music the people around him with Andy house lots people doing drug