John Cale is set to perform 'The Velvet Underground & Nico' at three very special shows.
The musician was a founding member of the New York art-rock group, who helped to completely re-define how rock music was made and considered.
Released in 1967, 'The Velvet Underground & Nico' enjoyed a remarkable sleeper success – as Brian Eno once put it, everyone who bought a copy formed a band.
Never one to dwell on the past, John Cale has decided to celebrate the album's 50th anniversary with a trio of special shows at New York, Paris, and Liverpool – the port he sailed from on his journey to America.
John Cale commented:
"I'm often reluctant to spend too much time on things past – then, a time marker shows up – The Velvet Underground & Nico turns fifty! As so many bands can attest to, it is the fulfilment of the ultimate dream to record your first album. We were an unfriendly brand, dabbling in a world of challenging lyrics and weird sonics that didn't fit into anyone's playlist at the time."
"Remaining ferociously true to our viewpoints, Lou and I never doubted for a moment we could create something to give a voice to things not regularly explored in rock music at the time. That bizarre combination of four distinctly disparate musicians and a reluctant beauty queen perfectly summed up what it meant to be The Velvet Underground."
John Cale will play Liverpool Docklands on May 26th.