Words & Music, May 1965 (Deluxe Edition) ［2LP+7inch］

ルー・リード・アーカイヴ・シリーズ第一弾の限定2LP+7inch盤！!この未発表曲集は、若き日のルー・リードが、後にバンドメンバーとなるジョン・ケイルの協力を得てテープに録音、「貧者の著作権」として彼自身に郵送したもので、50年近く未開封のまま残ってたもの。20世紀のアメリカのポピュラー音楽の核ともいえるようなサウンドを多く収録しており、民謡の伝統に根ざしたこれらの曲を検証することで、パンクからアート・ロックまで、現代のアメリカ音楽の発展にルー・リードの影響が続いていることが明らかになるような内容。真のタイムカプセルであるこれらの録音は、ベルベット・アンダーグラウンドの種となる初期の衝動を捉えるだけでなく、言葉の持つパワーをサウンドへとどのように昇華していくかがありありとわかるような内容。後にバンドメイトとなるジョン・ケイルも参加した本作には、「Heroin」「I'm Waiting for the Man」「Pale Blue Eyes」など、ヴェルヴェット・アンダーグラウンドとして歴史に残る楽曲群の最も初期の録音を完全収録。また、創作過程や初期の影響についてさらなる洞察を与える未発表楽曲もいくつか収録。

Just as much as Bob Dylan, Lou Reed changed how rock songs were written when he emerged as an artist in the mid-60s. Reed brought a bold emotional maturity to his lyrics that was absent from rock songwriting when the Velvet Underground first surfaced in 1966, and he tackled subject matter verboten in pop music at the time. However, while Dylan seemed to emerge fully formed after the hiccup of his first album with 1963s The Freewheelin Bob Dylan (the first LP where his original tunes dominated the set list), it took a little longer for Reed to find his voice as a tunesmith. He had recently started working with John Cale when he made a rough tape in May 1965 to document songs hed been working on, which he mailed to himself as a "poor mans copyright" and then set aside. After Reeds death, archivists discovered the tape in his offices, and found it included the earliest known recordings of several VU classics, along with tunes previously lost to the ages. Words & Music, May 1965 allows fans to hear this music for the first time, and its historically priceless stuff. Reed is backed just by his acoustic guitar, and this music suggests the influence of the folk-leaning singer/songwriters of the time in a way his work with the Velvets would not. These songs were works in progress, and hearing "Heroin" and "Pale Blue Eyes" while he was still toying with the lyrics is fascinating. If "Too Late," "Walk Alone," and "Men of Good Fortune" (the latter not the song that would appear on 1973s Berlin) werent great Lou Reed songs, theyre certainly good ones, and they add a wealth of detail to this portrait of a songwriter honing his craft. Its also a warts-and-all demo recorded on an amateur tape recorder in someones apartment, presented here with all the flubs, false starts, and bursts of laughter left in. This isnt the work of a musician striving to preserve his work in its best light, but a lo-fi tape meant to document his rough drafts while they were still fresh in his mind. Devoted fans will note that this bears a certain resemblance to the acoustic demos that appear on disc one of the Velvet Underground box set Peel Slowly and See, except this is a noticeably rougher, sloppier performance. Most importantly, this shows that while Reed was close to the goal line in terms of his songs, musically he hadnt formulated the bracing electric sound that was so important to the Velvet Underground (or if he had, he wasnt trying to capture it that evening). This is a major find and a fascinating document for serious fans, but from a strictly musical standpoint, the average listener will only find this enjoyable for so long. If youre a historically minded Lou Reed completist, Words & Music, May 1965 is a must. Others are advised to approach with caution and keep their expectations in check. ~ Mark Deming