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Velvet Underground & Nico The Velvet Underground (sometimes abbreviated as The Velvets or VU) was an American rock band first active from 1965 to 1973. Its best-known alumni are Lou Reed and John Cale.
Although never commercially successful during their time, The Velvet Underground remains an influential rock band; a famous remark, often attributed to Brian Eno, is that while only a few thousand people bought a Velvet Underground record upon their initial release, almost every single one of them was inspired to start a band.
The Velvet Underground was one of the first rock music groups to incorporate avant-garde influences.[citation needed] The group's often raw, sometimes difficult sound influenced many later punk, noise rock, and alternative music performers, and singer Lou Reed's lyrics brought new levels of social realism and sleaze to rock. Critics Scott Isler and Ira Robbins argue that "The Velvet Underground marked a turning point in rock history. After the release of The Velvet Underground and Nico, knowing the power of which it was capable, the music could never be as innocent, as unselfconscious as before."
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