Sunday Morning – The Velvet Undeground
One of the most well-known, if not the most, Velvet Underground songs, “Sunday Morning” is a sickly sweet, introspective look at life.
The song was written with Nico‘s voice in mind, but Lou decided to sing it himself. Nico does take back up vocals though!
I’ve seen quite a few interpretations of “Sunday Morning” online, with many relating to the idea of paranoia, with Lou Reed himself saying the song is about the paranoia he felt while coming down from an amphetamine high. Musically, this song feels pretty calming, like a lullaby, with Lou delicately singing some deep themes. A lot of others have described the lyrics as “dark,” but I don’t necessarily agree. While I do think paranoia is the central theme here, I don’t think Lou was trying to come off as edgy as a lot of people seem to think. I interpret it as just being alone with your own thoughts, which can certainly lead to a lot of overthinking, even while having a good peace of mind or being in a tranquil state. Almost like dreading going into work on a Monday, it may be stress and anxiety-inducing in some aspects, but life still goes on.
My favorite lyrics are –
Watch out the world’s behind you
There’s always someone around you
Who will call
It’s nothing at all
Something about the way they are presented, maybe it’s the peacefulness of the music, but they do seem to make me feel a sense of calm. There’s a lot of layers here. I’ve also seen the song described as someone looking back on their life from a deathbed, which is an interesting way to view the meaning, and I think it can certainly apply. I love songs like this; a certain mystique to the lyrics that leaves us to ponder.
My Taste in Music 
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