White Light/White Heat (studio album)
by The Velvet Underground
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The Velvet Underground bestography
White Light/White Heat is ranked 3rd best out of 18 albums by The Velvet Underground on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by The Velvet Underground is The Velvet Underground & Nico which is ranked number 10 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 40,134.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
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White Light/White Heat track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 86 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
White Light/White Heat rankings
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White Light/White Heat ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 1,413 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 3 days ago |  hoyquarlow | 522 | 76/100 |
| ! | 11/08/2025 04:08 |  pranafilms | 235 | 91/100 |
| ! | 10/22/2025 14:01 |  Tamthebam | 22,815 | 69/100 |
| ! | 10/20/2025 13:30 | markl73 | 495 | 79/100 |
| ! | 10/12/2025 19:56 |  Superunknown | 281 | 70/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 83.6/100, a mean average of 82.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.7/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.3.
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White Light/White Heat comments
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Solid album
LukasAntoine00s 02/02/2022 16:50 | #280472
84.17
El disco más experimental de los Velvets. Tiene opiniones muy divididas. Para algunos solo es ruido, mientras que otros lo consideran uno de los mejores trabajos de VU. Tiene The Gift, tema que no me termina de fascinar. Y también los mejores temas, White Light/White Heat y Sister Ray. Personalmente no es de mis favoritos. Lo ubico #3 después de TVU&N y TVU.
This is peak of the VU creativity, but on there is not their most accesible sound. Song like Sister Ray is good but works only in context of the album.
This is probably the groups least accessible album by a long way but it is also their most experimental and interesting album to explore both sonically and lyrically. The guitars are allowed to pretty much just run free on this album and we are really rewarded for them doing that. We get that classic VU screeching guitar noise all over this record and there are times when they are fighting over which one can play louder which makes for some incredible moments on Sister Ray. The lyrics are amazing and so diverse and every time I listen to this record I am stunned by the genius and engaging lyrics that Reed gave us. They are delivered brilliantly by him as well. Every track is great and has its moments to shine and each cut is completely unique and the variety we are treated to is amazing. Instrumentally, I think they are at the strongest on this record and also on The Velvet Underground And Nico as demonstrated best on Sister Ray which is up there with one of their best ever tracks. Overall, an absolute classic from VU and while on first listen it may seem a little abrasive, once you have given it a few more tries you will fall in love with this album just like I have.
Me parece aburrido
I live on a really strange island where I think this album is really underrated. It's SO different than the self titled and eventual masterpiece with Nico, but somehow captures the VU charm.
This is the velvet underground a the peak of their avant garde period, and is their least accessible record. I would say it's a step down from the debut, but not by much at all.
Standout tracks: Title track, The gift, Sister ray
Incredibly ambitious noise-rock/indie rock record. Not as much a landmark as their debut, but definitely an album that pushed both genres forward and solidified Lou Reed as one of the best, if not the best, songwriters of his generation.
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VictorVale 12/22/2020 12:44 | #263058
O melhor desse álbum é a sua sujeira!
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