Posted on 10/27/2013 10:58:25 AM PDT by BunnySlippers
Lou Reed, a massively influential songwriter and guitarist who helped shape nearly fifty years of rock music, died today. The cause of his death has not yet been released, but Reed underwent a liver transplant in May.
(Excerpt) Read more at rollingstone.com ...
Lou Reed dies at 71?
Got 40 more years then anyone expected
Maybe it’s just me, but I always thought he was over-rated
You are correct.
A former Rolling Stone critic aid that he once called the record studio Reed recorded for and asked if there were any plans for a new and remastered edition of ‘Metal Machine Music’...there was some mild laughter on the other end of the line and the record company employee hung up...when the critic heard the dial tone he thought they were playing him the newly remastered edition of Metal Machine Music.
Rock’n’Roll Animal is in my top five live albums, just a fantastic guitar driven frenzy of rock. Dick Wagner and Steve Hunter play duel lead guitar, and later went on to join the Alice Cooper band. I could never get into the Velvet era or his solo studio albums. Supposedly Velvet fans don’t dig it too much and Lou Reed himself came out and said he wasn’t a fan of it. Maybe it wasn’t whiny or brooding enough.
RIP
Freegards
Well, well, well, alcohol, drugs and rock ‘n roll. Always together, I’m surprised he made it to 71.
To paraphrase Katherine Hepburn in African Queen, ‘may he be judged not for his weaknesses but his strengths’.
I did love Walk on the wild side.
This was at a venue in Atlanta (Metroplex) that was torn down for the Olympics.
Yes actually massively influential. David Bowie used to quip that while only a couple thousand people bought the first VU album when it came out all of them, including him, immediately formed bands. If the only influence Reed had was putting out the album that convinced Bowie there was an audience for his music (Bowie’s words) he’d be a huge influence. But he had a lot more influence than that, the whole depressing section of the rock catalog (aka “the good part”) has its roots in Reed.
Cale just died recently too?
As far as “covers” go, I’ve always thought the Cowboy Junkies doing “Sweet Jane” was the best of them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHRFZFmEq9o
That is great, but I bet that it only “Bubbled Under the Top 100” of Billboard, where as I recall a log of great singles could be found at one time.
The band he had for Rock N’ Roll Animal, especially Hunter and Wagner on guitars, was pretty good.
I think that’s what happened the Harry Nilsson. I loved his music but he was a druggie and burned out way before his time. He began anti-gun when his friend John Lennon was shot. I think he actually make anti-gun commercials.
Love it! So moody. I just put it up on Pinterest as well.
Looks like that band has been around for awhile!
I was 15, and my boyfriend brought me a reel of quarter inch tape that had all the “Underground” music of the 60’s, which later evolved into the Rock of the 70’s.
I played that tape on my dad’s “Roberts” Reel-to-reel Tape recorder so many times it got all stretched out.
And yes, VU was well represented.
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