10 ms·

The year Lou Reed gave up on music

56 points by benbreen 3y ago

classichasclass 3y ago
And here I thought this was going to be about "Machine Metal Music," which is perversely listenable if you are a fan of tape hiss (no Dolby required). A nice, gauzy snapshot of a tumultuous time.
- rufus_foreman 3y ago
  Machine Metal Music is great. I didn't listen to it for the longest time because I was told it was just white noise, but it is...not that. Used to listen to it while studying to block out background noise.
  - rainonmoon 3y ago
    Seconding this. After a while you start to hear the rhythms in it. The apocryphal stories about its creation make it all the more fun to listen to and it invites challenging your own preconceived notions about what you like about music (i.e. does it really matter if he Actually Made It or if he just shoved a bunch of guitars up against amps and let the reverb play itself? And even if he did is that different to Actually Making It anyway?)
ramblerman 3y ago
I think Lou Reed is a "true artist" outside of the commercial realm, which is a quality to his credit but also to his detriment. Sometimes these artists also forget they are entertainers. I saw him 15 years ago in Leuven, Belgium and he played a great concert with all his new songs, ofc at the end of the night the crowd was crying out for more, especially "perfect day" and "walk on the wild side". He conceded and did play them but with great disdain, and it was obvious that he loathed playing them. 15 years later that is really all I remember from the concert. As a comparison, I also saw the rolling stones (7 years ago in edinburgh), who in contrast were more than happy to play their classic hits, with the original vigour and energy. And it is one of my best memories. I understand both, but it seems the line between artist and entertainer is a fine one and I can't help but think that the artists who share in the joy of entertaining are probably happier in the process. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Lou Reed is a bit of a tortured soul who probably makes his own path harder than it needs to be - and this article confirms that.
- eweise 3y ago
  I guess I got lucky. I saw him on on his New York album tour. Great songs on that album so no need to hear prior hits although I think he did play walk on the wild side.
- pixl97 3y ago
  Being a victim of one's own success is a common fate for artists. We see this in edgy animated shows all the time where something shocking eventually turns into fan service.
  - disqard 3y ago
    I learned the phrase "audience capture" recently: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31938353 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31938353
- kjkjadksj 3y ago
  What a poor attitude honestly. He’s lucky enough to come up with hit songs that have been known for decades, he should be smiling anytime someone asks him to play one because that means he made it in a way the vast majority of musicians never do.
  - popularrecluse 3y ago
    Not everyone makes music for the consumption and enjoyment of other people. Sometimes it's just a side-effect.
    - mannykannot 3y ago
      Fair enough, but here, we are considering the situation where Lou Reed chose to perform before a paying audience. Dave Brubeck, who performed almost to the end of his life, never seemed tired of playing 'Take Five' as the finale to his set, and it was not even his composition.
      - 3y ago
ciconia 3y ago
https://archive.ph/xetF0 https://archive.ph/xetF0
jdblair 3y ago
I’m half-way through the article and Sweet Jane is stuck in my head. I listened to “The Very Best of the Velvet Underground” so much on my Walkman in the late 80’s that I wore the tape out.
6stringmerc 3y ago
[flagged]
- meandave 3y ago
  who is lulu
  - IndrekR 3y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulu_(Lou_Reed_and_Metallica_album) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulu_(Lou_Reed_and_Metallica_a...
- foldr 3y ago
  That's a lot of anger directed at some people who made some music you don't like.
- hermiod 3y ago
  Lulu is Metallica's only good album though.
- aodonnell2536 3y ago
  Warhol and Reed were buddies, as far as I’m aware
- coldtea 3y ago
  That's just low effort picking a popular opinion for a hate target.
- wahnfrieden 3y ago
  Lulu is terrific!
- janstice 3y ago
  Lulu was worth a go on the strength of “Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal”, which is and always will be a top 5 live album - play it really loud. Don’t bother with earbuds or headphones.
rufus_foreman 3y ago
"Reed clomped down the staircase and out onto the avenue. He stowed his guitar in the trunk of his parents’ car, and Sid Reed drove home to the old house in Freeport, where his son would be staying for a while." Sounds like something out of a Wes Anderson movie. Guess it should be the mom not the dad though.
bwanab 3y ago
It's funny that they picked the relatively short time between VU and Walk on the Wild Side to focus on instead of the long period prior to New Sensations. I saw him at the Beacon in the early 90s. What a great show. As he famously said, "You can't beat two guitars, bass, and drums."
jonstewart 3y ago
RIP. I loved reading this article last night. I don't understand the disdain expressed here in the comments, but there's much I don't understand about the HN comments. Here's a great video of Sweet Jane from a concert in Paris, 1974: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw
baby 3y ago
Please stop sharing paywall articles
- dang 3y ago
  If there's a workaround, it's ok. Users usually post workarounds in the thread. This is in the FAQ at https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html and there's more explanation here: https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&sort=byDate&type=comment&query=paywalls%20by:dang https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&so... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10178989 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10178989
achairapart 3y ago
Fun fact: Lou Reed poems were published in a “Special Poetry Supplement” to The Harvard Advocate[0] (as Louis Reed!) around that time (1971). There is a poem called "The Coach and Glory of Love" that is in fact the very song "Coney Island Baby" from the homonymous album released later in 1976[1]. [0]: https://theadvocateblogdotnet.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/from-the-archives-the-velvet-undergrounds-lou-reed/#more-270 https://theadvocateblogdotnet.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/from-... [1]: https://theadvocateblogdotnet.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/pg2.jpg https://theadvocateblogdotnet.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/pg...
raydiatian 3y ago
Why do people unironically like “Walk On The Wild Side” Answer: “can I kick it? Yes you can.”
hackandthink 3y ago
So Lou Reed had written "Walk on the Wild Side" before he recorded his first solo album which did not feature this song. Actually I like his first album more than "Transformer": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed_(album) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed_(album)

56 points by benbreen 3y ago

And here I thought this was going to be about "Machine Metal Music," which is perversely listenable if you are a fan of tape hiss (no Dolby required). A nice, gauzy snapshot of a tumultuous time.

rufus_foreman 3y ago
Machine Metal Music is great. I didn't listen to it for the longest time because I was told it was just white noise, but it is...not that. Used to listen to it while studying to block out background noise.
- rainonmoon 3y ago
  Seconding this. After a while you start to hear the rhythms in it. The apocryphal stories about its creation make it all the more fun to listen to and it invites challenging your own preconceived notions about what you like about music (i.e. does it really matter if he Actually Made It or if he just shoved a bunch of guitars up against amps and let the reverb play itself? And even if he did is that different to Actually Making It anyway?)

ramblerman 3y ago

I think Lou Reed is a "true artist" outside of the commercial realm, which is a quality to his credit but also to his detriment. Sometimes these artists also forget they are entertainers. I saw him 15 years ago in Leuven, Belgium and he played a great concert with all his new songs, ofc at the end of the night the crowd was crying out for more, especially "perfect day" and "walk on the wild side". He conceded and did play them but with great disdain, and it was obvious that he loathed playing them. 15 years later that is really all I remember from the concert. As a comparison, I also saw the rolling stones (7 years ago in edinburgh), who in contrast were more than happy to play their classic hits, with the original vigour and energy. And it is one of my best memories. I understand both, but it seems the line between artist and entertainer is a fine one and I can't help but think that the artists who share in the joy of entertaining are probably happier in the process. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Lou Reed is a bit of a tortured soul who probably makes his own path harder than it needs to be - and this article confirms that.

eweise 3y ago
I guess I got lucky. I saw him on on his New York album tour. Great songs on that album so no need to hear prior hits although I think he did play walk on the wild side.
pixl97 3y ago
Being a victim of one's own success is a common fate for artists. We see this in edgy animated shows all the time where something shocking eventually turns into fan service.
- disqard 3y ago
  I learned the phrase "audience capture" recently: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31938353 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31938353
kjkjadksj 3y ago
What a poor attitude honestly. He’s lucky enough to come up with hit songs that have been known for decades, he should be smiling anytime someone asks him to play one because that means he made it in a way the vast majority of musicians never do.
- popularrecluse 3y ago
  Not everyone makes music for the consumption and enjoyment of other people. Sometimes it's just a side-effect.
  - mannykannot 3y ago
    Fair enough, but here, we are considering the situation where Lou Reed chose to perform before a paying audience. Dave Brubeck, who performed almost to the end of his life, never seemed tired of playing 'Take Five' as the finale to his set, and it was not even his composition.
    - 3y ago

ciconia 3y ago

https://archive.ph/xetF0 https://archive.ph/xetF0

jdblair 3y ago

I’m half-way through the article and Sweet Jane is stuck in my head. I listened to “The Very Best of the Velvet Underground” so much on my Walkman in the late 80’s that I wore the tape out.

6stringmerc 3y ago

[flagged]

meandave 3y ago
who is lulu
- IndrekR 3y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulu_(Lou_Reed_and_Metallica_album) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lulu_(Lou_Reed_and_Metallica_a...
foldr 3y ago
That's a lot of anger directed at some people who made some music you don't like.
hermiod 3y ago
Lulu is Metallica's only good album though.
aodonnell2536 3y ago
Warhol and Reed were buddies, as far as I’m aware
coldtea 3y ago
That's just low effort picking a popular opinion for a hate target.
wahnfrieden 3y ago
Lulu is terrific!
janstice 3y ago
Lulu was worth a go on the strength of “Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal”, which is and always will be a top 5 live album - play it really loud. Don’t bother with earbuds or headphones.

rufus_foreman 3y ago

"Reed clomped down the staircase and out onto the avenue. He stowed his guitar in the trunk of his parents’ car, and Sid Reed drove home to the old house in Freeport, where his son would be staying for a while." Sounds like something out of a Wes Anderson movie. Guess it should be the mom not the dad though.

bwanab 3y ago

It's funny that they picked the relatively short time between VU and Walk on the Wild Side to focus on instead of the long period prior to New Sensations. I saw him at the Beacon in the early 90s. What a great show. As he famously said, "You can't beat two guitars, bass, and drums."

jonstewart 3y ago

RIP. I loved reading this article last night. I don't understand the disdain expressed here in the comments, but there's much I don't understand about the HN comments. Here's a great video of Sweet Jane from a concert in Paris, 1974: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc26EFI1_nw

baby 3y ago

Please stop sharing paywall articles

dang 3y ago
If there's a workaround, it's ok. Users usually post workarounds in the thread. This is in the FAQ at https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsfaq.html and there's more explanation here: https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&sort=byDate&type=comment&query=paywalls%20by:dang https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&so... https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10178989 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10178989

achairapart 3y ago

Fun fact: Lou Reed poems were published in a “Special Poetry Supplement” to The Harvard Advocate[0] (as Louis Reed!) around that time (1971). There is a poem called "The Coach and Glory of Love" that is in fact the very song "Coney Island Baby" from the homonymous album released later in 1976[1]. [0]: https://theadvocateblogdotnet.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/from-the-archives-the-velvet-undergrounds-lou-reed/#more-270 https://theadvocateblogdotnet.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/from-... [1]: https://theadvocateblogdotnet.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/pg2.jpg https://theadvocateblogdotnet.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/pg...

raydiatian 3y ago

Why do people unironically like “Walk On The Wild Side” Answer: “can I kick it? Yes you can.”

hackandthink 3y ago

So Lou Reed had written "Walk on the Wild Side" before he recorded his first solo album which did not feature this song. Actually I like his first album more than "Transformer": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed_(album) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed_(album)