Aquarium Drunkard Presents: Thank You Lou Reed
I was in the desert yesterday, driving back to LA from a weekend in Joshua Tree, when I heard the news - Lou Reed, dead at 71. A transformative artist, if Reed managed to get his hooks in you, he changed you. And that was it. Reed was the keynote speaker at SXSW in Austin a few years back. Listening to his exchange that morning with interviewer (music producer) Hal Wilner, I recall thinking about how long his music had been with me. The schlocky, beat up, 'greatest hits' cassette I happened upon in middle school, in hindsight, served as a sort of lexicon for the worlds of punk, glam, garage, avant-garde and more. Something like encountering a Rosetta stone before you even know what needs deciphering.
That's what I was thinking about out there in the desert. A moment of gratitude for someone who I never met, but whose work, whose legacy, shaped my musical tastes and beyond.
This week's playlist is a grouping of twenty Lou Reed solo cuts following his departure from The Velvet Underground. Rest in peace.
ABOUT AQUARIUM DRUNKARD
Based in Los Angeles, Justin Gage is the founder of the long-running, eclectic music blog Aquarium Drunkard. In addition to the blog you can catch his weekly radio show, Fridays, on SIRIUS XMU satellite radio -- noon-2pm EST.
Gage is also the founder of Autumn Tone Records and works as a music consultant and supervisor.
