― jimet, Tuesday, 5 October 2004 11:36 (nineteen years ago) link
Couldn't be - because they were certified gold not long after they came out.
― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 12:57 (nineteen years ago) link
So, basically, he is the Woody Allen of rock.
― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 12:58 (nineteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 12:59 (nineteen years ago) link
Metal Machine Music is the sexiest album ever made, mark you.
― Marcello Carlin, Tuesday, 5 October 2004 13:49 (nineteen years ago) link
― briania (briania), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:12 (nineteen years ago) link
― Marcello Carlin, Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:17 (nineteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:21 (nineteen years ago) link
― Marcello Carlin, Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:33 (nineteen years ago) link
― Marcello Carlin, Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:35 (nineteen years ago) link
― Dadaismus (Dada), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 14:37 (nineteen years ago) link
― briania (briania), Tuesday, 5 October 2004 15:22 (nineteen years ago) link
Reed moved from RCA to Arista in 1976, and then back to RCA again in 1981 until 1986. His albums may not have all been massive hits, but he had a solid fanbase which insured that his albums would sell X number of copies. He enjoyed a certain amount of success with Transformer, Rock and Roll Animal, Coney Island Baby and Sally Can't Dance during his initial RCA run, and then with New Sensations and possibly Mistrial during the second run (the videos for "The Original Wrapper" and "Video Violence" certainly received a lot of airplay here in Canada). When he left RCA the first time, he was in debt to them for $700000, so they must have seen some potential for profit to sign him again five years later. It was also about this time that The Velvet Underground was finally beginning to receive some recognition for their influence on modern musicians and their albums began to appear in print again in the USA. So the VU "legend" may have played a part in his re-signing to RCA (or not being dropped during this time), but it certainly wasn't helping him shift units in the US in the mid 1970s. There was no VU Legend in the 1970s.
What is it that labels see now? It must be The Legend. I doubt he will ever duplicate the success of New York. I can't stand the way he sings now and thus can't rate his last few albums (the VU live 93 album was the last straw), so your guess is as good as mine.
Also, the RIAA only logs US sales innit? The labels don't care about international sales because they aren't making the profits.
― Kent Burt (lingereffect), Wednesday, 6 October 2004 05:33 (nineteen years ago) link
I am kinda diggin Rock n Roll Heart tbh
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:47 (fifteen years ago) link
That's my favourite one, dude!
― To Float Away On A Lifelong Song (Bimble), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:49 (fifteen years ago) link
The line about New Wave films is batshit awesome.
― I'm crossing over into enterprise (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:49 (fifteen years ago) link
the lounge jazz version of Sheltered Life is endearing
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:50 (fifteen years ago) link
lou's faux populism is so good it's almost not faux. R&R Heart always has me thinking, "yeah, i don't like opera and ballet either! yeahhhh."
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 19:53 (fifteen years ago) link
is this the same band as on Coney Island Baby...? It bears some sonic similarities, although this one gets a little more left-field with some of the distorted guitar tones and processed vocals, and the songs are simpler and lighter in general.
fwiw I do not like opera or ballet either lolz
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:54 (fifteen years ago) link
Yeah, that whole album is just killer. The one "Ladies Pay" about the ladies who miss their men at war especially gets me every time. And the piano! Oh god.
― To Float Away On A Lifelong Song (Bimble), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:55 (fifteen years ago) link
not sure if it's the same band as Coney Island -- i don't think so? maybe some of the same dudes. But yeah, this one does have some odd production choices. The superfuzz guitar on the title track is fun.
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 19:55 (fifteen years ago) link
^^^yes Ladies Pay! good stuff
Banging on a Drum rhythm track is fairly insane, was not expecting that from Lou
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:56 (fifteen years ago) link
I'm thinkin the drummer in particular sounds like the same guy... I should just look it up
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:57 (fifteen years ago) link
ah. yes. the rhythm section + keyboardist are all the same
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 19:59 (fifteen years ago) link
yeah ... innaresting that lou plays all the guitar on R&R Heart, apparently?
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 20:01 (fifteen years ago) link
let's take a minute to pay trib to this dude: http://www.iridescentmusic.ca/fonf.html
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 20:06 (fifteen years ago) link
what is it about old men and terrible hawaiian shirts
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 20:10 (fifteen years ago) link
maybe it's just something that happens to you, you know? like you wake up one day and you've got nothing but hawaiian shirts in your closet. and it feels good.
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 20:12 (fifteen years ago) link
Yeah I think Hawaiian shirts are cool, actually, especially on older men.
― To Float Away On A Lifelong Song (Bimble), Friday, 10 April 2009 20:58 (fifteen years ago) link
but... you're onstage, not on vacation!
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 21:04 (fifteen years ago) link
love these shirtshttp://z.about.com/d/classicrock/1/0/I/9/velvetundergroundc.jpg
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 21:07 (fifteen years ago) link
someone told me that tai chi album he made was surprisingly decent ambient
― d20 riot tard (M@tt He1ges0n), Friday, 10 April 2009 21:08 (fifteen years ago) link
umm it's ok? i mean, i'm not sure if i'd be super into it if i didn't know it was Lou Reed. but because i know it is him, I AM SUPER INTO IT. to a certain extent. I bought the fucking thing, anyway.
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 21:09 (fifteen years ago) link
(well, d/l'd from emusic, which isn't quite the same thing)
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 21:10 (fifteen years ago) link
those VU shirts are NOT hawaiian come on now!
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 21:19 (fifteen years ago) link
yeah, you're right. i just like that picture. VU at the Zoo!
― tylerw, Friday, 10 April 2009 21:20 (fifteen years ago) link
Check out these Lou Reed acoustic demos from 1970, they are quite awesome:
http://croz.fm/files/category-lou-reed.php
― thirdalternative, Friday, 10 April 2009 23:06 (fifteen years ago) link
whoah!
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 10 April 2009 23:16 (fifteen years ago) link
Grab 'em fast, I hear this site is getting shut down any minute now...
― thirdalternative, Friday, 10 April 2009 23:29 (fifteen years ago) link
Yeah I love that pic, too, Tyler. Notice Lou's pants as well. He's got the best outfit of them all.
― To Float Away On A Lifelong Song (Bimble), Friday, 10 April 2009 23:33 (fifteen years ago) link
Okay I'm gonna grab me these acoustic demos now. I've never had the courage to listen to his first solo album until now but I gotta tell you those backup singers on "I Can't Stand It" were a no-no.
― Lucking Faptop (Bimble), Saturday, 11 April 2009 14:55 (fifteen years ago) link
those acoustic demos are pretty good -- think i have them on one of those VU Ultra Rare Trax bootlegs. "Ride Into The Sun" is particularly nice. Lou's first solo album is fascinating, though not always in a good way. Hard to know what kind of sound exactly they were going for?
― tylerw, Saturday, 11 April 2009 17:30 (fifteen years ago) link
I was thinking of Follow the Leader here - that sorta Headhunterish jazz-funk groove. very odd. also is it me or do the lyrics namecheck Ornette?
― This Board is a Prison on Planet Bullshit (Shakey Mo Collier), Monday, 13 April 2009 15:13 (fifteen years ago) link
Convinced Bowie ripped off the feel of that track, rhythmwise, for "Look Back in Anger"
― Sacco, Vanzetti, Passantino... (Tom D.), Tuesday, 14 April 2009 08:54 (fifteen years ago) link
Yeah the first time I heard "Follow The Leader" (long before I'd heard the rest of the album) I was shocked. It wasn't exactly what I was expecting from Lou Reed, and damn funky. I'd only gone looking for it because of the song on the Velvet Underground Quine Tapes by the same name which absolutely killed me, albeit in an entirely different way. Shakey have you heard that?
― Take The Gothheads Bowling (Bimble), Tuesday, 14 April 2009 09:01 (fifteen years ago) link
One thing I only recently realised is how much he depended on Velvet outtakes during his 70s solo years. The debut album is almost all VU material. Transformer is, what, about half VU material. Even Berlin is about half VU songs! As late as Street Hassle in 1978, he's still pulling out old VU songs from the bottom drawer.
― Zelda Zonk, Tuesday, 14 April 2009 09:37 (fifteen years ago) link
Really??? I don't think of Berlin as borrowed from Velvets material at all.
― Take The Gothheads Bowling (Bimble), Tuesday, 14 April 2009 09:42 (fifteen years ago) link
Certainly not Street Hassle.
Men Of Good Fortune, Oh Jim, Caroline Says II and Sad Song were all first done by the Velvets. The title track is also recycled.
It's got Real Good Time Together on it
― Zelda Zonk, Tuesday, 14 April 2009 09:48 (fifteen years ago) link
"Men of Good Fortune" is a Velvets' song?
― Sacco, Vanzetti, Passantino... (Tom D.), Tuesday, 14 April 2009 09:50 (fifteen years ago) link
"How in the world were they makin' that sound?/Velvet Underground"
― timellison, Wednesday, 19 September 2018 17:51 (five years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAXYW-Bft5A
― sleeve, Wednesday, 19 September 2018 17:57 (five years ago) link
(Phil Milstein, from the quasi-bootleg What Goes On 3CD on Australian Raven label)
I can listen past the production. The arrangements and playing are great.
I don't think the arrangements or playing are great - it's true they are on "I Love You" though. I like the album btw!
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Wednesday, 19 September 2018 17:58 (five years ago) link
even their rhythm playing is quite distinct.
Well...I don't see how the guitar on "Lady Godiva's Operation" sounds unlike a Morrison part.
― timellison, Wednesday, 19 September 2018 18:02 (five years ago) link
Maybe not in every single song!
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Wednesday, 19 September 2018 18:05 (five years ago) link
Ha, that was the first one I checked...
― timellison, Wednesday, 19 September 2018 18:10 (five years ago) link
Adding my thanks to Shakey for the link - I just got up early and stretched out breakfast listening to Street Hassle and reading it, I don't think I've enjoyed the start of the day quite so much in a while.
― an incoherent crustacean (MatthewK), Wednesday, 19 September 2018 21:18 (five years ago) link
lmao @ mistrial
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:33 (five years ago) link
you're payin' a price where there's no price to paylove is trustno money down
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:40 (five years ago) link
YET
"Tell It To Your Heart" is a classic.
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:41 (five years ago) link
yeah that song and "outside" are really good
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:48 (five years ago) link
thought you were going to say "Mama's Got a Lover"
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:50 (five years ago) link
lol i nearly did admit that i like that "the original wrapper" exists in lou reed's discography
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Thursday, 20 September 2018 23:54 (five years ago) link
The video jukeboxes are-aplayin Madonna
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:00 (five years ago) link
I've never heard "Mistrial". I consider myself a Lou Reed fan too. Shame on me.
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:01 (five years ago) link
before the streaming age you could 99-cent copies on Amazon
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:03 (five years ago) link
No doubt!
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:03 (five years ago) link
wow even Discogs has nothing below $2.99 plus shipping, still too much!
― sleeve, Friday, 21 September 2018 00:06 (five years ago) link
Mistrial >>>>> Berlin
I love how Mistrial gets dismissed most often for "dated production" when fucking Bob Ezrin's despair-on-mothballs arrangements don't scream the seventies, and the songs suck.
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:10 (five years ago) link
Now, you've gone too far.
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:18 (five years ago) link
The currents rage so deep inside us This is the age of video violenc
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:22 (five years ago) link
mistrial is up there with take no prisoners as his funniest record
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:28 (five years ago) link
the best video everhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiyX70ZqsVQ
― an incoherent crustacean (MatthewK), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:28 (five years ago) link
"Growing Up In Public" is a hoot too.
― Zach Same (Tom D.), Friday, 21 September 2018 00:29 (five years ago) link
I think the time is ripe for an "Alfred's 80s records challops" thread
and I wish that it be a cheerful thread
― niels, Friday, 21 September 2018 06:46 (five years ago) link
I thought this was that thread?
Preferring Mistrial to Berlin isn't a challops. A B or B- is a better grade than a C+ or C.
― The Silky Veils of Alfred (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 21 September 2018 11:04 (five years ago) link
I meant for a thread to include more artists than Lou!
― niels, Friday, 21 September 2018 11:30 (five years ago) link
idk i can't agree with alfred on berlin, outside of the arrangements all the songs on it seem v well written to me
― princess of hell (BradNelson), Friday, 21 September 2018 12:04 (five years ago) link
the (relatively) recent concert movie was v rewarding
― niels, Friday, 21 September 2018 12:50 (five years ago) link
I don't know Mistrial apart from the two singles, which are OK. But Berlin is an album I've lived with all my teen/adult life and means an awful lot to me, melodramatic orchestration and all. I hadn't realised until recently though that half the tracks were recycled from VU days. It's amazing that he was recycling VU tracks right up to Street Hassle and maybe beyond.
Listening to the eponymous 1972 album right now and it's sounding pretty good, albeit sort of Loaded II
― Zelda Zonk, Friday, 21 September 2018 13:35 (five years ago) link
^Right?
― growing up in publix (morrisp), Friday, 21 September 2018 14:38 (five years ago) link
I suppose Street Hassle's ranking might uh rankle.. It's not much beyond the great title track.
― TikTok to the (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 7 October 2019 01:08 (four years ago) link