Brief thoughts of Lou Reed on his 75th

Lou Reed would’ve been 75 today. I can still remember sitting in the great Bruce Harris’ office at RCA records, in 1984 or 1985–I was interning for the summer–talking about guitarists. I was trying to explain to him why Yngwie Malmsteen was a great player when Bruce help up a hand. Want to hear great fucking guitar playing? And perfect words? Listen to this! And he put on Vicious. “That’s Mick Ronson playing with Lou Reed.” I was blown back in my chair. It was the perfect moment for Lou to come into my life. The words just cut through me. I went, that day, and got all the albums. And listened to them closely for the rest of that summer. Then got all the Velvet’s records. Memorized those. When Mistrial came out, I dove right in. Went to see him live. When New York came out 5 years later, I was ready for it in every way, and it instantly and forever became one of the most important albums in my life, one I have never gone three weeks without listening to since.
I know Lou was a difficult cat. I met him once, shook his hand, got nothing from him at all. But the songs and records have given me everything. I would say, lifetime, I have listened to Bob Dylan the most, then rem, Bruce and Lou. (Jason Isbell is fast catching up, but that’s a different post at a different time). Each of those artists has felt like a close friend, like a shoulder, like a teacher.
As a writer, Lou’s economy of words, his bite, his willingness to lose you because he knows he’ll get you back, has been a constant inspiration.
He would’ve turned 75 today.
Fuck. I hate when the greats pass on.
Bruce Harris is gone too, much too young, but I am forever grateful for Vicious and all it’s given me since.
Happy Birthday, Lou.