Pants not against the latest men's fashions. Cool tennis shoes. Couldn't see the brand, must have been
adidas... Anyway! One of the best things in this concert was Lou's reflection in the mirror-like glass case surrounding Tony's drums... the reflection of his
smile. Several times during the concert. I had a good seat. :)
My highlights: definitely Street Hassle. I overheard it during the rehersal and what a sensation... the first time alone, but twice?! Fernando did the
colored girls this time, and not bad. Rob Wasserman, applause for the strings! And Lou, applause for doing all the vocal parts, and in what way. Came out
different than the original and the 70s' performances, and good. Sword of Damocles... I just remember the great melody. The Day John Kennedy Died. Thoughtful
lyrics, thoughtfully performed. The opening line always kills me, live even more, but this time he emphasized the part about not going to waste, came out
very powerful. My House. Another thoughtful lyric, yes the spirit of Delmore lives on, Lou, it lives on for us too, really. No need to convince us! :) But
the words came out so clear to me, somehow, all the little details like the stones and stuff. Tell It To Your Heart. Beautiful song and again a performance
that delivered it 100 percent. My Red Joystick. That's a rocker! Funny, driving rhythm, left space for some improv. Who Am I? - how come all those tunes
sounded so spirited that night? Felt like he was sharing his deepest most personal thoughts with us. Lou you could move mountains with your voice, if you
wanted to. Gassed and Stoked - a forgotten favorite (clever lyrics) from Magic and Loss, delivered with some kick although I don't know why but it felt like
he was emphasizing the foolish aspect of the speaker in this one... Why Do You Talk? - angst delivered with feeling, but not too much fury (which is good).
And I must say he is becoming more and more like a conductor of an orchestra, making moves with his arms and fingers to guide the others how to play, when to
do a solo, etc. He is less and less of a singer (which is regrettable), but maybe it's time to move on. I guess he knows best what's good for him. And
whatever's good for him... :)
And Rock Minuet. Rock to the Rock Minuet, Lou it really sounded all right, that's the way it should be. :) Let's all ROCK to the Rock Minuet...
Warsaw, March 18, 2006
P.S. Thanks to my wonderful friends O. and T. for the after-party! :) And T. for the pics... you rock.
A funny quiz:
You're a Reed fan! John Cale - ha! Lou Reed was
obviously THE talent behind the Velvets. And
nothing will make you change your mind. So
there!
What kind of Velvet Underground fan are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
For Immediate Release, London, England -
Click here to access the Lou Reed/Spanish Fly online press release:
http://www.noblepr.co.uk/Press_Releases/sanctuary/lou_reed_dvd.htm
Filmed and recorded on August 7th 2004 at the Benicassim Festival in Spain, Reed is joined by long-time collaborators Mike Rathke on guitar, bassist Fernando Saunders, drummer Tony "Thunder" Smith and Jane Scarpantoni on the cello. The DVD includes a Photo Gallery featuring 14 exclusive photographs taken by Lou Reed.
It had a certain feel to it, like one of a great romance passing. The tear-jerker "Slip Away" embodied its whole meaning
to me. Subliminally dedicated to Delmore and Andy, although it was real hard to trace Lou's track of thoughts, it left little
space for audience participation. Lacking in theatrical lighting, momentarily spoilt by a silly drunken moron to the left of
the stage, the gig was like darkness split only by the flicker of Lou's silver guitar, a token of those different times never
to be brought back again. The more shiny and obvious it was out there on the stage, the more it hurt, like a splinter of wood
in your heart. The spirit of those old times seemed to have flown out of most songs in the setlist, exactly the same as the two previous
nights in the tour (Adventurer - The Proposition - My House - Ecstasy - Guilty - Mad - Talking Book - Slip Away - Charley's
Girl - Burning Embers - Halloween Parade - Change - Vanishing Act - Why Do You Talk? - Guardian Angel - The Blue Mask ...
encore: Perfect Day [info about other setlists can be found at the Rock and Roll Animal wesbite at: http://www.arrakis.es/~e.miquel/rnranimal/live2004.htm).
The few exceptions being the bare simplicity of "Vanishing Act," which sounded more odd in its deep grandeur than ever
before; "Change" - the best song in the set, as rocking as nothing else that night and not much from the other gigs I saw,
rich in texture, with a good rolling drive. "Charley's Girl" was like a lullaby. A lullaby for a lover. For all of his lovers out there in the audience. :) Songs from the Raven were performed well, but nothing more than that. And you
expect more from him, cos you know how good it can get. The one bow to the audience (at least a certain part of it) was the
encore, which didn't do much to me. Seems like I've seen it before somewhere, somehow... And he'll be engraved in my memory of that night as a weary lion, commanding his band around, the only thing lacking in
his hand was a baton. He had complete possession of the tiny stage, flanked by amps and speakers, the crew sitting among
them, busy with handing him the guitars in between songs and fixing minor faults in the equipment. Like the other band
members, he wore the same outfit as in Portugal, a brown tee and jeans that looked white in the dim light.It was a blue concert.
Actually bringing the whole band with him could be a good idea if he were to make any changes at all. There were none
since the last tour. My advice would be drop the whole thing and experiment with Jane. Electrify her chello. Bring in a sax.
Have Ornette come and play a few numbers with you. WHATEVER really but the same thing again. Cos the Raven is a good album
but not to do much with on the stage, unless it's a play, with the other people involved. Not without a better stage design
and lighting. So please please give us something else next time... a blue mist hangs over the future, and let's hope, it
won't take long in coming.
Lou Reed at Hammersmith Apollo
08.17.2004
- a review
It was a day of mixed weather and bulky excitement hanging over me as I was going down to the Hammersmith Apollo (the venue, as I was told by a well informed fan, where David Bowie also played his last gig with the Spiders from Mars back in 1973, when it was called Hammersmith Odeon) by three buses. At first it was real sunny and warm, then as I arrived at the venue, it got increasingly cooler and darker – as if all the city was getting in the mood for the Lou Reed concert, announced by the press as (predictably enough) holding many surprises. And it was. The setlist contained several: not frequently played songs included Magic and Loss, Power and Glory (both wonderfully arranged, the latter performance bearing a strong resemblance to the best surviving Velvet Underground live recordings). A bunch of Velvet classics, rearranged, but in an undisturbing way, among them a wonderful rendering of “Jesus,” which I never suspected Lou would wanna play live at all. Right on target, if you ask me. Some other songs that brought tears to my eyes were “The Venus in Furs” – but only because of Lou’s sweet harmonies in the “I am tired/I am weary/I could sleep for a thousand years” part, not really the spaced-out chello solo played by Jane Scarpantoni, whom Lou exaggeratedly applauded at the end.
As I was hoping, Lou also performed three songs from his critically acclaimed last studio album, “The Raven.” “The Valley of Unrest” was recited by Lou in a strong, confident voice, against a background of far-off sounds of thunder (or was it just my imagination that added those? :), while “Vanishing Act” was sung in a low, sometimes whispering tone, like a shy plea for tenderness, with a single spotlight on Lou while the rest of the stage was covered in complete darkness. It might have been thought unusual considering his tough image, but in that respect Lou as a person really must differ from the public aura that surrounds him. The same goes for “Guardian Angel,” a song inspired by the works of Poe and reflecting views about human fate which I would readily support myself.
The three songs from the eighties that found their way on to last night’s setlist were definitely very strong points of the concert. “The Blue Mask” sounded pretty much like on the record, but it’s only live that some aspects of a lyric like that actually gain a special, powerful meaning. When I heard the first words of “The Day John Kennedy Died” – not recognizing the song instantly, I just thought, “yes, man, if only you could be the president…” How different things would be… especially after the events of the last three years and the carousel of traumas we’ve seen during the last presidency, I just have nothing more to say… and then “Turn to Me,” which I should’ve have started with, as it was kick-off start to the concert indeed, was a rocker of a kind that we weren’t exactly spoilt with during this gig, and I myself was even less spoilt with during the previous one I’ve seen. So that was also one of the highlights for me, and as much as the song isn’t exactly one his best lyrical achievements, the words have a meaning that you can relate to on a very personal level. And that straight rock and roll riff…
“Ecstasy” sounded very fresh and new, and I’m not sure whether I should attribute it to the fact that I haven’t heard it since 2000, or to its qualities that I didn’t appreciate before. It must have been the latter, though, as the title track of his previous studio album did not seem very impressive to me when it first came out. Now I cannot say the same thing about the other track from that album, “Modern Dance,” which was always given more credit than it’s actually worth, imho. But it’s a live favorite and a catchy tune, so that’s that.We have now reached the encore, which has become the first of two, as the audience wouldn’t let the band go that easily, and Lou and the gang seemed to enjoy the gig pretty much too. “Satellite of Love,” not exactly a big hit in the 70s, when it was originally released, had a superb comeback in 1998, when it was featured in a beautiful scene in “Velvet Goldmine,” one of the best films of the past decade. That’s about the time when the author and probably some of the readers of this little article were first exposed to Lou’s music. The recently released remix of the song has met a very mixed response among fans, but luckily the performance was done in a truly great, theatrical glamrock manner. Another very well known song, and the one that many non-fans have heard and enjoy, “Perfect Day,” came out beautifully as Lou made it feel like it was a thank you to us all in the audience. The second encore was another gift to the audience, or more precisely the part who hoped for old songs. I myself didn’t mind which ones he played, as long as I could really hear him play and feel him play, if you know what I mean. And I did. After the concert came the part that really overwhelmed me and made me lose all my sense of reason, and, for all that I can think of, the happiest, and the most unexpected moment of my life. And for that I want to thank you millions, Lou, if you ever read this, and say I’m sorry I wasn’t able to act more proper or more reasonable than I did. I truly hope it wasn’t the last moment like that and that I’ll have another chance to get to talk to this funny old man in black running pants and a belly slightly bulging out from behind his dyed t-shirt – the man who moves me like no other person can, the one whom I owe more than I could ever hope to repay…
Marta Liz
August 18th, 2004,
London, England.
Lou is releasing a new CD-set in January!!! Here's the tracklist:
Disc One
1. The Conqueror Worm
2. Overture
3. Old Poe
4. Prologue
5. Edgar Allan Poe
6. The Valley Of Unrest
7. Call On Me (Feat Laurie Anderson)
8. The City In The Sea/Shadow
9. A Thousand Departed Friends (Instrumental)
10. Change
11. The Fall Of The House Of Usher
12. The Bed
13. Perfect Day
14. The Raven (Spoken Track: Feat Willem Dafoe)
15. Balloon
Disc Two
1. Broadway Song (Feat Steve Buscemi)
2. Tell Tale Heart Pt1
3. Blind Rage
4. Tell Tale Heart
Pt2
5. Burning Embers
6. Imp Of The Perverse
7. Vanishing Act
8. The Cask
9. Guilty
10. Guilty (Feat Ornette Coleman)
11. A Wild Being From Birth
12. I Wanna Know (The Pit & The Pendulum) (Feat The Blind Boys
Of Alabama)
13. Science Of The Mind
14. Annabel Lee/The Bells
15. Hop Frog (Feat David Bowie)
16. Every Frog Has His Day
17. Tripitena's Speech
18. Who Am I (Tripitena's Song) (Edit)
19. The Courtly Orangutans
20. Fire Music
21. Guardian Angel
She puts on a NYC station
she couldn`t belive what she heard at all
she started shaking to that fine fine music
you know her life was saved by rock and roll
'...you could just go out and dance to a rock and roll station'-
well, you couldn't here, but now we got Lou himself coming to play
and don't even ASK was it better!
ON 3RD AUGUST 2000 LOU PLAYED IN WARSAW!
I won't say it was a wonderful experience, cos it wasn't, but I sure liked
what I heard and I want more (I want it too bad, actually...)
He's really really an alternative man.
I guess that he doesn't look back, as a rule. Really very concentrated on what he's doing now,
though he never tries to prove that it's more important, or better, than his earlier stuff. He
doesn't seem to notice there was something else , like the Velvets. Best example: he simply
ran through 'Sweet Jane,' one of my favourite songs...
But having left all that behind, I have to say it was nothing I could call 'not living
up to my expectations.' Actually, I didn't grow any, knowing what kind of musician he is. I
was quite certain in the sense that he's not putting out any crap, pretending anything, being
cute or any of that pretentious shit that's done these days. I felt that he wouldn't give a
damn, go back a word or just not say what he thinks. but most people in the music business
today are straightforward, you'll say. Looking at the rock lyrics of the last years, yeah -most
of them are written in the first person all right, but you can't call it real writing -it's not
like Lou does it, seriously and frankly, about what he observes.
At a press conference before the concert. He drank Coke Light, didn't he?
I can only say something about what I know, but I'm sure that's just enough to think of him as you know yourselves, just Lou, the best rock musician/ poet of our time.
First what he gave Nico for her debut album, Chelsea Girl, 1968
'Chelsea Girls' by itself contains many fantastic quotes like the beginning ('Here's room 546, it's enough to make you sick') or 'Pepper, she's having fun, ... her future died /in someone's past...' (God, as if I heard my own voice...)
Then 'Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams' -another poetical masterpiece that he wrote even before 1966. Of course it's not on 'Chelsea Girl,' but, like the previous one, on 'Peel Slowly And See.'
Lou Reed
With 'Wild Child', 'Ocean', 'I Can't Stand It', rather calm and quiet, but everything here's written with his unique, acute sense of observation. They could all have been great Velvets' songs. And some of them were actually performed live in 1969 and '70.
Transformer
His part in glam, with a lot of references to the New York underground art scene, Factory years, etc. With the famous 'Walk On The Wild Side', 'Perfect Day' and 'Satellite Of Love', but also brilliant 'Andy's Chest' and good 'Vicious', only 'New York Telephone Conversation' doesn't make the grade here, in my opinion.
'Sally Can't Dance' (1974)
Lots of good stuff here. The title track -uncensored! 'Ride Sally Ride' -grabs you by the heart (which is made out of ice... ;-), 'N.Y. Stars' -great instrumentally, exciting tune. Plus a couple of good ballads. Provides us with some cool insights into the heart of NY.Berlin
EVEN the critics liked this one, so they say. Achingly beautiful, stark, pale, blue, soft and stabbing. Just two words at a time: Caroline Says. Window pane. Funny feeling. My castle, kids and home. Sad Song. B e r l i n .
Metal Machine Music
I can't understand why everyone's putting it down so much. Of course it's no lyrics, so it lacks his wonderful, very strong side. I prefer music with lyrics myself, cos it has much more of a meaning then, but just think of it as a film soundtrack, e.g. to 'Space Odyssey' -it'd be unbeatable. And the photo on the back side of the cover, with the red background, I'd 'hang it on my wall' if I had a big enough version.
Coney Island Baby
'Something like a circus or a sewer/' 'in your midnight hour/ and you find that your soul has been up for sale...' It's Lou the greatest poet on earth again, just like old times.
Rock And Roll Heart
Now this is quite close to what the Velvets did, in Loaded times. One of all-time favouites, You Wear It So Well, Follow The Leader, the title track, Temporary Thing, some very fine things there. Here are all tracks:
I Believe In Love
Banging On My Drum
Follow The Leader
You Wear It So Well
Ladies Pay
Rock And Roll Heart
Chooser And The Chosen (instrumental)
Senselessly Cruel
Claim To Fame
Vicious Circle
A Sheltered Life
Temporary Thing
naow...Here comes the night...
And here come the waves... what's so blue and eternal...
Street Hassle
Strong, truthful, great! But so gentle and beautiful, almost classical, at times.
..........................
(finally, my very favourite of his solo works) Songs For Drella
Teamed with John again, he made a really magnificent tribute to Andy. I like especially 'Starlight Open Wide', 'I Believe' and 'It Wasn't Me.' But every single track on this album's worth at least the story it tells. And that's something priceless for someone like me, too young and not even American, to feel, at least vaguely, the ambiance of the Factory days and the character of the people who created it.
and his latest release, Ecstasy
It's very personal, introspective, and up-to -date I'd say. But rather simple as well. Not many characters, (except Rock Minuet) only he and an unidentified woman, a one sometimes difficult to live with, sometimes childish, egoistic. His own personality very much sticks out of these new lyrics. There's just one person like him. If I could be with someone like that I wouldn't trade it for mountains of gold.
To be continued...
You can look for his lyrics on my lyrics page.