When he passed away in 2013, Lou Reed was hailed as an icon of rock and roll, one of the trailblazing artists who made the music what it is today. What's interesting to consider about that is how long it took for Reed's singular talents to be appreciated in the wider world of mainstream rock culture, and how often his records slipped through the cracks of popular tastes. But Reed was too talented to fade away, and he continued to make important artwork until the last couple of decades of his life. Now, in a look back that doesn't pull punches, we see the man in full.
"Lou Reed: A Life," is a masterpiece of biographical writing. Anthony DeCurtis, longtime writer and editor at Rolling Stone and a music critic with a connection to Reed in life, lays out the highs and lows of Reed's career, the various partners and drugs that entered and exited his life, and the belated but deserved recognition that the Velvet Underground and Reed's solo work received from the gatekeepers of popular culture. It's a tempered warts-and-all portrait, at once a loving appreciation and an honest appraisal of what Reed did in terms of his music and his life.
A child of New York and Long Island, Reed became the symbol of decadence first as the frontman for the Velvets and then on his own, through a solo career of many highs and lows. Recognition never eluded him, but chart success did; besides the punch of 1972's "Transformer," Reed rarely had a song or album in the top of the charts. No matter; as a cult artist, he became an inspiration to countless other bands and artists that followed. Without Lou Reed, we wouldn't have had David Bowie, Joy Division, Suzanne Vega, R.E.M., and so many more. Reed's influence, both as a solo artist and with the VU, is immeasurable.
His life was chaotic at times; it's not for nothing that both Reed and Keith Richards were the poster boys for "too drugged up to survive" the Seventies (though each did, in fact, survive, long after peers with supposedly stronger constitutions perished). His sexuality was always at the forefront of his art; Reed lived openly with a transgender woman in the 1970s, when such things weren't done, and he forever seemed willing to push the boundaries of what constituted "sexuality" in his life and his art. Though he settled down eventually (first with his second wife Sylvia, and then with Laurie Anderson), Reed never lost his edge.
Anyone who loves Lou Reed as an artist probably knows this already, but: he could be quite unpleasant at times. DeCurtis doesn't paper over the times when Reed was rude for the sake of being rude, but he brings an understanding to it that is needed. If you accept the notion that Reed was playing "Lou Reed," a character that kept the media at bay for the sake of his own sanity, then it makes sense. At some point, the role became reality. But in the end, Reed was much more than a quote given in anger to a pushy journalist.
"Lou Reed: A Life" is perfect for the Velvets fan and the lover of Reed's solo work (and of course, for the person who appreciates both). As Reed himself once put it, between thought and expression lies a lifetime. That lifetime is explored here, and it's a masterpiece.
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Top reviews from other countries
Pell Mell
A good place for anyone new to Lou Reed to start but not a lot new for existing fans
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 25, 2017Glen Trew
I highly recommend this Biography over many of the others available
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2019