
Lou Reed, Velvet Underground Leader and Rock Pioneer, Dead at 71 - coloneltcb
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/lou-reed-velvet-underground-leader-and-rock-pioneer-dead-at-71-20131027
======
bbx
The Velvet Underground's career can be summed up as: "Commercially
unsuccessful, but enormously influential".

On a side note, if you have a few minutes to spare, read Lou Reed's review of
Kanye's _Yeezus_ : [http://thetalkhouse.com/reviews/view/lou-
reed](http://thetalkhouse.com/reviews/view/lou-reed)

It's interesting to read a legend's opinion on a modern pop-star.

~~~
selmnoo
It is strange reading that about Yeezus, Kanye made Yeezus with a number of
other musicians (the full list, according to Wiki: 88-Keys, Ackee Juice
Rockers, Arca, Benji B, Carlos Broady, Brodinski, Ben Bronfman, Evian Christ,
Eric Danchild, Daft Punk, Mike Dean, Dom Solo, Jack Donoghue, Gesaffelstein,
Noah Goldstein, Lunice, Lupe Fiasco, Hudson Mohawke, No ID, Che Pope, Rick
Rubin, S1, Travis Scott, and Sham Joseph).

So, when he's praising the horns line, the piano line, or the complex
electronic effects, it's not Kanye who's responsible for all of that, it's
Daft Punk, it's Mike Dean, or Mohawke.

Anyway, I'm getting unnecessarily off-topic here. So to get back: Lou Reed was
undeniably an innovator like no other, a true hacker. He knew how to play a
mean guitar (jazz, blues, rock'n'roll and a whole lot else), he wrote great
poetry. The greatest thing that's said about him is, indeed, as another
commenter already has said: "Only about 3000 people bought Velvet Underground
albums, but all of them started a band."

My two favorite songs of his:
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffr0opfm6I4](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffr0opfm6I4)
and
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wNknGIKkoA](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wNknGIKkoA)

~~~
ssharp
Kanye has been pretty honest about his abilities as a producer. He was always
a chopped-up samples producer and started bringing in musicians and other
producers to layer original instrumentation over his samples on his first
album. That style evolved with each subsequent album, with his albums prior to
Yeezus being extremely orchestrated and huge.

There is absolutely no-doubt that Kanye is the ringleader in this. He puts a
bunch of people in a room, and while he may not be the person pounding the
keys, but he's putting it all together and making it cohesive.

I can listen to the Hudson Mohawke / TNGHT song that Kanye used in "Blood on
the Leaves" and think it's an okay song. But the way it comes in on Blood on
the Leaves with Kanye's rapping and the "Strange Fruit" sample left me floored
the first few times I heard it. He made those TNGHT so much more powerful.

Kanye's influence over rap is enormous (the singing rap thing that Drake and
others are using really didn't gain mainstream attention until 808's) and he's
extremely successful commercially. It's not accident, nor is it the simple
result of others' work. It's the work of someone who is meticulous in his
craft, knows his limitations, and respects the work of others while pointing
them in the direction he wants to move.

~~~
xzel
"but he's putting it all together and making it cohesive" No, that was Rick
Rubin who did that.

So we know Kanye isn't a great rapper (he's had many songs Ghost written and I
think its a pretty common belief among hip-hop heads) and you say he can't
produce well? What can he do well?

I don't have the time to go through it all unless you really want me to, but
your last post was riddled with fallacies and pretty biased opinion.

Lou Reed was something else, Kanye is what he made himself (a pop star). I
doubt anyone's going to pick up a copy of Yeezus in 40 years and be amazed in
the way people continue to pick up copies of The Velvet Underground & Nico.

~~~
twerquie
There are two meanings of "producer" at play here: a) he who cuts a beat, b)
he who produces an album. Kanye was limited yet very successful at A, and he
may be the best in his field at B.

Kanye may not be the world's best rapper, but he is no slouch, and to be
producing (both meanings) in the capacity he does at the same time is
staggering. I like to tell people it's as if Martin Scorsese played the lead
role in all of his own movies.

From everything I've read, Rick Rubin arrived late to the project and edited a
mountain of work down into a short album.

------
mcphilip
RIP Lou Reed, one of my favorite musicians. The song Heroin has so much
dissonance and noise throughout that it's almost revolting to listen to. Over
time it grew into one of my favorite songs in that I learned to find beauty in
the clash of consonance and dissonance. At the risk of hyperbole, that mindset
of finding something new from the conflict of opposing forces is something
that now applies in far more areas of my life than just music, and the VU was
the vehicle that introduced me to that philosophy.

~~~
chimeracoder
I came here specifically hoping that someone had already mentioned the song
"Heroin". I got chills the first time I heard it, and I still do.

I think my favorite Velvet Underground _song_ would have to be "Here She Comes
Now", because I get the same feeling from Kurt Cobain's cover of it[0].

> Over time it grew into one of my favorite songs in that I learned to find
> beauty in the clash of consonance and dissonance.

Do you listen to the Jesus and Mary Chain, by any chance?

[0] Perhaps blasphemous to mention a cover on a thread about Lou Reed's death,
but hey, if it were't for VU, the cover would never have existed.

~~~
jeanlucdiscard
It took me a while until "Heroin" got under my skin, but when it did, it got
all the way under. You have to listen to it as loud as you can possibly stand,
and not repeat it too often or it will give you an immaculate headache.

------
cabbeer
"Only about 3000 people bought Velvet Underground albums, but all of them
started a band."

~~~
jamesbritt
_ENO: VOYAGES IN TIME & PERCEPTION_ from Musician Magazine, Oct 1982, by
Kristine McKenna

[http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/interviews/musn...](http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/interviews/musn82.htm)

 _I was talking to Lou Reed the other day and he said that the first Velvet
Underground record sold 30,000 copies in the first five years. The sales have
picked up in the past few years, but I mean, that record was such an important
record for so many people. I think everyone who bought one of those 30,000
copies started a band!_

------
cprncus
I don't see how general celebrity deaths are hacker news. I would like to read
about tech and computer news and ideas; if I wanted this, I would read general
news sites.

~~~
guiambros
This has been discussed many times, but as you've just joined, here's a PSA:

 _On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting. That includes
more than hacking and startups. If you had to reduce it to a sentence, the
answer might be: anything that gratifies one 's intellectual curiosity._ [1]

Lou Reed was an amazing musician, and someone that promoted intellectual
curiosity [2], hence the 20+ points. (too bad one of the mods seems to
disagree, hence it was flagged to now show up at the front page anymore).

[1]
[http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html](http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html)
[2]
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFy4kRLCJBU&t=20](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFy4kRLCJBU&t=20)

~~~
rcfox
If you're going to quote something, make sure that it doesn't directly
contradict your position:

"If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic."

~~~
Samuel_Michon
So we probably shouldn’t discuss NSA surveillance ever again here on HN,
right?

Lou Reed spoke on technology at SXSW. He was an audio purist. He made a video
mocking the GOP. I think he qualified as an influential geek and deserves a
black band on the title bar of HN.

~~~
DanBC
> So we probably shouldn’t discuss NSA surveillance ever again here on HN,
> right?

I CAN ONLY DREAM.

~~~
Samuel_Michon
Sure, keep working on point 4 of your S:N Improvement Program.

~~~
DanBC
[http://imgur.com/ab50rmB](http://imgur.com/ab50rmB)

~~~
Samuel_Michon
Upvoted. (As if you needed more of those.)

------
wyclif
Here's my fave obituary so far:
[http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2013/10/27/l...](http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2013/10/27/lou-
reed/)

 _Jenny said when she was just five years old There was nothin’ happenin’ at
all_

It was the fifties. We were living in cookie cutter houses in the suburbs. Our
parents will still recovering from the war, buckling down and making a better
life for their children, with barbecues and trips to the beach and…

 _Every time she puts on a radio There was nothin’ goin’ down at all Not at
all_

The radio was primarily for baseball. They played music, but it did not change
our lives and then…

 _Then one fine mornin’ she puts on a New York station You know, she don’t
believe what she heard at all_

It happened overnight. Sports became secondary. The music, the politics,
suddenly life was full of opportunities and children were the leaders, not
their parents.

 _She started shakin’ to that fine fine music You know her life was saved by
rock ‘n’ roll_

Imagine that. Not an iPhone. Not an iPad. The greatest exponent of technology
was the transistor radio, almost no one had a color television set, never mind
a flat screen. But that rock and roll music coming out of the tiny speaker or
earphone…was enough.

------
draegtun
Surprised but deeply heartened see this at top of HN. I'm a long time fan of
Lou Reed and was extremely saddened when I heard of his passing earlier today.
Good to know his music and life also had strong effect on other hackers.

 _Between thought and expression lies a lifetime_

------
wavesounds
One of the most important musicians of all time. The Velvet Underground
inspired countless musicians and greatly influenced whole genres of music,
it's hard to see how Punk would have existed without the Velvet Underground.

Lou Reed's greatest contribution though was his ability to mix great song
writing with artful experimentation. From ST with Nico to Loaded to White
Light White Heat to Vicious and Metal Machine Music, Lou consistently wrote
great songs and expanded the worlds musical pallet. He will be missed.

~~~
anaphor
John Cale was an equally large part of what made the VU great, and he's still
touring and making great music. I'd be interested to hear his thoughts.

~~~
mturmon
Speaking of Cale and Reed, I still enjoy listening to their 1990 album _Songs
for Drella_ about their time with Andy Warhol.

It's a very personal record, rather quiet, and gives a lot of insight in to
who Warhol was from both Reed and Cale. Here's a sample, with Cale singing:
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FBvP8o35CA](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FBvP8o35CA)

------
Samuel_Michon
We can discuss Lou Reed’s contribution to the Velvet Underground, I sure could
fill hours and hours. He made some great albums later on as well. When I was
studying English lit, Edgar Allen Poe’s works were covered. About 6 months
later, Reed came out with his album ‘The Raven’. That was magical to me,
deepening the experience I already had reading EAP’s work.

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raven_(Lou_Reed_album)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Raven_\(Lou_Reed_album\))

~~~
draegtun
Indeed _The Raven_ is a very good album. _Who am I? (Tripitena 's Song)_ from
the album is an extremely beautiful & touching song about life & death which
strikes a poignant note right now.

------
dhughes
That's sad he wasn't really all that old, 71 is like the new 61. He had a
great adventurous life more than most people but still way too young.

Love your liver!

I'm not sure what Lou's situation was but this is a good time to stress your
liver is important and a lot of people abuse it. You don't have to drink
alcohol to have liver problems I'd say there is a huge stigma whenever people
hear about people having liver problems.

I suddenly developed fatty liver, I'm a non-drinker, no drugs and slim, it was
either my diet or the heartburn drug (the only drug) I am taking. Right now my
right side and back ache constantly it's not fun.

------
bjourne
Should be OT for HN.

Thanks for the downvotes guys. Fine if you loved Lou Reed, but how would you
feel if Hacker News featured every famous person death you didn't care about?
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deaths_in_2013](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deaths_in_2013)

Would you still visit the site?

~~~
darkchasma
No, it shouldn't. Although the death of a celebrity is interesting, it's not
deeply interesting. However, some celebrities like Lou Reed, are deeply
interesting. And it's not until their death that we generally discuss or think
about how deeply interesting they were.

Hacker news, as far as I understand it, is not tech news. Other sites have
that covered. This is the discussion of ideas.

~~~
leemcalilly
Agreed on this. Lou Reed had a greater influence on our culture than most
people on HN will ever know. This wasn't just a celebrity dying. This is on
par with Steve Jobs.

------
balbaugh
Lou Reed reviewing the new Kanye West Album Yeezus.

[http://thetalkhouse.com/reviews/view/lou-
reed](http://thetalkhouse.com/reviews/view/lou-reed)

------
lcasela
RIP.

The Velvet Underground/Lou Reed's music really helped me during a hard part of
my life.

~~~
saturdaysaint
Same here. Especially the s/t third album and Loaded. It's hard to imagine in
our era of blog/Reddit culture, where pathos is kind of freely available if
you know where to look, how brave it was to talk about the dark corners of
everyday life. Reed proclaimed these things - depression, uncertain
relationships, body image issues, sexual kinks (along with flashes of
happiness) - in often gorgeous pop songs. Their portraits of characters
dealing with these were still almost unrivaled in their vulnerability and
believability when I listened as a teenager in the 90's.

------
ssully
Damn you Sony and your Perfect Day commercials...

I think now's a good time to go listen to Transformer again.

~~~
aidos
Transformer is every kind of pop wonderful (and I mean that in the best
possible way).

No idea how familiar you are with The Velvet Underground but have a listen to
The Velvet Underground (self titled - 1969) if you haven't heard it before.
Just amazing.

Sad to hear the news that Lou Reed is gone - though, he sure did make sure he
experienced everything he could from life along the way.

------
digitalboss
While you code/hack, here's the Full Album of Lou Reed's Transformer....Today
is NOT a perfect day. Be sure to select HD for playback quality.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwDZT8XXkFw#t=378&hd=1](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwDZT8XXkFw#t=378&hd=1)

------
state
'The Quine Tapes'
([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bootleg_Series_Volume_1:_The_Qu...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bootleg_Series_Volume_1:_The_Quine_Tapes))
has always been one of my favorite records to put on while programming.

------
rpupkin
1984, Pittsburgh's Syria Mosque. I saw just about anybody worth seeing back
then (including The Who the night before the Cincinnati tragedy) but Sweet Lou
was the only show after which I had serious hearing loss. It lasted for days.
I recall being quite concerned at the time.

------
deveac
From a young age, no other artists expanded the definition of what it meant to
fuse creativity, art, & music more than Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground.
There are not too many artists that I can honestly say _redefined_ music for
me. He was one of them.

Thanks Lou.

------
gngeal
First thought: 1998, Lou Reed, Plastic People of the Universe, and Václav
Havel in the White House:
[https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.16834349884.22255....](https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.16834349884.22255.15867989884&type=3)

------
danieldk
After Zappa and Beefheart, one of the last great musical rebels of the 60ies
has died. It's a sad day.

Since everyone else does sweet songs, let me add this :):

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYu0sk9D_pk](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYu0sk9D_pk)

Thank you Lou Reed for all the great music!

------
mlinksva
Condolences to spouse Laurie Anderson.

------
crapshoot101
Damn it - amazing musician. Hope he's taking the proverbial walk on the wild
side.

~~~
lignuist
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkwD261MHsc](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkwD261MHsc)

------
mbubb
Today, I have had 3 emails from college friends who I haven't heard from in a
while. Funny how many vivid memories from that time are music related.

------
leemcalilly
His literary agent said that "He was as good an artist as one can possibly
be". I think that just about sums it up.

------
jskonhovd
I saw him a couple of years ago in Memphis. Great show. He will be missed.

------
daveyoon
He lived a very full life.

------
bart42_0
so sad

