Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart

Lou Reed, who has been rockin' since the dawn of time, or at least since the mid '60s, is the latest celebrity (albeit a minor one) to be profiled in the American Masters series on PBS. Reed, still touring and years from being a rock remnant, was an early Andy Warhol discovery/protégé who soon became a respected collaborator. Together, they introduced rock & roll to the New York art scene, staging multi-media happenings at Warhol's infamous Factory that featured Reed's band The Velvet Underground, dervish dancing, and lots of body paint. The ultra-bleak, detached songs Reed recorded during this period would pave the way for punk and alt-rock decades later. Live concert footage of Reed performing, then and now, supercharge the video, and watching his stylistic and sartorial transformations over thirty years constitutes a rock milieu history lesson in itself. Famous Reed-heads--Philip Glass, Patti Smith, David Bowie, et al.--are interviewed in the video: not just "Mr. Bowie! Over here! What do you think of Lou Reed!?", but proper in-studio, sit-down sessions reflecting on Reed's dark poet persona, stark lyrics, and tremendous influence. The only conceivable problem with purchasing this video tribute is Reed's relative anonymity: despite being a Rock Hall of Famer with a prolific 26 album oeuvre, Reed has had only one hit record ("Walk on the Wild Side") in his career and is not a well-known personality. This caveat expressed, the video is highly recommended. Aud: P. (W. Pierce)