So far underground you'll get the bends: More Lou Reed than you can shake a stick at

Since he passed away on October 27, there's been an overly abundant supply of Lou Reed content - bootlegs, video, what have you - popping up online. I thought I'd share here some links to a few items that have caught my attention.

Below, Lou gets interviewed by Anthony DeCurtis at the 92nd Street Y in NYC a few years back. I was lucky enough to be there, and I'm glad to see this again. DeCurtis seems a bit nervous at times, but he's good enough to give Lou space & let him finish his thoughts. I'm  sure it wasn't an easy gig. This video, and many others, can be found amongst the treasure trove of content that the 92nd Street Y recently made available here.

Secondly, and always good sources for tasty & choice live recordings, Doom & Gloom From The Tomb, and Aquarium Drunkard, have both have shared some great files from various sources recently. First up, from the Infinite Fool via Doom & Gloom, we have Lou Reed & The Tots - Alice Tully Hall, New York City, NY, January 27, 1973. This is a recording of one of the shows that the poster at the top of this post comes from. 

Then, from Music For Maniacs via Doom & Gloom, we have Pre-VU - an incredible collection of pre-Velvet Undergound recordings that involved Lou to some degree or another. Here's the track listing:

01. Jades - Leave Her for Me
02. Jades - So Blue (time-1002, 1958)
03. Lewis Reed - Merry Go Round (1962)
04. Lewis Reed - Your Love
05. The All Night Workers - Why Don’t You Smile Now
06. The Beachnuts - Cycle Annie (1965)
07. The Beachnuts - I’ve Got A Tiger In My Tank
08. the Hi-Lifes - Soul City (1965)
09. The Primitives - Sneaky Pete
10. The Primitives - The Ostrich
11. The Roughnecks - You’re Driving Me Insane

And then, perhaps the coolest of all, is a recording of Lou guest DJ-ing on the short lived WPIX rock station here in NYC in 1979. As Aquarium Drunkard writes, "Lou is in fine, fighting form here, peppering his commentary with scathing diatribes against Robert Christgau, Rolling Stone magazine, Jimmy Carter and NYC taxi drivers. He even takes some calls — witness the hilarious, surreal moment when Lou “Take No Prisoners” Reed admonishes a caller for using foul language. The music he plays is fantastic, too, with some classic doo wop, tracks from his then-unreleased The Bells LP, and a truly bizarro segue from Al Green to Nico. Lou even comes out in favor of disco.." Download a zipfile of this great show here.

And just for kicks, here are the Velvets doing "I'm Not A Young Man Anymore" which will be included with the forthcoming deluxe issue of White Light/White Heat.

I think thats it for now, but I know there will be more...It always comes back to the rain. And with that, I'll leave you with this classic shot of Lou & John Cale looking all festive back in 1977 as shot by Miss Kate Simon. I originally ran this last Christmas day with Kate's awesome playlist. And by the way, Kate, if you're reading this, don't forget that new Christmas playlist you've promised me this year.

Loaded: Lou Reed & John Cale at Lou's house in New York, Christmas 1977 - by Kate Simon