Memories of Lou Reed

After college and a brief stint substitute teaching, I fled NJ to move to The City. There, I got a job at the now-legendary The Bottom Line. I began as a host, seating people. I was then, after a brief time, promoted to box office. There, I greeted many celebs. Almost all were on my comp list. Bette Midler even wrote me a note on a cocktail napkin after we traded some mutually amusing words. (God, I wish I remembered what they were, but trust me, we briefly made each other giggle!) Her autograph read: "Your b.o. is my b.o." We hung it on the box office bulletin board.

One night, Manhattan Transfer was performing and the club was packed with glitterati. Club owners Stan Snadowsky (who passed away last March at age 70) and Alan Pepper explicitly told me, for reasons still unknown to me, "If Lou Reed shows up, he is not to be comped in!" This made it very awkward for me when the legend showed up. I relayed the news. Mr Reed, who was (to put it kindly) tripping over his own feet, gave me a dour expression and began doling out coins through the b.o. window's slot.

Stanley Snadowski, tough boss who was fond of me

"Is that ok?" he asked.

"Not nearly," I had to tell him. He spun around and stumbled off into the night, leaving me with the chump change, which I put in the Bottom Line cash drawer. I felt sad as it was only a couple of years prior that I saw Lou Reed perform at The Beacon in Boston when he was touring for his Transformer album. He was magnificent on-stage!

As my friend, going to Boston University at the time, was an usher there, I had to wait for her to finish up her business with the theater. (She had comped me in.) Milling about in the lobby, I saw Mr Reed leaving. In sunglasses at night, he approached me, not much taller than I, to shake my hand with a very firm grip. His first words, with a grin, were: "Are you here alone?" I told him I was waiting on a friend, quite starstruck. "Too bad," he said and walked off with his entourage.

After a heroin-related liver transplant earlier this year, Mr Reed died of liver failure, apparently, according to Rolling Stone. That magazine encapsulized: Reed is best known for his work as guitarist, singer and songwriter for the Velvet Underground, and his solo career. Reed had a profound impact on American culture, introducing avant garde rock and pop art to mainstream music.

Reed was born in Brooklyn, raised in Long Island, considered himself bisexual but married performance artist/singer Laurie Anderson in 2008.

As The Who said today: "R.I.P. Lou Reed. Walk on the peaceful side."

Amen. "And the colored girls go ...."

Audio Beaverhausen: "20 Feet from Stardom" Soundtrack CD

"And the colored girls go 'doo-da-doot-a-doot-doot-doo....'" So goes the famous chorus on Lou Reed's classic '70s glam rock song, "Walk on the Wild Side." It's the back-up singers who beautifully and artfully take over, ultimately delivering us to the hot sax fade-out. And so begins the soundtrack cd for the documentary, 20 Feet from Stardom, now in selected theaters.

None other than a woman who most certainly paid her dues in the music industry as an uncredited girl-group singer for Phil Spector and one of the hardest working back-up girls in the industry, Ms Darlene Love, has been at the forefront of promoting this great movie about the unsung -- if I may say -- story of the voices that really can make or break a single.

Love has been on the tv talk-show circuit tirelessly to discuss 20 Feet, culminating with her moment on the couch with David Letterman. She has been all over the press, notably in a recent Rolling Stone interview and talking with The New York Times. The latest New Yorker article about Love on Letterman really serves as a great primer on her career if you need to know more. (He stole my "unsung" joke, I swear! I had it all prepared.)
(http://www.newyorker.com/talk/2013/07/01/130701ta_talk_friend

Darlene Love was recently, and long-deservedly, inducted into the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. One of the best tracks on the album is the rare version of her recording of "Fine, Fine Boy," produced by Phil Spector, who surprisingly gave his permission for two Love tracks to be used in the film and on the soundtrack.  (The other is the girl-group classic, "He's a Rebel," which Spector released under the name, The Crystals.) The album track of "Fine, Fine Boy" differs from the one used in the film (showcasing Spector's obsessive perfectionism), as is the divine Merry Clayton's "Gimme Shelter," and these rare tracks are worth the price of the cd alone.

It is, indeed, when the back-up singers step into the spotlight, fronting songs, that the album's best, rarest and most valued tracks are found. Ms Clayton's soulful "Nobody's Fault But Mine" with back-ups by Oren Waters, Judith Hill, Tata Vega and ex-Harlette Charlotte Crosley is an amazing aural experience. But even better is her powerful rendition of "Southern Man."

Lisa Fischer's "Sure on this Shining Night" with its traditional church-choir back-ups highlights this always amazing singer's ability to carry a brief but classic hymn. Tata Vega and Judith Hill's "Let's Make a Better World" is a brightly buoyant pop-gospel number while Judith Hill's solo power ballad (with simple piano accompaniment), "Desperation," impresses as well. Not a single bum track on this album, people.

Back-up girls strongly carrying the iconic Bowie tune, "Young Americans," Talking Heads' "Slippery People" and Joe Cocker's "Space Captain" are also featured. Some of the star performers may have even felt the need to snarl, like Bette Midler to her Harlettes, "Ok, back-up girls! Back up!"

The album concludes with a sterling rendition by Darlene Love covering "Lean on Me," showcasing the range and power of her voice. She is a national treasure at this time.

Must-see movie (now in selected theaters) and must-have album. Each very highly recommended. Terrific remastering work; album produced by Morgan Neville. Available @ Amazon.com.

P.s.: You might best know Tata Vega from her 1979 disco smash posted below: