So...Lou Reed. Yeah. Trying to write a paragraph synopsis of his career is like trying to write a paragraph about the life of St. John the Baptist: he may not have been the leading man, but he sure played an important role in the movie, and more than likely, you aren't going to do justice to that role. His seminal work with the the Velvet Underground would have been enough to insure his place in rock and roll history, and his solo work only cemented his reputation. He has often been called the inspiration for punk rock (a notion he adamantly eschewed) and its hard to imagine bands such as R.E.M., Nirvana, and Pearl Jam without his pioneering works. The Velvet Underground was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996; oddly (at least to me), Reed wasn't inducted into the Hall as solo performer until this year, two years after his death in 2013. Reed enjoyed very little commercial success--only a handful of the band and his solo albums made the Billboard Hot 100, and the only top 40 hit single he enjoyed was "Walk on the Wild Side" (but what a one hit hit to have).
"Street Hassle," from the aptly titled LP, Street Hassle, is an eleven minute ode to love and death in (presumably) New York City. The song is divided into three parts: "Waltzing Mathilda" which is the tale of a woman securing the services of a male prostitute (and how many songs have used that story line?); "Street Hassle" which involves the drug overdose of an unfortunate young woman; and "Slipaway" which is a paean to both love lost and love sought. Reed infuses all three sections with strings--leading off with violins and cellos, mixing in acoustic and electric guitars, and throwing in the odd bass here and there. Vocally, it's Reed's usual deadpan delivery, though parts one and three are sung, and part two is a monologue. Lyrically, there are few artists who can literally paint a picture with their words, but Reed is one of them. Reed is a master at keeping the words simple and using just the right touch of subtlety. I've always been a bit partial to section two, and his protagonist's detached take on the girl's overdose is both frightening in its heartlessness, and mesmerizing in its authenticity.
And if all of that isn't enough, Bruce Springsteen does an uncredited intro to section three, replete with a play on his famed lyrics, "tramps like us, we were born to run." Reed then closes the song with a masterful and heartfelt back and forth on love and loss.
Sheer brilliance from beginning to end.
These week's lyric link is apropos of nothing more than a nod to being the most cold-hearted lyric ever written: "But when someone turns that blue/Well, it's just a universal truth/And you just know that bitch will never fuck again."
Enjoy:
Peace,
emaycee
emaycee
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