Search - Lou Reed :: Perfect Night

It Almost Was a Perfect Night

Brian J Hay | Sarnia, Ontario Canada | 12/07/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It almost was a perfect night. Just before this show Lou Reed had found an acoustic guitar that he described as "having the sound of diamonds" and a way of amplifying it so the instrument's real sound would reach the audience. Like any good artist would he wanted to share the find. He put a four piece ensemble together with guitarist Mike Rathke, bass player Fernando Saunders and drummer Tony Smith. They went on stage and played a tight set that pumped up both the audience and the band.



It drew from many of the nooks in Reed's catalogue. There was some newer material and a helping of the old. It all became new again that night. Reed likes to play around with material a little. It doesn't always work but there are always surprises. However it went all the songs got inspired readings.



The set opened with a commanding performance of "I'll Be Your Mirror". It was a hit when it was first released. It sounds as if it would be a hit if was released today. The song is as fresh now as it was thirty years ago. They follow it up with "Perfect Day". He could have named this one "Perfect Song"; it's that good. "Coney Island Baby" almost ended up as an obscure piece. When Reed first wrote it his management described it as "one of the worst things they'd ever heard". According to him that was the "end of the management". Listen to the impassioned treatment he gives it here and decide who was right.



Most of the set is up to the standard set by the opening numbers. Not all of the material scores points with me. I could have done without "Original Wrapper" and "Sex With Your Parents" but that's just a matter of personal taste. Those songs are just as well put together and just as well executed as the rest of the material in the was. Highlights are abundant. The performances of "Busload of Faith" and "Riptide" are riveting. He must of pulled this reading of "Talking Book" straight from his heart. Listen to it. Think about it. Feel it. There's something new there each time it's played. He couldn't have picked a better piece to close with than "Dirty Boulevard". The song combines scathing social commentary with a fine melody and a healthy injection of rock and roll passion. It's performed with fierce energy here.



Reed is one of the best writers of song in the business. He knows the technical side of the craft well. He was a staff writer for a company that wrote jingles for commercials before taking to the stage. He never lost the raw edges of a creative purist though. That's a mixture that's rare in the industry. His catalogue is a rich one and though he's never the one who sells the most records he's one the other musicians would never want to be without. This set will give anyone not familiar with his work a good insight as to why that's the case.



Listen and learn."

Excellent Reed

Brian J Hay | 03/05/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This recording is as impressive as "New York" in terms of overall quality. This "unplugged" version of Lou still has power even without the electric guitar. In fact, the guitar sound that Lou has on this CD is very clean and it evokes strong feelings in the listener. "Vicious" is a very different, and good, song but by far the best song on the CD is "Coney Island Baby." Lou continues to grow as a musician and he seems to really love playing with his band. A great CD choice for anyone who loves rock music."

Thirty Years of Lou Reed Live

Omer Belsky | Haifa, Israel | 08/17/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"In some respects, this is the most interesting live Lou Reed album. Most Reed live albums so far has focused on the famous Velvet and early Solo cuts (Sweet Jane, White Light/White Heat, Heroin, Rock'n'Roll, Walk on the Wild Side and Satelite of Love, along with a few others), while this album focuses on newer and lesser known tracks, from the late 70s, 80s and 90s.Generally speaking, the band is in fine form, and so is Lou Reed, the problem, though, is in the song selection. Some songs come off really well, others fail completely.I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR, the sole Velvet track here, is beautiful musically, demonstrating the guitar effect Reed talked about, but the vocals are hard to live with. The recent hit PERFECT DAY is reproduced here in a stripped to the bone structure which does the song no justice. Similar treatment is given to the Berlin track THE KIDS, with only slightly superior results.VICIOUS, though, another song from Reed's arguable peak in the early 70s, comes off very well. Completely re-worked into a grim killer instead of a Power punk tale, 'vicious' here is what live concerts SHOULD be all about - rethinking old songs.After a four song run through the classics, newer material come with BUSLOADS OF FAITH and KICKS, tracks off New York and Conny Island Baby respectively. Both of these songs are OK, you can Rock to them but you won't fall in love with them.Next come two new tracks, from a Reed collaboration with Director Brian Wilson. TALKING BOOK is forgetable stuff, only slightly comming to live in the last moments. INTO THE DEVINE, though, is the real McCoy, a terrific, energetic song with frightfully powerful lyrics (I think you're so beautiful, I think you're so fine, and I think, I would miss you, if you disappeared into the devine). After that comes one of the best songs in this record, CONNY ISLAND BABY. This late 70s song is a tale only Lou Reed could write... love rescuing one from an abusive Football couch? Well, Reed's words are better than mine (Remember that the city is a funny place... something like a circus or a sewer... and the glory of love, might see you through).The next track is also strong 'NEW SENSATION', I haven't heard the original, but something tells me it wasn't anything as vicious as this. Lou Reed's screaming Motorcycle tale hits the bull's eye again.Sadly, the same can not be said about 'WHY DO YOU TALK' a time Rocker song, and the worst number here. Why three Time Rocker tracks were included while Magic and Loss and especially Songs for Drella were left unrepresented is a mystery to me. Lou Reed sings 'Why won't you shut up' in this song, he could've taken his own advise.Things go better with RIPTIDE, a track from Lou Reed's latest record (at the time) Set the Twilight Reeling. Originaly an electric track, it comes off very nicely accoustic.SEX WITH YOUR PARENTS and THE ORIGINAL WRAPPER are songs which are bound to speak differently to different audiences. I personnaly love them, but even I wonder if they're really the best songs to put in Lou Reed's first live album in 15 years...Fortunately, this set closes with a terrific live version of Dirty Blvd., which is one of the best songs Reed has ever written. This powerful version is much better than the original, and the perfect ending for what must have been, if not a PERFECT night, than at least a hellova concert."