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BELLEVILLE – Fans were shocked this week to hear about the death of a musical pioneer.
Lou Reed, musician, songwriter, poet and front man for the 1960s cult band The Velvet Underground, died in Southampton, N.Y., Sunday at the age of 71.
Reed had recently undergone a liver transplant and died from related complications, according to his literary agent, Andrew Wylie.
Many regard Reed as the godfather of punk and credit him for changing the music industry.
“Without him I don’t think music would be the same as it is today,” said Tim Gardner, an on-air host at Loyalist College’s 91X who also hosts the show Exposing your Inner Punk at the Queen’s University station CFRC 101.9 FM.
“I look back at what he’s done, his body of work, how he has influenced music.
He broke the mould and music has changed ever since.”
Formed in 1965, The Velvet Underground had little success financially. Pop-art icon Andy Warhol was partially responsible for the band gaining followers. Warhol became the band’s manger and was the artist for the band’s first album cover. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.
Reed left The Velvet Underground in 1970 to pursue a solo career. His song lyrics, often controversial and explicit, didn’t get much airplay. He wrote mainly about the streets of New York.
“Lou Reed is New York,” said Belleville musician Andy Forgie, promotional manager for the Empire Theatre.
“I saw him live at Massey Hall (in Toronto) and the show was just brilliant,” he said.
Forgie spoke of Reed’s connection with street poetry and the honesty and diversity in his words. “He could make your skin crawl or he could bring you to tears.”
Around the web, celebrities took to Twitter and other social media to express their condolences:
Oh Lou, where have you gone? https://t.co/EBTf9gI5d8 [3]
— Peter Gabriel (@itspetergabriel) October 29, 2013 [4]
My friend Lou Reed came to the end of his song. So very sad.But hey, Lou, you'll always take a walk on the wild side. Always a perfect day.
— Salman Rushdie (@SalmanRushdie) October 27, 2013 [5]
Reed was also a photographer. His work can be seen on his website, loureed.com [8].
He leaves his wife, performance artist Laurie Anderson.
About seven hours before his death, Reed put up a final post on Twitter and Facebook, a fitting and poetic photograph:
The Door http://t.co/IcNmsdM96p [9]
— Lou Reed (@LouReed) October 27, 2013 [10]