David Bowie and Lou Reed: The friendship and the feud
It’s imperative that creative minds act freely yet also with conviction. When you are dealing with the majesty of people such as David Bowie and Lou Reed, who were fearless in bringing forward some of their mind-bending ideas and planting them firmly in the mainstream, their mindset had to be a combination of open enough to engage with previously untouched work and sure of themselves to not let second-guessing impede the creative process. This fearless psyche forms the foundation for many innovative creators; however, it also makes for an unwavering nature that’s easy to clash with.
It’s hard to think of many alternative musicians who have had the same impact that Lou Reed has had. Throughout the 1960s and ’70s, when he was making music with The Velvet Underground, the singer touched upon various intimate themes, including addiction and sexuality. His lyricism and vocal ability pushed boundaries and saw him maintain a foot in the industry for decades. The same can be said for David Bowie, who also pushed boundaries with his songs but in different ways.
While making equally societally challenging music across the pond, Bowie had a style that resonated with Reed and led to the two of them developing a collaborative relationship. Bowie admitted that he believed there were “very few parallels” between the two, but that didn’t stop them from working together on different occasions and forming a creative bond that enhanced one another’s work. It seemed similar minds coming together meant the two had permission to keep making exciting music, regardless of how far out it might seem.
While the work of Bowie and Reed very rarely overlaps as their projects have been wildly different in both concept and execution, the two operated in the same musical landscape over the same period, and as a result, their paths crossed frequently. This led to the development of a relationship writhing with ups and downs, as they admired one another’s work but also had plenty of discourse in the process.
Bowie was always a huge admirer of Reed and everything he did for the art rock scene. He didn’t just enjoy his work; he actively engaged with it, giving pieces of music the time and attention they needed to fully understand them. This approach to music led to Bowie praising his album with Metallica, Lulu, a highly conceptual crossover that the rest of the world turned their noses up at.
“After Lou’s death, David Bowie made a big point of saying to me, ‘Listen, this is Lou’s greatest work’,” recalled Laurie Anderson, “’This is his masterpiece. Just wait. It will be like Berlin. It will take everyone a while to catch up’.”
Reed was equally a fan of Bowie’s, which is why he was so happy to have him contribute towards his album Transformer. You can hear Bowie playing acoustic guitar on songs like ‘Perfect Day’ and ‘Walk on the Wild Side’, but it was the song ‘Satellite of Love’ where Reed said that he really outdid himself creatively.
“David is no slouch,” said Reed, “We’re doing ‘Satellite of Love’, and we were doing the real background part at the end, and the guys were really admiring David and going, ‘Holy shit, what a part that is’. He outdid himself.”
So, why did Bowie and Reed fall out?
Of course, where there was friendship, there was also feud, as David Bowie and Lou Reed’s strong personalities often clashed. This came to thunderous fruition on April 10th, 1979, when, during a night off on his tour, Lou Reed asked some prominent music writers in the industry to come to have lunch with him and Bowie. Things started well but ended in absolute chaos.
Nobody knows how the fight started, but eyewitness reports recall Lou Reed screaming, “Don’t you ever say that to me!” before unleashing a flurry of fists in Bowie’s direction. The two had a big fight, which led to Reed being escorted out of the building to calm down.
After the altercation, writer Allan Jones, who was working for Melody Maker at the time, asked Bowie what had happened. Still seemingly angry, Bowie grabbed Jones and said, “Fuck off […] If you want to know what happened you’ll have to ask Lou Reed. Don’t bother me with your fucking questions. Ask fucking Lou.”
This is the nature of both innovation and being unwavering. It’s a prime combination for new ideas and great music, but it also sets the battleground upon which many a mind has clashed.
