A man of many tastes: Lou Reed’s favourite U2 song
Lou Reed is one of few musicians whose music seems to transcend time and trends. From his early days, forming The Velvet Underground with John Cale, to his long and incredibly successful solo career, Reed’s discography has very few low points – with the main exception being the 2011 album Lulu. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that Reed consistently stayed on top of new music releases and the emergence of new genres. Nevertheless, his seemingly deep appreciation for U2 is fairly unexpected.
Despite forming in 1976, as the punk revolution began to take over the musical consciousness, U2 always leaned closer to classic and pop rock stylings. Enjoying a successful career spanning nearly 50 years, the Dublin band have consistently proven themselves to be a somewhat divisive entity. From charging nearly one thousand dollars for concert tickets in Las Vegas to forcing their albums onto everybody with an iTunes account, Bono and the gang have not done much to endear themselves towards widespread audiences.
Nevertheless, it seems as though U2’s divisive nature did nothing to deter them from Lou Reed. Shortly before the ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ songwriter passed away, he constructed a list of 100 favourite tracks with the Helsinki Music Club.
The entire list is awash with surprises, composed mostly of old-school rockabilly icons like Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino and Bo Diddley. For the most part, the list seems at odds with the pioneering alternative rock of Lou Reed, which may shed some light on the inclusion of U2.
Admittedly, U2 is pretty far down on the list, making up the 93rd spot with their track ‘Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of’. Still, it beat out such classics as The Chiffons’ ‘He’s So Fine’ and even John Lennon’s seminal ‘Mother’. The song itself is a fairly standard affair as far as U2 goes, a middle-of-the-rock rock track from the early noughties.
U2 released the song as a single from their tenth studio album, All That You Can’t Leave Behind, which is an often overlooked product of the band’s discography. The track did manage to reach the dizzying heights of number two in the UK singles charts upon its 2001 release and a modest 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 in America. Bizarrely, the piece never seems to have left the mind of Lou Reed, placed in the same list as some of the greatest rock and roll records of all time.
Of course, questioning Reed’s taste is a dangerous game to play. After all, the songwriter was among the forefathers of alternative rock and maintained a respected and fruitful solo career for upwards of four decades. Reed was an absolute devotee of rock, once going so far as to say, “Rock and roll is so great, people should start dying for it,” before adding: “People are dying for everything else, so why not for music? Die for it.” Many rock fans probably would die for rock and roll, but it is difficult to imagine anyone dying for U2.
Listen to ‘Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of’ below.
