How Lou Reed’s ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ escaped being banned by the BBC
The Velvet Underground were never all that successful in the 1960s or 1970s. When they spawned out of the New York scene with a new style of art rock, telling tales of sex and drugs over experimental guitar soundscapes with little concern for the status quo, their sound was way ahead of its time. This was largely due to primary songwriter Lou Reed, who was unafraid to hold back in his lyricism.
Reed filled his songs with taboo topics, with descriptions and discussions of violence, gender, sexuality, and drug use, pushing the boundaries of both sound and society. Although this meant that the Velvet Underground weren’t hugely popular during their existence, they have since become one of the most important and influential bands of all time, with critics and audiences alike recognising their transgressive sound.
When Reed came to write his own music, he was undeterred by the lack of success that the Velvet Underground had experienced. The songwriter began working on his solo endeavours in the early 1970s, just ahead of the break-up of the New York art rockers, and he continued to pull from many of the themes that had characterised his work with the Velvets.
Reed’s sophomore offering, 1972’s Transformer, is one of the finest examples of these continuing themes. ‘Vicious’ contained violent imagery, asking, “Hey, why don’t you swallow razor blades?”, while ‘Hangin’ Round’ described a myriad of characters having sex in hallways and digging up dead bodies. But by far the most iconic song to spawn from Transformer was lead single, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’.
Released in the autumn of 1972, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ remains one of the most famous examples of Reed’s songwriting style. Like ‘Hangin’ Round’, the track focused on the stories of a number of different characters, each based on real people from around the New York art scene. In true Reed style, the song also featured some provocative lyrics, such as, “She never lost her head, even when she was giving head.”
Despite the song’s themes, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ was not banned by the BBC. This may come as a surprise – the BBC weren’t necessarily shy about banning tracks during this time period. They cut ‘Come Together’ by The Beatles from the air for its use of a brand name, while Bob Dylan’s ‘Baby, Let Me Follow You Down’ had been banned much earlier for its use of the phrase, “God Almighty world.”
Reed’s lyrics were certainly more uncensored than many of the songs that the BBC had decided to ban. However, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ escaped banning due to the elusive nature of its lyrics. Those in charge of censorship at the BBC didn’t understand the meaning of the line, “even when she was giving head,” so the song was not removed from the airwaves. Although the track is much more explicit than many of the songs the BBC did ban, it remained unscathed.
Over half a century later, ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ remains Reed’s signature solo track, still frequented by Velvet Underground fans and casual listeners alike. It was even sampled by hip-hop outfit and fellow New Yorkers A Tribe Called Quest in the 1990s, maintaining relevance even today. It’s one of the most well-known examples of his lyrical approach.
