“What I’m listening to”: What Lou Reed’s final playlist says about his art
Over the course of a career spanning almost 50 years, Lou Reed tried his hand at more genres than most of us could hope to even listen to. Starting out in doo-wop bands in high school, the songwriter eventually pivoted into the alternative scene he would reign over for half a century, penning sleeper hits for future rock legends The Velvet Underground.
Between his distinctive vocals and drum-like guitars, Reed was the driving force behind the band’s alternative avant-pop songwriting. Though they garnered limited success at the time, his contributions would eventually earn The Velvet Underground a place as one of the most beloved bands of all time.
When Reed went off on his own, he delivered a glam rock staple with Transformer, pioneered noise experimentation on Metal Machine Music, albeit to an unwelcome reception, and paved the way for binaural recording with Street Hassle. Putting out 20 solo records throughout his lifetime, and even releasing a collaborative album with Metallica, Reed truly did it all.
With such an eclectic and subversive discography to his name, it’s no surprise that Reed’s own music taste was equally sweeping. His interest in other people’s music was just as sweeping and all-encompassing as his own output, as was demonstrated in two playlists curated by Reed in 2012, just a year before he died.
Reed lives up to his unpredictable nature from the playlist’s first track, which comes from the Queen of Rap herself, Nicki Minaj. Perhaps surprisingly for the guitar-driven New Yorker, ‘Come on a Cone’ from Minaj’s 2012 record Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded opens the collection of songs.
The explicit and pulsing gabba-pop track may be a far cry from the tender declarations of The Velvet Underground, but it shows how Reed had his finger on the pulse of pop. Equally surprising is the inclusion of Robyn’s glistening electropop hit ‘Hang With Me’, demonstrating an interest in the future of pop and an appreciation for those genres many alternative devotees wouldn’t usually delve into.
The playlist isn’t afraid of giving its curator, or other listeners, musical whiplash. Rather, it unflinchingly reflects his musical interests, darting between the quiet sounds of Daughter and the heavy death metal grindcore of Napalm Death with ease, a lot like Reed’s own catalogue. His psych influences come through in the inclusion of garage rock favourite Ty Seagall, while his jazzier side is represented by saxophonist Albert Ayler and genre stalwart Miles Davis.
Meanwhile, picks from of Montreal, Perfume Genius and Deerhoof show an interest in the indie pop of the new century. Futuristic and all-encompassing, the playlist demonstrates Reed’s willingness to experiment and innovate, as well as his unrelenting love for music in all of its forms. It would be this myriad of influences that he would champion from his salad days and throughout his life, showing even in his final year on this earth that he sought to be enriched by every facet of it.
Find the full list of songs below.
Lou Reed’s ‘What I’m listening to, vol. 1’ and ‘What I’m listening to, vol. 2’
- ‘Come on a Cone’ by Nicki Minaj
- ‘Spiritual Rebirth – Live At The Village Theatre/1967’ by Albert Ayler
- ‘Ooby Dooby’ by Roy Orbison
- ‘Kiss’ by Prince
- ‘Life In Paper’ by Fucked Up
- ‘I’ll Be Loving You’ by The King Khan & BBQ Show
- ‘Waymore’s Blues’ by Waylon Jennings
- ‘Kali Yuga’ by Georgia Anne Muldrow
- ‘Flavor Bud Living’ by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
- ‘Spiteful Intervention’ by of Montreal
- ‘Hello Mary Lou (Goodbye Heart)’ by Ricky Nelson
- ‘Bad As Me’ by Tom Waits
- ‘Générique’ by Miles Davis
- ‘No One Asked to Dance’ by Deerhoof
- ‘Crazy In Love’ by Antony and the Johnsons
- ‘I Asked For Water (She Gave Me Gasoline)’ by Howlin’ Wolf
- ‘That Lonesome Road’ by Lonnie Johnson
- ‘Shake – Mono’ by Otis Redding
- ‘My Heart Cries’ by Etta James
- ‘The Maid Needs a Maid’ by Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton
- ‘Dark Parts’ by Perfume Genius
- ‘Melted’ by Ty Seagall
- ‘Lullaby’ by Leonard Cohen
- ‘Lonesome’ by Dr. Dog
- ‘Circumspect’ by Napalm Death
- ‘You Don’t Care’ by Eddy Current Suppression Ring
- ‘Youth’ by Daughter
- ‘Hang With Me’ by Robyn
