RIP: Remembering Lou Reed, 1942-2013

Story by Greg Haymes
Photograph by Martin Benjamin

Lou Reed died on Sunday (October 27). He was 71 years old.

You can fill in his resume in so many ways. Pioneer. Maverick. Icon. Co-founder of the Velvet Underground. Glam rocker. Punk godfather. NYC street poet. The guy who sang “Walk on the Wild Side.” And confounded everyone with Metal Machine Music. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer. Husband of Laurie Anderson. Fine art photographer. A man with a true Rock & Roll Heart…

Lou Reed’s first Capital Region performance:
February 17, 1967 with the Velvet Underground at Williams College, Williamstown

Lou Reed’s second Capital Region performance:
September 24, 1969 with the Velvet Underground at the Aerodrome, Schenectady

Lester Bang’s classic review of Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music

Lou Reed’s last Albany full-length concert:
October 14, 1984 at the Palace Theatre

Lou Reed’s last Capital Region full concert performance:
June 6, 2003 at the Calvin Theatre, Northampton

Lou Reed’s last Capital Region performance:
September 21, 2008 with Laurie Anderson and her band at The Egg, Albany

Lou Reed’s New York Times obituary by Ben Ratliff