Customer Reviews

American Poet

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

American Poet is an intriguing reissue of a frequently bootlegged tape of Lou Reed and the Tots (Vinny Laporta - guitar, Eddie Reynolds - guitar, Bobby Resigno - bass, Scottie Clark - drums), the band that backed him during his Transformer period. Recorded live at the Ultrasonic Recording Studio in Hempstead, New York on December 26, 1972 for radio broadcast, it features Reed in excellent form. Playing guitar and singing such that one can clearly hear and appreciate his literate lyrics, Reed delivers a rock-solid performance.

Songs include energetic versions of Velvet Underground classics ("White Light/White Heat", "Heroin", "Sweet Jane"), material from Reed's solo debut ("Walk it and Talk It", "Berlin") and the just-released Transformer ("Vicious", "Walk on the Wild Side", "Satellite of Love", "I'm So Free"). The disc features an interview segment in which Reed playfully explains the recording of Transformer, has a few unflattering comments about Velvets replacement Doug Yule, and notes the ironies surrounding "Heroin" - all of this in a manner that is both good-natured and knowing. He has seldom sounded so engaging, at one point telling the crowd "You can clap" during a great version of "Rock and Roll".

The beautiful insert booklet features pages of photos by Mick Rock taken at gigs Reed and the Tots performed at London's Kings Cross Sound in the summer of 1972 - the same source for Rock's famous Transformer album cover. Also included are illuminating (though crudely rendered) liner notes by Carlton P. Sandercock, who seems to have forged a career with legitimized bootlegs, having penned the liner notes for David Bowie's Santa Monica '72 live set.

This is a great document recalling the days when Lou Reed actually sang his songs (missing notes aplenty, but the effort was there), playing with the melodies, connecting with the crowd and just having a great time. It's ironic, that while he has grown as an artist - in many ways perhaps considering himself more a poet than a rocker these days - he seems also to have grown somewhat distant.

This show has been released in one bootleg form or another under at least 10 different titles. This, however, is its first "official" release. Finally!

This was broadcast on FM radio out of Hempstead, NY in December 1972, and sounds FANTASTIC. This is the entire show, uncut and in order, complete with mid-show interview. Lou's backing band, The Tots, put on an incredible show. Sometimes prone to unfocused and less-than-energetic performances, The Tots put on the show of their lives here. This is Lou Reed without props, without camp, and just in your face Rock 'N' Roll.

My only complaint stems from the packaging. Yes, you get great photos by Icon-maker Mick Rock, but the review/writing in the booklet appears to have been authored by a 3rd grader! Spelling mistakes, poor grammar, run-on sentences...you get the picture. However, you ARE spending money for the music, right?

Even if this remarkable live recording from 1972 consisted only of the five-minute interview with Lou Reed in which he adamanently states that he will "never" perform with the Velvet Underground again, it would be worth the investment. As it stands, however, the listener is assaulted with a raucous set of VU classics and originals from the Transformer album performed with the backing of a band as versed in straight-ahead rock as any with which Reed has ever fronted, before or since.

One can only comprehend the pleasure that must have flowed through the crowd at hearing "Walk on the Wild Side" for the first time. Even "Satellite of Love," which comes across a bit clumsy without the benefit of backing horns and the studio flash produced on vinyl by David Bowie, brings satisfaction for those who appreciate breakthrough performances of future classics.

When all is said and done, the tracks that really leave an impression are smooth versions of Reed's best from his days in Warhol's Studio. Unlike versions on the Velvet Underground's 1969 or 1974's Rock and Roll Animal, "Sweet Jane" is true to its original studio format, and as here when played with a solid support band comes across more powerfully than any other live recording in existence. "Heroin" is particularly noteworthy. Reed even comments before the band launches into a ferociously paced rendition that "this is the rock version."

While one can always find fault with live recordings, be it in the quality of the sound or the selection of the play list, true fans of rock and roll will genuinely appreciate this album for what it is - a window into the evolution of Lou Reed from the Velvet Underground's front man into a rock icon who will continue to influence music for years to come.

This CD is the missing link between the sometimes rambling live sound of the velvet underground and the glamrock-like live cd's "R&R animal" and "live".

Biggest surprises for me were the arrangements for waiting for my man and berlin: they remind very much of the versions on "take no prisoners" except that these aren't over the top...

How relaxed the recording is, proves Mr Reed himself while playing "Rock and Roll" - and this is a quote - " you can clap" and his cheery "lalala" in a very friendly version of Sweet Jane.

And this brings me to the only minus of the CD: most of the songs are available in more than one differnet live-version. So how surprising these versions might be - sometimes you'd wish he'd played/the editor selected some different songs. But for the true fan a must!

Tight, rocking live show, not half as overblown as "Rock & Roll Animal" or "Lou Reed Live." Meaning that here, old Unca Lou was not yet in danger of parodying himself or his music as he did on his other 1970s live albums.

He also had yet, at this point, to make an impact in America beyond the Velvets fanbase, so on this set he actually worked at playing a good show for once, singing instead of shouting/reciting the lyrics, and avoiding most of the mannerisms that marred his later work. Here he's performing with focus and directness. In other words, this is a pretty terrific live show, and better than nearly all of his other live albums.

The much-reviled Tots (who got a lot of bad press in England simply because their names weren't Sterling, Doug, Maureen or John) do a fine job here of approximating Mick Ronson's arrangements of Reed's then-current "Transformer" album without hitting the overblown rockstar postures of the Wagner/Hunter era Reed band. The version of "Berlin" here is surprisingly effective, and "Walk It Talk It" is better than either the Velvets' version or the version on Reed's first solo album (the travails of which are hilariously outlined on the barely-literate liner notes on this CD).

The interview is funny, not just because Reed says he hopes Doug Yule is dead, but because the interviewer then reveals he went to school with Yule, forcing Lou into the position of trying to make nice with the interviewer while retaining his bad-boy rock star posture. Aside from the novelty factor, the interview isn't all that, and after the first time you hear it you'll probably hit the skip button. It should have been stuck on at the end after the actual music, rather than breaking up the flow of the show as it does.

But enough of the critical stuff. If you're a Lou Reed fan, you'll want this for sure. If you were a Lou fan but gave up on him after some of the admittedly dreadful junk he did in the late 70's and '80s, you might want this anyway to remind you of why you liked him. And if you're a newcomer, you'll want this after you get Transformer, simply because it's actually one of the better Lou Reed live albums period.

Solo concert of Lou Reed 1972 in New York, shortly after his separation from the Velvet Underground and immediately after the completion of his second solo album „Transformer". Contained in the middle of this CD is also a short radio interview with Lou Reed, which doesn't disturb at all, but fits in very well. Lou Reed is at his best. Obviously he never plays a song twice in the same way, which makes his live albums very interesting. In my opinion each song on this CD is excellent, and I don't want to highlight one of them especially.

I don't know why I have to write at least 20 words in this review. It is a great album, i had never heard it before in my long life of listening to live lou/velvets material. Just buy it.

A good friend of mine, who has since passed away, introduced me to the Velvet Underground in the eighties. One has to be grateful for the influence people have on one another, so to commemorate what would have been his fortieth birthday, I started digging back into my Velvet Underground stuff and had a listening party in his honor. I also wanted to add something new to the mix, so I picked up this album and tossed it in for good measure.

All I can say is wow, what a record this is. I only wish the show could have been longer. The recording quality is excellent, Reed is at his loosest and singing with a vengeance, and the group he is playing with is in top form, tackling the songs and making them their own. This is one record that you simply have to turn up to ten, neighbors be damned.

Where are the reviews of this? It has been out for years. Simply awesome.....belongs in the hall of fame of shows......the price, they may as well pay you to haul it off, geez.....

Rock and roll Animal is one of my all time favorite albums, so when I saw this I had to grab it, and I am so glad that I bumped into it. It's the standard set of Lou Reed/velvet underground songs. Good version of 'Sweet Jane' Great versions of 'Satellite of Love' and 'Rock and roll.' Pretty cool interview on here too.