Customer Reviews

Lou Reed: A Night with Lou Reed

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In this video Lou Reed is back at the Bottom Line Club in N.Y., backed by the band from 'The Blue Mask' and 'Legendary Hearts,' the early 80's albums that signalled a major comeback for Reed. Robert Quine on guitar, Fernando Saunders on bass and Fred Maher on drums would continue to work with Reed throughout the decade, and Saunders is still working with Lou now. But it's the music that makes this a night to remember. Classic rockers such as "Sweet Jane" and "Waiting for the Man" are interspersed with terrific versions of "Martial Law" and "Waves of Fear." This is Lou Reed at a vibrant and creative time in his career, able to present older material such as "Kill Your Sons" and "Satellite of Love" with the same energy and originality with which he invests his newer songs. One bonus - you can catch Andy Warhol in the audience and if you read his diaries you will find a refernce to this performance. Lou appears a little apprehensive at times during the show, less confident than at other times during his career, but that does not impair his performance one bit. Wait for the backstage comments at the end of the show when he describes hitting a "perfect note" which lifts him up away from the stage and into the audience. This is a tight, controlled rock 'n' roll show which all Lou Reed fans will enjoy, both new and old.

A relic from the Robert Quine days of Lou's career, and...along with the excellent "Live In Italy" CD...the only other "official" concert release. Quine is rightfully credited as the man who got Lou to pick up the guitar again, and that revived interest produced some pretty entertaining "right channel, left channel" battles. 4 stars instead of 5 because Lou never really cuts loose here like he did on the "Live In Italy" 17-minute medley of "Some Kinda Love / Sister Ray." You do get Lou "floating" (as he describes it backstage after the show) during the guitar solo to "Kill Your Sons." Like Ringo Starr said in a recent issue of Rolling Stone, in regard to seeing Bob Dylan in concert, "You go to Bob's gig, and you get what Bob wants to give you." Same holds true for Lou. On some nights the genius comes out. On other nights, the genius phones it in. On the "Night With Lou Reed" DVD, you'll see about 4/5ths of the genius...not bad, not definitive, just Lou on one New York night, and worth every penny of the $13.49 that Amazon is charging. LOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!

This DVD has good atmosphere. It is fullscreen, and shot as video, so the quality is as good as it gets, but that is pretty good for a 1983 era show. The song selection is great, and Lou puts in great versions of Kill Your Sons, Turn Out The Lights, and Waves of Fear. The only drawback is the length at 60 minutes. On DVD they should have extended the show, but you can't everything. If you like Lou, this is a great DVD to get. Both the picture and sound quality are much enhanced from the VHS version. Absolutely no extras!

Lou Reed, Love him or Hate him. For many there is no in between. Having seen him live since the Velvet Underground, his shows range from brilliant to "let's leave." This dvd records for posterity a pretty decent show. While I remember one of his shows at the Roxy in LA as the best I ever saw, this dvd will provide the listener with an extremely enjoyable rememberance. Filmed in 1983, Lou is joined by frequent bandmates, Robert Quine on Guitar and Fernando Saunders on Bass plus Fred Maher on Drums.

Tracks include: Sweet Jane, I'm Waiting For The Man, Martial Law, Don't Talk to Me About Work, Women, Waves of Fear, Walk on the Wild Side, Turn Out the Lights, New Age, Kill Your Sons, Satellite of Love, White Light/White Heat, Rock N' Roll.

Don't expect the songs to be as released on studio versions or the band to be as tight as on "Rock & Roll Animal" and don't expect an encore. It would have been nice if the set list had been longer, but I really can't complain, except for some of the induced feedback reminiscent of "Metal Machine Music" but even that is only in small doses. Worth adding to the collection.

Great DVD! I waited 6 hours for front row seats general admission. It was worth the wait. A very HOT show. Not only was Warhol there, but some of the members of the 80's band the Go-Go's, and Adam Ant.

In the last song "Rock & Roll", they do a 10 second close up of me in the audience playing air guitar. My 15 minutes of fame!

Lou is the grandfather of Punk and a classic Rock & Roll ICON. But this disk & enjoy.

I'm glad they've put this out on DVD; I bought it back in '84 on videocassette. It was a classic then and now. Lou Reed has never sounded better in his solo career, and he's backed by a dream band (half of Richard Hell & the Voidoids with Fernando Saunders on bass). As Lou says after the concert, the set is "short and delicious"--a mix of VU and solo faves with tracks from his excellent early '80s albums "The Blue Mask" and "Legendary Hearts."

Back in '83, Lou had been off the road for at least a couple of years, and he seems, for once, to be enjoying himself onstage. Also, he's in great voice (given his limited range), still able to actually sing VU tracks like "Rock and Roll" and "New Age," not just talk or shout them. Those tracks in particular appear here in arguably their best-ever versions, the VU never having quite nailed them on "Loaded" or on the various live versions floating around.

Almost all the songs from his solo career are considerably improved over their studio versions, especially "Kill Your Sons," a powerful song that got lost on a bad album ("Sally Can't Dance"). Lou's insane feedback solo on this one says more about the electoshock therapy that is the song's subject than the lyrics do. Also, special kudos to "Turn Out the Light," which is kind of flat on "Legendary Hearts," but is playful and edgy live, capped by a funky (!), almost countryish guitar solo by Lou. It's funny to watch him pull faces during the solo, almost as if he can't believe he's playing it.

And the band is just superb: Robert Quine is one of the great rock guitarists, capable of slash-and-burn solos ("Waves of Fear") or beautifully lyrical ones ("Satellite of Love"). Fernando Saunders plays melodic, distinctive bass--check out the solo on "New Age," and Fred Maher is a solid, powerful drummer. Lou's had some good bands since, but this remains his greatest--other than the original VU, of course. And on this night, they were in top form.

This is simply an essential Lou Reed purchase. Admittedly, it's nothing special visually--Lou and the band playing in a small club with rather harsh lighting, that's it--but it's all about the music. And what music! A true classic.

This is my first Lou Reed Video. I can honestly say that I enjoyed it. I have gained some new perspective on Lou's music. He is a true professional. Before I turned it on, I knew I would like my favorites, Sweet Jane and Walk on the Wild Side, but I found myself enveloped in the other songs, which I had never heard before. I was a casual Lou Reed Fan.
I think if I liked it, then a real hardcore fan will love it.
The video is high quality and the sound is great, it's like having a front row seat. I'm glad I purchased this one.

I'm a big Lou Reed fan. I have a couple of his live CD's. I find that he is better live than in the studio. And, this DVD reaffirms that fact for me.

It's an excellent playlist, and the energy just continues to grow as the concert progresses. I wish that the concert was longer. That would be my only complaint. The DVD left me wanting just a little bit more to complete the experience.

The sound quality is excellent, and the filming is well done in a minimalist way, which is appropriate for the forum in which Lou Reed is playing.

What we have here is simply the greatest band that Reed has ever assembled in his entire solo career , playing some of his strongest material in an outstanding fiery way. Alongside Reed's ever charimastic performance, mr. Robert 'Voidoid' Quine is in IMHO really the main force at this concert, delivering his trademark blistering guitar solos all over the place, backed by the solid rhythm section of Saunders and Maher. The song selection is very good, ranging from VU to "Blue Mask", the sound quality is nice and the shooting have an adequate sparse elegance.


Well, folks, this is SHEER PERFECTION for Lou Reed's fans!!!

When I was first introduced to Lou Reed about 2 years ago I had mixed feelings about the man and his music. In June of 2000 I was treated to a live performance by Lou and Co. in Portland, Or. while he was on tour to promote the release of Ecstasy! That night was a stand on your feet, foot stomping night to remember and I came away a true Lou fan! I mention this because I have that same feeling every time I watch "A Night with Lou Reed." Lou's great, the music's great and the film is flawless. It's easy to see that Lou is having fun and the electricity is freely flowing between artist and audience! Once again I am captivated by the man's ability to capture and hold on to an audience from the beginning to the end of a truely great show!! I highly recommend "A Night with Lou Reed" to anyone who wants to experience the feel of sitting in the front row at a performance by one of America's true Rock and Roll Animals!