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IMDbPro

Lou Reed(1942-2013)

  • Music Artist
  • Actor
  • Composer
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
Lou Reed at an event for Phil Spector (2013)
The Velvet Underground created a new sound that changed the world of music, cementing its place as one of rock and roll's most revered bands. Directed with the era's avant-garde spirit by Todd Haynes, this kaleidoscopic oral history combines exclusive interviews with dazzling archival footage.
Play trailer2:16
The Velvet Underground (2021)
4 Videos
32 Photos
He formed the group The Velvet Underground with Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, second guitarist Sterling Morrison, and drummer Maureen Tucker in New York in 1965. The group soon became a part of Andy Warhol's Factory scene, which housed a great number of the most freaked and experimental artists at the time. The German singer and actress Nico sang in the group for a short period-- but the original line-up began to split up. The group, at its best, made only four original albums: "The Velvet Underground & Nico" (1967), "White Light/White Heat" (1968), "The Velvet Underground" (1969), and "Loaded" (1970). They stand today as milestones in the history of rock.

In 1970, Lou Reed began his solo career. His second album, "Transformer" (1972), was produced by David Bowie and Mick Ronson, long-time admirers of the Velvets. That year, he had his first--and still only--top 20 song, "Walk on the Wild Side." Through the 1970s, he made a prolific number of albums with "Berlin" (1973), "Rock 'n' Roll Animal" (1974), and "Street Hassle" (1978) as the artistic highlights of this period. On St. Valentine's Day 1980, Lou Reed married Sylvia Morales, and that was another turning point in his career. The following album, "The Blue Mask" (1982), stands as one of his best and most composed. In 1989, he made "New York"--a love letter to his city with its good and bad, and with a heavy criticism of American thought.

In the 1990s, he continued to be one of the most sharp-tongued rock 'n' roll poets of his time. In 1990, he once again collaborated with ex-Velvet-partner John Cale. Their album, "Songs for Drella," was a very personal tribute to friend and artist Andy Warhol, who had recently died. In 1993, The Velvet Underground was re-formed with its original line-up, and toured in Europe in 1993. In 1997, Lou Reed, along with former Velvet band mates John Cale, Maureen Tucker, and the late Sterling Morrison were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.

Lou Reed stood as one of the most important songwriters of our time and has served as inspiration to a multitude of artists such as David Bowie, Nick Cave, Sonic Youth, Nine Inch Nails, U2, David Byrne and Patti Smith.
BornMarch 2, 1942
DiedOctober 27, 2013(71)
BornMarch 2, 1942
DiedOctober 27, 2013(71)
IMDbProStarmeter
See rank
  • Awards

Photos32

Lou Reed in Jimi Hendrix (1973)
Sterling Morrison, Lou Reed, Maureen Tucker, The Velvet Underground, and Doug Yule in The Velvet Underground (2021)
John Cale, Lou Reed, Maureen Tucker, The Velvet Underground, and Andy Warhol in The Velvet Underground (2021)
Lou Reed in The Making of Rock & Rule (1983)
Lou Reed and Otto Sander in Faraway, So Close! (1993)
Lou Reed as the man with strange glasses
Lou Reed in Rock & Rule (1983)
Lou Reed and Hal Willner
Lou Reed
Lou Reed and Andy Warhol
Lou Reed at an event for Midnight in Paris (2011)
Lou Reed

Known for

Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving in V for Vendetta (2005)
V for Vendetta
8.2
  • Soundtrack("I Found a Reason")
  • 2005
Jeremy Piven, Gerard Butler, Ludacris, Thandiwe Newton, Tom Wilkinson, and Toby Kebbell in RocknRolla (2008)
RocknRolla
7.2
  • Soundtrack("The Gun")
  • 2008
Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, and Josh Brolin in Men in Black 3 (2012)
Men in Black 3
6.8
  • Soundtrack("I'm Waiting for the Man")
  • 2012
The Salton Sea (2002)
The Salton Sea
7.0
  • Soundtrack("Walk On The Wild Side")
  • 2002

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

  • Garland Jeffreys: The Contortionist (2012)
    Garland Jeffreys: The Contortionist
    • (voice, uncredited)
  • James Hetfield in Lou Reed & Metallica: The View (2011)
    Lou Reed & Metallica: The View
  • Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds (2010)
    Arthur 3: The War of the Two Worlds
    • (voice)
  • Final Weapon (2010)
    Final Weapon
  • Arthur et la vengeance de Maltazard (2009)
    Arthur et la vengeance de Maltazard
    • (voice)
  • The Killers Feat. Lou Reed: Tranquilize
  • Walk on the Wild Side (2005)
    Walk on the Wild Side
  • Christina Ricci in Prozac Nation (2001)
    Prozac Nation
  • Lou Reed: Modern Dance
  • Lou Reed: Ecstasy
  • 1 sheet
    Lulu on the Bridge
  • Lou Reed: Hooky Wooky
  • Blue in the Face (1995)
    Blue in the Face
  • Faraway, So Close! (1993)
    Faraway, So Close!
  • Lou Reed: Dirty Blvd

Composer

  • The Velvet Underground: After Hours
  • James Hetfield in Lou Reed & Metallica: The View (2011)
    Lou Reed & Metallica: The View
  • Equip d'Atenció a la Infància i l'Adolescència. Jo present i futur
    • (music by)
  • Micky Dacks in Needles and Pins (2010)
    Needles and Pins
  • Wash
  • Berlin (2007)
    Berlin
  • Lady Godiva's Operation
  • Vanessa Paradis: Walk on the Wild Side (Live)
  • American Masters (1985)
    American Masters
  • Perfect Day (1997)
    Perfect Day
  • Dunlop: Unexpected
  • Lou Reed: The New York Album (1991)
    Lou Reed: The New York Album
  • Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Wildside (1991)
    Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Wildside
  • Songs for Drella (1990)
    Songs for Drella
  • Lou Reed: Dirty Blvd

Videos4

Official Trailer
Trailer 2:16
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 1:27
Official Trailer
Berlin
Trailer 1:25
Berlin
"mindFLUX: a film about Richard Foreman"
Trailer 3:16
"mindFLUX: a film about Richard Foreman"

Personal details

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  • Official sites
    • Apple Music
    • Deezer
    • March 2, 1942
    • Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
    • October 27, 2013
    • Amagansett, New York, USA(liver disease)
    • Laurie AndersonApril 12, 2008 - October 27, 2013 (his death)
  • Other works
    Album: "Magic and Loss" (Sire Records, 9 26662-2)
  • Publicity listings
    • 4 Print Biographies
    • 5 Portrayals
    • 17 Interviews
    • 20 Articles
    • 1 Pictorial
    • 11 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Spent some weeks in a mental hospital in his teens, at his parents' insistence; his treatment included electroshock therapy and medication. Reed reflected on the experience later in songs, "Kill Your Sons" being one of them.
  • Quotes
    You can't beat two guitars, bass, and drums.
    • Unabashed New Yorker's viewpoint

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