Lou Reed…As His All-Star Jam Was Meant to Sound!

Apr 132010

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As early as the 42-second mark, Lou can’t stand it anymore. How long until you bag it?

What do you consider a successful All-Star Jam – and by All-Star Jam I think the performance has to involve at least five or more disparate artists and at least seem like a somewhat impromptu performance. I doubt that The Last Waltz‘s star-studded finale of “I Shall Be Released” was that impromptu, but there are a few dozen notable musicians on stage. Chances are a dozen of them had to be following along, not quite sure if they knew the next chord or all the lyrics on the chorus. On the other hand, I don’t think songs composed specifically for an All-Star Jam count in this examination, such as “We Are the World” or the following:
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5 Responses to “Lou Reed…As His All-Star Jam Was Meant to Sound!”

cdm says:

04/14/2010 at 11:54 am

I’m not sure what I was expecting but I don’t think I would have been able to match comedian with the guitar prior to seeing this. Especially Jimmy Fallon with the SG. I would have imagined him to be a Tele guy or maybe a Gretch guy.

Also, someone should really punch Adam Sandler in the face.

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Oats says:

04/14/2010 at 12:14 pm

Conan strikes me as more of a Gretch guy, for sure. That Strat’s all wrong.

Lou came off as a pretty good sport. That first snub looked intentional, but then as I realized it was a “bit,” I developed some appreciation for his rudimentary acting chops. Then again, I’ve never see One Trick Pony.

I love “Rockestra Theme” in all its ridiculous superfluousness. Is that the last thing Bonham recorded before he died?

I think All-Star Jams basically appeal to 13-year-olds. (Whoa! Randy Bachman, Patrick Moraz, George Thoroughgood, Mike Rutherford, Snowy White and Don Felder! Together!) Not sure they have any real redeeming musical or rock value.

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Mr. Moderator says:

04/14/2010 at 2:01 pm

Conan played a Strat when I saw him join The Fab Faux for a song. I agree, he should be playing a hollow body.

Fallon should be playing a black Yahama or Ibanez – or whatever cheesy guitar the Buzzcocks guys used.

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misterioso says:

04/14/2010 at 5:18 pm

cdm, in my mind I have punched Adam Sandler in the face many, many times. Many, many times.

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eh says:

04/14/2010 at 8:20 pm

Priceless moment: 3:26

Lou also shoulders Fallon away at the last second!

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Lou Reed…As His Music Was Meant to Sound!

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Jul 062007

This surprisingly lucid slow-burner really picks up speed with about 1:04 left to go, as Lou cranks out a nasty Rock Porn Soloing Face. From that point forward, the sound Lou always had in his head is evident.

7 Responses to “Lou Reed…As His Music Was Meant to Sound!”

saturnismine says:

07/07/2007 at 11:05 am

wow…what an embarrassing attempt at a pickup by Lou at the end! creepy!

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hrrundivbakshi says:

07/07/2007 at 1:45 pm

*She* fell for it. JEALOUS?

BTW, I gotta give gearhead props to Lou for not giving a shit about his incredibly uncool 21st-century guitars. Like albino blues legend Johnny Winter with his headless “Lazer” guitar, it’s just so totally un-trendy and idiosyncratic that it works.

(Yeah, a blues legend, happily playing a Steinberger *ripoff*! This, by the way, goes straight to the heart of the “expensive authenticity = cheap ripoff” paradox that so many gearheads and comic store guys don’t understand.)

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saturnismine says:

07/07/2007 at 2:29 pm

jealous? nah, i’ve never had a soft spot for aging, pasty, overly made-up english roses who display very little in the smarts dept. and go gaga for lou reed types.

we definitely don’t share tastes in gear. i get the “so un-trendy it works” logic. but it only works when the guy doing the axe wielding actually rocks. a wooden indian who looks like he can’t figure out why he’s there (like Lou in this clip) just looks downright FRENCH playing a guitar like that.

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BigSteve says:

07/07/2007 at 2:55 pm

Lou used to be a genius level rhythm guitar player. How does one lose a talent like that?

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saturnismine says:

07/07/2007 at 4:05 pm

so true, steve.

my only guess is that some of the things that we might value and find inventive in Lou’s early rhythm playing – its unpretentiousness, its naiveté, its sloppiness (even recklessness) at times, its percussivness – are things he devalued.

in fact, isn’t he on record as trashing his early playing style?

i look at fernando saunders, a guy who was in on the early to mid 70s fusion kick, and i see his presence as a signal of Lou’s movement away from some of the things that made his playing fun, and towards much tamer territory, where playing properly, or “like a pro”, could never be forsaken in order to play with feeling.

also, his writing changed, and from the mid 70s on,there aren’t as many opportunities for good old fashioned rhythm clunkin’ like he used to do on say “coney island” or “what goes on”, etc..

just theories…

far be it from me to deconstruct one of the greats with a couple of long winded rambling sentences, but that’s my best guess….

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Mr. Moderator says:

07/08/2007 at 9:55 am

Lou moved away from the Velvets rhythmic feel early on. He was all over fusion and other chops-heavy players early into his solo career – all in the name of nailing that elusive “true” sound he’s always heard in his head and on each new release.

I love the opening to this interview. If RTH ever goes the video route, I want to open segments with shots of me applying my eyeliner before stirring up, say, some Dugout Chatter.

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saturnismine says:

07/08/2007 at 2:20 pm

yeah…i’ve always felt like i was watching lou’s post-velvets career from the sidelines. and i mean that in the sense of not really getting into it, but also in metaphorical sense of not being allowed to participate…or something…as if what lou was doing with these guys he assembled was something we were supposed to “watch the big boys do”, but that for some reason lou couldn’t ever really explain satisfactorily, we couldn’t do ourselves. know what i mean? that velvets stuff was ‘kids stuff’ but this was grownup. of course, i always got the idea that these fusion guys were pretty much uninspired by lou (christ, they play like it), but hung around because it was an easy gig (no way you’re gonna get fired for not staying on top of your chops…the songs are way too easy for that), and the money was there.

i was never quite able to work all this out. but mod, your comments have helped.

again, i’m probably a little off…but whatev. lou is apparently so taken with “thinging” his own “thing”, that he doesn’t need (or even want) us to think too much about what he’s doing. we couldn’t possibly understand it any way, right?

sheesh…mod, you’re “as his music was meant to sound” series has unlocked something deep within me that i didn’t even know was there regarding lou’s solo career…i’m TEEMING with it as i write. and to think, all this time, it was waiting to happen…

help me…please.

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