Rock icon and beat poet, Lou Reed had an edgy downtown presence. My Lou Reed stories: so engrossed in his music, head stuck to the ground under a table at the Bottom Line to get a better shot. I swear never to become a photographer. At St. Mark’s Church: Lou Reed and Allen Ginsberg mix it up. Allen sings accompanied by his harmonium. Lou reads his poems. At White’s in Montauk: Lou waits in line like everyone else, a skinny guy in grubs. As visual artist: His high gloss photos at the Hermes boutique on Madison. Scapes looking like those drawings we made with crayolas covered in greasy black. Scratching the squiggles. The self-portraits look down to earth enough to have been done by Lou Reed. Well, they are his after all. His voice on Doc Pomus’ diaries in the documentary about the famed songwriter. When last we ran into him, at the stellar Chuck Close exhibition at Guild Hall, near Chuck’s giant portrait of him, he was happy to say that he would celebrate William Burroughs’ centennial this coming year. Ahhhhh! We will miss him.
Regina Weinreich
Graphic Design: Salpeter Ventura
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