Music on TV This Week: Lou Reed35 years later, Lou Reed brings a bit of 'Berlin' to Letterman
Singer Lou Reed performs his album 'Berlin' at the CCH Congress Center on July 6, 2008 in Hamburg, Germany -
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It was 35 years ago that Lou Reed's dark masterpiece Berlin was released to a collective "huh?" While critics weren't sure what to make of it, the album's story of paranoia, addiction and suicide functioned as a soundtrack for many young people going through hard times, including the future painter-turned-director Julian Schnabel (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly). Over the years, perception of the album has evolved; it's now widely considered Reed's masterpiece, and yet Reed had never performed the album live. Enter Schnabel, who in 2006 talked his idol into performing the album on stage, capturing the proceedings for the concert film Lou Reed's Berlin, culled together together from the five nights when Reed performed the album at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn, New York. To support the release of the corresponding album, Berlin Live at St. Anns Warehouse (10/21/2008), Reed will perform "Caroline Says, Pt. II" (download from Matador) on Letterman Friday night, and he'll be backed by an orchestra and possibly the Brooklyn Youth Chorus and singer Antony Hegarty (Antony & the Johnsons), who sang backup on the song in the film and on the album. Reed's never been the greatest of vocalists, but the contrast of his rasp with the lush background in these arrangements is quite striking and actually improves upon the original in many ways. I, for one, am excited to see how Reed's (and Schnabel's) big production translates onto the small stage and screen of Letterman. Meanwhile, there's Jenny Lewis ... or ... ah ... maybe Death Cab For Cutie? How do you follow up Lou Reed? It's hard to even recommend songwriting legend Jackson Browne, considering that he will be playing at the exact same time Friday, on Leno. I guess it's just time to give Lou his due. Playlist: Picks for the week drake lelane Most Popular Stories
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