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Posts Tagged Lou Reed

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June 29, 2022 by Simon Sweetman

Going Back To Lou Reed: Time To Revisit His Strange, Wonderful, Weird Catalogue

It was strange when Lou Reed died. I wasn’t all that sad, concerned, upset; he was 71 – he started cheating death in his 30s. And though he’d been a clean-living portrait of near-enough-to-health for the last 20 years and most of the last 30 years, time was always going to catch up; the indulgences […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Blog, CDs, Going Back To Lou Reed, Going Back To Lou Reed: Time To Revisit His Strange, Lou Reed, LP, Music, Records, The Velvet Underground, Time To Revisit His Catalogue, Vinyl, VU, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, Weird Catalogue, Wonderful ·

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April 29, 2022 by Simon Sweetman

Short Story: My Mum

This teacher in high school told us all to write out the lyrics to our favourite song and bring a tape or CD into class to play the tune. We’d read the lyrics out and play the song to the class – talk about why we choose it – what it was about. She played […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Billy Joel, Lou Reed, My Mum, Short Story, Short Story: My Mum ·

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February 22, 2022 by Simon Sweetman

Finding Delmore: Only In Dreams

Delmore Schwartz was an American poet, short story writer and scholar. His most famous story is In Dreams Begin Responsibilities. It was first published in 1937 and became the title for Schwartz’ first book. That was published a year later, he was 25. The story has been widely anthologised and is a classic piece of […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Academic, Author, Blog, Book, Books, Delmore Schwarz, European Son, Finding Delmore, Finding Delmore: Only In Dreams, https://linktr.ee/Simonsweetman, In Dreams Begin Responsibilities, Influence, Lecturer, Lou Reed, My House, Only In Dreams, Second Hand Books, Short Story, Stories, Teacher, Velvet Underground, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, Whanganui, Writer, Writing ·

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February 16, 2022 by Simon Sweetman

Clint Mansell’s Music For Film Cuts Right To My Heart

Clint Mansell’s made some of the best music I’ve ever heard. Some of the greatest film cues and scores. And he was in the band Pop Will Eat Itself. I first really got to know his work when I watched Requiem For A Dream, a film that stays with me still. Its music, scored by […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged [OST], Berlin, Black Swan, Blog, Clint, Clint Mansell, Clint Mansell’s Music, Clint Mansell’s Music For Film Cuts Right To My Heart, High-Rise, https://linktr.ee/Simonsweetman, Kronos Quartet, Lou Reed, Mansell, Music For Film, Noah, O.S.T., Pop Will Eat Itself, PWIE, Requiem For A Dream, Score, Soundtrack, The Wrestler, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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November 26, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

Magic and Loss: The Song

Songs For Drella is a masterpiece. It seems even more poignant now – no chance of another collaboration between Lou Reed and John Cale. And it’s an uncomfortable listen in places – tense and moody –and so stripped back. That’s why it works. Reed must have been on a roll, because he had just made New York and then […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Blog, https://linktr.ee/Simonsweetman, Lou Reed, Lyrics, Magic And Loss, Magic and Loss: The Song, New York, Song Lyrics, Songs For Drella, The Summation ·

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October 2, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

What’s The Saddest Song You Love?

I’m looking for suggestions for songs that actually make you sad, examples of songs you love, but find rather heart-breaking, almost too hard to hear, but you’re drawn to them. They are, in fact, songs by artists you like. I’m not looking for jokes about the song that makes you saddest being something by Manic […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Blog, https://linktr.ee/Simonsweetman, Lambchop, Lou Reed, Richard and Linda Thompson, Sad, Sad Songs, Sun Kil Moon, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, What’s The Saddest Song You Love?, Wilco ·

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May 25, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 46 – Lou Reed “Metal Machine Music”

Lou Reed, Metal Machine Music, 1975 It’s probably cool now – in fact I know that it’s regarded as pioneering, it’s also been performed (in tribute) by large ensembles. There’s an official orchestra version. But that was never Lou Reed’s plan. And the album Metal Machine Music still exists as shorthand for Belligerent Artist Does […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 1975, Crap Albums, Feedback, Lou Reed, Lou Reed “Metal Machine Music”, Metal Machine Music, Shit That's Good, Shit That's Good - Crap Albums I Love, Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 46, Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 46 – Lou Reed “Metal Machine Music”, Velvet Underground, VU, Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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September 9, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 59

Lou Reed, Romeo Had Juliette [Single] (1989) The first song on Lou Reed’s great New York album. What a lyrical tour-de-force. I was listening to it just recently, I Googled the lyrics. I marvelled. I always have. I’m sure I always will. Caught between the twisted stars the plotted lines the faulty map that brought […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 1989, A-side, B-side, Lou Reed, LP, New York, Record, Romeo Had Juliette, Single, The Room, The Vinyl Countdown, The Vinyl Countdown # 59, Vinyl ·

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September 5, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

RNZ Reviews: September 2020

Once a month or so I have a chat on RNZ on their Afternoons show with Jesse Mulligan. These things start – randomly and stop in much the same way. I hope to keep doing this. For a while at least. I think I started in December of 2015, so now four years into  it or so… For […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged 20/20, 2pm, Afternoons, Afternoons with Jesse Mulligan, Albums, Berlin, Carol Morley, Clint Mansell, Clint Walsh, Composer, Film, Jesse Mulligan, Lady Day, Lou Reed, National Radio, Out of Blue, Pop Will Eat Itself, PWIE, Radio, Radio New Zealand, Radio NZ, Radio NZ National, Review, RNZ, RNZ Reviews, RNZ Reviews: September 2020, Score, September, September 2020, Soundtrack, Title Track, Tuesday, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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September 4, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Better Off Read Podcast: Episode 78 – Sound Series 6; Carl Shuker and Simon Sweetman

One of my favourite podcasts to check in on is Pip Adam’s Better Off Read. I was a guest on it way back in 2016, episode 29. Pip returned the favour and was on my podcast a while back. The Better Off Read podcast has continued across the last few years. But recently Pip has started a “Sound […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Better off Read, Better off Read Podcast: Episode 78 – Sound Series 6 Carl Shuker and Simon Sweetman, Books, Carl Shuker, Conversation, Discussion, ep.78, John Cale, Lou Reed, Music, Pip, Pip Adam, Podcast, Schnell-Fenster, Simon Sweetman, Sound Series, Sound Series Episode 6, Wellington, Whisper, Work, Writing, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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August 12, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Lou Reed: Audio Violence ’89 (The Legendary Boston Broadcast)

Lou Reed Audio Violence ’89 (The Legendary Boston Broadcast) Smokin’ Badger Lou Reed found his mojo again – big time! – with his gritty, sublime New York album (a novel or movie in the form of a record). We’ll soon get to hear the expanded edition, b-sides, extras – and at the time of release […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Audio Violence, Audio Violence '89, Audio Violence ’89 (The Legendary Boston Broadcast), Bob Medici, Bootleg, Lou Reed, Lou Reed: Audio Violence ’89 (The Legendary Boston Broadcast), Mike Rathke, Mistrial, New York, Radio Broadcast, Reissue, Rob Wasserman, Smokin' Badger, The Legendary Boston Broadcast, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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August 10, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Clint Mansell and Clint Walsh: Berlin

Clint Mansell and Clint Walsh Berlin Invada Records UK In 2014 Clint Mansell’s girlfriend died. He contacted his friend and fellow multi-instrumentalist Clint Walsh to help him recreate Lou Reed’s Berlin album. The idea came from Julian Barnes’ slim volume about grief. In that fabulous book Barnes lists the ‘lasts’ that he shared with his […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Berlin, Clint Mansell, Clint Mansell and Clint Walsh, Clint Mansell and Clint Walsh: Berlin, Clint Walsh, Cover, Invada, Lou Reed, Pop Will Eat Itself, Track-by-Track, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·
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