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Lou Reed, Legendary Rock Musician, Dies At 71

Lou Reed, the rock legend, passed away on Sunday, October 27. He was 71 years old, and known for his work with the band The Velvet Underground, as well as his hit song “Walk On The Wild Side....
Lou Reed, Legendary Rock Musician, Dies At 71
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  • Lou Reed, the rock legend, passed away on Sunday, October 27. He was 71 years old, and known for his work with the band The Velvet Underground, as well as his hit song “Walk On The Wild Side.” It was revealed that he died of liver disease, after having liver transplant surgery in May of this year. He was treated for it again until just a few days ago.

    Reed was a very influential songwriter and guitarist, and was held in very high regard among musicians and fans all over the world. Although never achieving mainstream success, the album Velvet Underground and Nico has been viewed as one of the most influential rock albums of all time. Another popular album of theirs, “Loaded,” included the hits “Sweet Jane” and “Rock And Roll,” a single that the band Phish has been famously covering for a number of years.

    Lou Reed enjoyed great success with The Velvet Underground throughout the late 1960’s, and when he left the band in 1970, he ventured out to begin a solo career. His first solo album “Transformer” was produced by David Bowie, and featured his most famous song called “Walk On The Wild Side,” which was an ode to the odd and outrageous people that he met while hanging out with Andy Warhol, who produced The Velvet Underground’s first album.

    While Reed was famous for his sexual persona, and excessive drug use throughout the 60’s and 70’s, he has been sober since the 1980’s. He is also a practitioner of Tai Chi, and Dr. Charles Miller of the Cleveland clinic where he was treated stated that “He was doing his Tai Chi exercises within an hour of his death, trying to keep strong and keep fighting.”

    The rock legend was born in 1942 in Brooklyn, NY. He grew up and attended Syraucse University, where he took inspiration from the poet Delmore Schwartz. He was a very influential artist who helped shaped several new genres of the music industry, and according to Rolling Stone, glam, punk and alternative rock are all unthinkable without his regulatory example.

    Lou Reed will be remembered as one of the greatest and most influential rock and roll legends of all time. He was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 1996, and will undoubtedly be a treasured member of the rock community for generations to come. Reed left behind his wife Laurie Anderson, a performance artist, and composer.

    Image via Youtube

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