Lou Reed's Solo Career Celebrated with 17-Disc Box Set
Published May 17, 2016
Fans of Lou Reed will be getting the opportunity to celebrate and relive the iconic musician's career thanks to a new box set. Titled Lou Reed - The RCA & Arista Album Collection, the massive compilation is due out on October 7 through Legacy Recordings.The 17-CD set features 16 full-length studio albums and live records spanning from 1972 to 1986, documenting his creative endeavours following the 1970 dissolution of the Velvet Underground.
Included in the collection are classics like Reed's first trio of solo records — his self-titled debut (1972), Transformer (1972) and the follow-up Berlin (1973). There are also live albums included, with Rock N Roll Animal from 1974 and the 1978 double live album Take No Prisoners making the cut.
Each record was remastered under the musician's supervision with co-producer Hal Willner in June and July of 2013, before Reed passed away months later, and the box set has received the blessing of musician, artist and Reed's partner of 21 years, Laurie Anderson.
"Our first date was a trip to the AES (Audio Engineering Society) convention. As wireheads Lou and I loved beautiful recordings and spent years making our studios, instruments and gear the best they could possibly be," she said in a statement. "Lou put his heart into remastering these records. They are not smoothed out. Sometimes remastering revealed their details and roughness in the most exciting ways. They leap out at you with their original energy."
The package will arrive as a 12-inch by 12-inch library, containing the 17 discs, as well as an 80-page hardcover book detailing memorabilia from Reed's personal archives, photos, artwork, a rare promotional poster, interviews, and liner notes written by Willner.
In the liner notes, Willner had this to say:
This box set was Lou's last project. He oversaw the remastering of all of his solo recordings made for RCA and Arista Records….This work was done at New York's Masterdisk in June and July 2013, with engineer Vlado Meller and Rob Santos of Sony/Legacy. Everyone who was in that room or around Lou during this period witnessed a beautiful thing as he enthusiastically relived that whole period of his work with the joy of rediscovery, excitedly pointing out subtleties in sounds he hadn't heard in years. In retrospect, reminiscing about these sessions done less than four months before he died, the moments seem even more magnified.
Before the new box set arrives, Anderson has also planned a free, full-day event dubbed "The Bells" to celebrate Reed's career. It's scheduled to take place as part of the Lincoln Centre Out of Doors Festival in New York City on July 30.
Below, find the full list of 16 albums that will be included on Lou Reed - The RCA & Arista Album Collection.
Lou Reed - The RCA & Arista Album Collection:
1. Lou Reed (April 1972)
2. Transformer (November 1972)
3. Berlin (July 1973)
4. Rock 'N' Roll Animal (live – February 1974)
5. Sally Can't Dance (August 1974)
6. Metal Machine Music (July 1975)
7. Coney Island Baby (December 1975)
8. Rock and Roll Heart (October 1976)
9. Street Hassle (February 1978)
10. Lou Reed Live Take No Prisoners (2 CDs – November 1978)
11. The Bells (April 1979)
12. Growing Up in Public (April 1980)
13. The Blue Mask (February 1982)
14. Legendary Hearts (March 1983)
15. New Sensations (April 1984)
16. Mistrial (June 1986)