Rocker Lou Reed of Velvet Underground Dies at 71

27 Oct, 2013

Lou Reed, the pioneering songwriter and musician behind the Velvet Underground, one of the most influential rock bands which fused art and music in collaboration with artist Andy Warhol, died on Sunday at the age of 71, his literary agent said.

Reed died at a home he shared in Long Island, New York, with his wife Laurie Anderson following complications from a liver transplant he had earlier this year, Andrew Wylie, the agent, said.

“I think Lou was as great an artist as it was possible to be,” Wylie said. “It’s a great loss.”

The Velvet Underground never achieved much commercial success, but revolutionized rock in the 1960s and 70s with a mixture of thrashing guitar licks and smooth melodies sung by Reed or the sultry German model Nico, who briefly collaborated with the band at Warhol’s insistence.

The band has long been recognized as a major musical influence on punk and art rock, as reflected in a quote often attributed to musician Brian Eno that, “The first Velvet Underground album only sold 10,000 copies, but everyone who bought it formed a band.”

An admitted hard drinker and drug user for many years, Reed underwent a liver transplant earlier this year at the Cleveland Mayo Clinic, his wife, Laurie Anderson, told The Times of London, after he had canceled five California concert dates scheduled in April.

“I am a triumph of modern medicine,” Reed posted on his website on June 1, 2013, without directly acknowledging the transplant. “I look forward to being on stage performing, and writing more songs to connect with your hearts and spirits and the universe well into the future.”

Reuters

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