Banana Reed

The old question remained unnecessary - who is more important to us, chocolate Pushkin or banana Reed? They argued hoarsely, tired, old and calmed down, and without really reading Alexander Sergeyevich. Now they have lost Lou Reed. The ruthless World Wide Web buried the news - he died. He died - a word, the meaning of which becomes more understandable for many every year, a little more, and you can feel with your hands. Although people like Lou Read should not die. Pushkin, our everything is alive, but how else? Vysotsky, recently it turned out, is also alive. Tsoi - alive and continues to score glasses against the background of modern drisny.

Lu Reid just left the building. Lu Reid just went into the kitchen.

About five years ago, Yuri Saprykin made a brilliant interview with Laurie Anderson, perhaps the best text that appeared in Russian musical journalism. They talked, as I recall, in the New York apartment Laurie, and the moment crashed to me in memory, a small episode: Lou Reed returned home, learning that there was an interview for the Russian magazine, quietly disappeared behind some door. Went into the kitchen? Yes, Lou Reid just went into the kitchen. I am sure he is still there.

Although, it would seem, who is this Lou Read and what is the case with him? Soviet audiophiles-dulls with packs of a sprouted vinyl under his arm, fake, could sing any song from the repertoire of Deep Purple or Slade and fell into serious ecstasy without any psychotropic substances. Note wise men wrinkled his forehead at the mention of King Crimson and, Lord, I'm sorry, Genesis . But who then could say something intelligible about Lou Reed?

In the late 1980s, I ended up in the plate market in Kyiv. In the pocket lay a littered book, something like “100 albums that you need to listen”, published in the United States and it is not clear how I got into my hands-there were no pictures in it, and the name of the groups for the most part did not say anything to the adherents of Nazareth . I, having read the enthusiastic reviews about the unknown Velvet Underground , Nico, Lou Read and John Kale, built a tricky plan-to buy all kinds of “pasplov” and “Stones”, drive them more expensive in my county city, and find something unknown to the difference. The records of Nico, Ian Duri and Lou Read, were happy to put me with joy. As I remember now, each was worth no more than fifteen rubles, although not a single seller below the “paslov” did not even want to talk. When buying Reed, it was necessary to behave carefully and not show that it is interesting to you - you scroll through the records and as if by chance you ask: what kind of Kucheryovy ​​bull is? So, they answered you, American wave, to an amateur. In a word, garbage, appendage to something serious.

In fact, what could this sandpaper and monotonous goaton, completely non -minting words, spitting out words, the meaning of which could not even be understood even with a dictionary? Only Bob Dylan could be worse than him.

“Holly came from Miami, Florida, a hitchhiking through all the states, plucked her eyebrows along the road, shaved her legs, and finally he became her ... Candy arrived from the island, she was a universal favorite behind the scenes, but she never lost her head, even when she sucked ... Kid Joe never gave it for so, they paid everything ... Fairy Drazhei ... Jackie on the wakes I decided that she was James Dean ... "

Who are all these people and why should I listen about them? And why does the American book call this song the most important in the history of modern music? Maybe because

" Hey Babe, Take a Walk on the Wild Side
And then color girls enter-Du-Du-Du-Du-Do-do-do ... "

It was only then that I found out that Holly is a famous transvestite with bulging crooked teeth, known for the film “Garbage”. Kid Joe-Joe Dallesandro, a Brooklyn guy, a famous prostitute and gay icon. Candy (James Lawrence Slarteri)-Drag-Kovin, who died of cancer and captured on the cover of Anthony Hegarty (brilliant discovery of Lou Reed). Jackie (John Holder) - transvestite, film actor, writer, who died (dead?) From an overdose. And so on, all this “dog wedding” Andy Warhol and his crazy “factory”, which Lou Read could safely enter into the questionnaire as “a house, a sweet house”. He was also one of them, but found the strength to become himself that it was worth a lot.

However, in our times, the plates of Lou Reed are inexpensive - almost everything can be collected for $ 10-15. So how much is the conversations about the cultness? Knowledge and revelations gained in Sunday sales packs. Standing on the shelves. For a long time not listening. Although now there is an occasion.

So who is more important to us, chocolate Pushkin or banana Reed? For me - Lu Rid. He just went into the kitchen, and we will have something to talk about. What I would talk about with Pushkin - I can’t imagine, but with Lou - easily. There were even more questions.

Valery Posternak is the former editor -in -chief of Billboard Russia, leading the Postertracks blog .