LOU REED

The only Lou Reed bio you need to read The Washington Post One of Pitchfork s ten best music books of 2023 A Kirkus Reviews best nonfiction book of 2023 A monumental work filled with first person accounts of the master s life and a dizzying array of never before heard details Michael Imperioli author of The Perfume Burned His Eyes The most complete and penetrating biography of the rock master whose stature grows every year Since his death ten years ago Lou Reed s living presence has only grown The great rock poet presided over the marriage of Brill Building pop and the European avant garde and left American culture transfigured In Lou Reed The King of New York Will Hermes offers the definitive narrative of Reed s life and legacy dramatizing his long brilliant and contentious dialogue with fans critics fellow artists and assorted habitués of the demimonde We witness Reed s complex partnerships with David Bowie Andy Warhol John Cale and Laurie Anderson track the deadpan wit street smart edge and poetic flights that defined his craft as a singer and songwriter with the Velvet Underground and beyond and explore the artistic ambition and gift for self sabotage he took from his mentor Delmore Schwartz As Hermes follows Reed from Lower Eas