Rock legend Lou Reed died at the age of 71 on Sunday, Oct. 27. He underwent a liver transplant in May and later claimed on his website to be “bigger and stronger than ever.” A cause of death has not yet been released.
Reed was a rock pioneer who went from record label songwriter to a member of the short-lived but innovative and influential Velvet Underground. During his career Lou tackled taboo topics like drug addiction, paranoia and sexual deviancy in songs that were largely spare, muscular and often saturated in feedback.
Many fellow musicians hit Twitter to reflect on the passing of a music great:
Underground band mate John Cale: “The news I feared the most, pales in comparison to the lump in my throat and the hollow in my stomach.”
Iggy Pop: “Devastating news.”
Randy Jackson: “Rip great one lou reed”
Lenny Kravitz: “Lou, rest in peace on the wild side. #rip #loureed”
Paul Stanley: “RIP Lou Reed. A musician, artist and trailblazer who played by his own rules.”
Steven Tyler: “RIP TO A GREAT FRIEND A FELLOW MUSICIAN. FROM MAXES TO THE MASSES YOU MADE THE WORLD SING. I LOVE YOU LOU! #LouReed”
Simon Vozick-Levinson, a senior editor at Rolling Stone said, “Lou Reed’s influence is one that there are really only a tiny handful of other figures who you can compare to him.”
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