1972

Lou Reed - Imperial College, London, England, October 21, 1972

Cause for celebration — another terrific Tots recording has been freshly unearthed from the collection of Bill Allerton, who attended multiple Lou Reed gigs in the UK throughout 1972. This previously uncirculated gem from London’s Imperial College in October 1972 is not only one of the best-sounding Tots tapes — startlingly crisp and clear compared to others from around the same time — it’s also a downright wonderful performance that spotlights the growing chemistry between Lou, Vinnie Laporta (guitar), Eddie Reynolds (guitar), Bobby Resigno (bass), Scottie Clark (drums).

Just check out the opening “White Light / White Heat,” which comes to a sudden halt towards the end due to an equipment malfunction. Calm and casual, Lou instructs the band to re-start the tune at the solo, which they do with no problem at all, subsequently nailing the tricky turn-on-a-dime transition into a rowdy “Lonesome Cowboy Bill.” By this point in their all-too-brief association, Lou and the Tots had found their footing, coming across like a real band, as opposed to a mere backing band.

The 85 minutes Allerton captured here are dominated by dips into the VU catalog, and though Transformer was waiting in the wings, we don’t get any previews of that soon-to-be-classic LP. But there are a few choice cuts from Lou’s solo debut, including a rare “Wild Child” and an elegant “Berlin.” The closing “Sister Ray” lasts just nine minutes, but it’s a groovy ride, with Lou sharing the cast of characters at the outset.

Best of all is the additional mini-set of stripped down numbers (“The folk portion of the show,” as Lou calls it) that was part of Lou’s shows for a minute during this era. The gorgeous “Pale Blue Eyes,” featuring Laporta in the Sterling Morrison role, is intro-ed by Reed with a rare reference to his Syracuse girlfriend Shelley Albin (“She had brown eyes, but that didn’t rhyme”) and features a semi-successful Dylan imitation. Meanwhile, the tender solo renditions of “I’ll Be Your Mirror” and “Candy Says” are as pure and strange as can be, vulnerable in a way that we’d almost never get in the years to come.  

Thanks to weapons etc and lurid for bringing this recording to light! Lurid's notes are after the jump:

Buttercup Tree flowers. Natural History. April 1949. Cover photo.

52 years ago - the top 81 songs of 1972.