Lou Reed Solo Decade Poll Showdown. Be there!!!!!

Oh for the love of God!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed#Discography

70s is going to walk this, right?

(not that there's not a lot to love later, esp in 80s)

Not for those of us who reallyknow what time it is.

A cursory longitudinal analysis of Lou Reed's solo output would lead any rational listener to conclude that it was the 1980s where Lou reached his creative zenith.

transformer, berlin, rock 'n' roll animal, metal machine music, sally can't dance: albums i return to frequently and with joy.

You listen to MMM frequently and with joy?

This poll is going to drive me over the edge of sanity. Because there is some stuff in the 70's very close to my heart indeed, but the 80's is sorta tough for me with him and I guess I'm scared of the 90's and beyond. But I'm probably an ignorant bastard which will take a lifetime to hear all that shit. Who knows? Yeah I liked the New York album when it came out. I'd be terrified to hear it now.

smoke some weed, play Lou Reed. Notice how it rhymes.

^^^ 70's Lou probably wouldn't like that

"If people don’t realize how much fun it is listening to METAL MACHINE MUSIC, let ’em go smoke their fucking marijuana, which is just bad acid anyway."

Anyway, 70's Lou walks this (on the wild side, even! oh dear...)
And it's nice to know that Howard and Lorraine managed to sell one of those metallised leather jackets on the UK Apprentice...

If everyone votes 70s and Lou sees this will he come and glare at us?

1980s

http://www.theworldsbestever.com/2007/09/25/loureed.jpg

A cursory longitudinal analysis of Lou Reed's solo output would lead any rational listener to conclude that it was the 1980s where Lou reached his creative zenith

Yeah, I've been saying the same thing here for years. The Blue Mask, Legendary Hearts, New Sensations...throw in New York and you have four good to excellent albums whose maturity and strangeness trump the seventies work, even if he never quite figured how to record drums.

last Lou Reed album I listened to was ... LIVE IN ITALY, that import from the Legendary Hearts tour. So much QUINE! So maybe I'll vote 80s? No one's even going to rep for the 90s? maybe I need to ...

i mean, Set the Twilight Reeling is really an underrated class ... oh forget it

i mean, Set the Twilight Reeling Ecstasy is really an underrated class ... oh forget it

i do actually like those records. Ecstasy in particular = bizarre.

Ecstasy is 00s, right?

Ecstasy is great, maybe the best one. But I still voted '70s.

i think i'll be contrarian here. for me it is the 90s. lou did not release a lot in that decade but what he released was pretty great. "magic and loss" is probably my favourite album by him, in any case it is the most touching. "set the twilight reeling" was ok, nothing special iirc but "songs for drella" was grand cru. half of the tracks were john cale's but lou's contribution was solid too. smalltown, open house, work ... songs which nail andy warhol's life. but of course the 70s should win by a huge margin.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

70s. Sorry 80s Lou, I just can't get over the fretless bass and poor production choices and New York really isn't all that great. 90s Lou is awful.

yeah i voted 70s too, after so much deep soul searching. those records are the ones I want to listen to the most. i've even really started loving Rock n Roll Animal, which I used to kinda loathe.

Sorry 80s Lou, I just can't get over the fretless bass

The bass makes those songs!

Fernando Saunders is not Pino Palladino.

I went with the 80s; I really love The Blue Mask and Legendary Hearts as albums, while on the 70s albums I tend to focus just on a song or two from each, the obvious ones, and aurally pass over the rest. So while I'd pick "Street Hassle" or "Coney Island Baby" over "Waves of Fear" or "Don't Talk to Me About Work" as songs, as albums I think the 80s is stronger.

As fretless bass goes it's not so bad, but it's still fretless bass

Thanks to the mix of great and godawful in each decade, I can see a strong argument made for any of them.

except 2000s, obv

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-lmDzpuK4U

Songs for Drella sneaks in at the very end of the 80s, doesn't it?

-The Who-T-F? Years
-The Sylvia Years
-The Laurie Years

shouldn't he be riding a Honda scooter in that video

-The Who-T-F? Years

The Rachel Papers

The Where Am I? Years
http://www.nerve.com/CS/blogs/scanner/2008/11/08-15/bowie%20iggy%20lou.jpg

the what am i years

http://dianepernet.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c76e453ef01156ffbf7b5970b-800wi

Oh my, that's quite a pic! I dig.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.