I'll Be Your Mirror: The Collected Lyrics

by Lou Reed

Out of print for several years, a comprehensive volume of Lou Reed’s lyrics with brand new introductions, now updated in a new text design to include the lyrics from his final album with Metallica, Lulu.

Through his many incarnations-from proto punk to glam rocker to elder statesman of the avant garde Lou Reed's work has maintained an undeniable vividness and raw beauty, fueled by precise character studies and rendered with an admirable shot of moral ambiguity. Beginning with his formative days in the Velvet Underground and continuing through his remarkable solo albums like Berlin and New York, Doin' The Things We Want To is crucial to an appreciation of Lou Reed, not only as a consummate underground musician, but as one of the truly significant visionary lyricists of the rock n' roll era.

Containing a body of work that spans more than six decades, this is a monument to the literary qualities of an American original.

Genres: Music, Poetry

Kindle Edition

First published September 5, 2019

About the author

Lou Reed was an influential American rock singer-songwriter and guitarist. He first came to prominence as the guitarist and principal singer-songwriter of The Velvet Underground (1965-1973). The band gained little mainstream attention during their career, but in hindsight became one of the most influential of their era. As the Velvets’ principal songwriter, Reed wrote about subjects of personal experience that rarely had been examined in rock and roll, including bondage and S&M ("Venus in Furs"), transvestites ("Sister Ray" and "Candy Says"), drug culture ("Heroin" and "I'm Waiting for the Man"), and transsexuals undergoing surgery ("Lady Godiva's Operation"). As a guitarist, he was a pioneer in the use of distortion, high volume feedback, and nonstandard tunings.

Reed began a long and eclectic solo career in 1971. He had a hit the following year with "Walk on the Wild Side", though for more than a decade Reed seemed to willfully evade the mainstream commercial success its chart status offered him. One of rock's most volatile personalities, Reed's work as a solo artist has frustrated critics wishing for a return of The Velvet Underground. The most notable example is 1975's infamous double LP of recorded feedback loops, Metal Machine Music, upon which Reed later commented, "no one is supposed to be able to do a thing like that and survive." By the late 1980s, however, Reed had won wide recognition as an elder statesman of rock.

Reviews

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so glad that I got I'll Be Your Mirror by Lou Reed from Netgalley. This book is a beautiful collection of his song lyrics and dedications from people who knew and admired him. I felt like I got to see a glimpse of who he was from reading the dedications. I love a lot of his music and it's been used a lot in TV shows and movies. Reading the lyrics would bring up memories and music in my head. I hadn't even realized how much his music influenced me until reading this. This book is a treasure to any fan of his or music. I loved it.

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so glad that I got I'll Be Your Mirror by Lou Reed from Netgalley. This book is a beautiful collection of his song lyrics and dedications from people who knew and admired him. I felt like I got to see a glimpse of who he was from reading the dedications. I love a lot of his music and it's been used a lot in TV shows and movies. Reading the lyrics would bring up memories and music in my head. I hadn't even realized how much his music influenced me until reading this. This book is a treasure to any fan of his or music. I loved it.

[K]

If you like Lou Reed's music, you already know what you're in for with this book. As one of the more casual Lou Reed fans out there (probably) the music in his words are more evident for the songs which I do not know. Repeated lines are more apparent in print than in music, but it's nothing horrible compared to the average pop song. I received an ARC of the 2020 edition from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lou Reed is one of my all time favorite musicians, so I was thrilled to get a copy of this. Aside from a few dedications, this is a no-frills presentation of all of Lou’s lyrics, warts and all. Fantastic.

[Juan V. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing lyrics organized very neatly. Must read for any Velvet Underground fan or Lou Reed fan.

[AJRXII · Rating 5 out of 5]

Admittedly the Raven and Lulu were a chore to read. I miss Lou.

Often very strange structured lyrics.

Anyway I finally finished it!! Was like War & Peace that!!!!!

[Isabella Whiten ✧˖° · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lou, my favourite poet & New York icon

[Dorian Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the greatest lyric writers of all time.

[Chad Alexander Guarino da Verona · Rating 5 out of 5]

A chronological collection of Lou Reed's lyrics, spanning the beginning with the Velvet Underground through his prolific solo career. Reed's lyrics in print retain the same gritty, observational, and timeless appeal that they carry accompanied by the music. It's the perfect pick-up-and-read selection for both casual and hardcore Reed fans.

**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Hatchette Books.**

[Bryce Deupree · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this man