Berlin

This one is completely and utterly new to me. Have not heard a single Lou Reed song. I don't even think I've actually heard a Velvet Underground song. This is probably the most "difficult" album so far (after 3 days). Some atonal melodies, some depressing subject matter. I, for one, love when a band or an artist is fronted by someone who kind of can't sing. Reed's vocals are the highlight here for me. I can hear how he influenced Bowie, and a handful of other artists. I can even hear a bit of Waters-era Pink Floyd in this. You can also see this being an early form of a rock opera or concept album. I can also hear how Reed influenced a lot of the punk scene. These songs maybe don't 'sound' like punk, but the lyrics are filled with anger, rage, shame, and malaise. I don't think Reed was in a good place when he produced this. The Caroline tracks really stand out to me, as does Oh, Jim and also The Bed. Interesting to end the album with Sad Song, probably the least sad song on the album, and the most heavily produced. I'll have to sit with this a while, but I could see myself coming back to it.

Love VU but Lou Reed's solo stuff is real hit or miss with me. Love the album before this, Transformer, with Bowie's production. I'm sure we'll get around to that one. This one is a little too bleak for me though. I found The Kids to be unbearable, skipped the fucking track when it got to the kid crying. He's recycling a fair amount old unused VU material in places. Like the prominent bass by none other than Cream's Jack Bruce, but that's about it.

WOW. I love velvet and have some of his solo stuff ( I even like metal machine music). Never heard this. Fucking masterpiece. Tragic and bleak. Full of emotion, tells a clear story and has amazing instrumentation/ production.

It was pretty unremarkable. Why someone would add the sounds of babies crying and pestering children to music is beyond me. There were a couple snippets of interesting composition (the discordant choir into the fluttering wind ensemble at the end of "The Bed" was quite enthralling in my opinion). But, overall, I feel Lou Reed's ambition outpaces his ability, especially as a vocalist.

I was expecting this to be much more dirge-like than it was. The subject matter and story is unrelentingly bleak, and I expected there to be no way I could enjoy hearing it set to music. But Lou's voice is the perfect vessel for the unsettling journey, in equal turns sneering, snide, vulnerable and broken. And musically, there's a lot to enjoy here. Orchestral arrangements! Wild drums! That soaring guitar solo in How Do You Think It Feels! Caroline Says I is actually a catchy-number. Others (Berlin, Lady Day) feel like show-tunes in their instrumentation and delivery. Producer and arranger Bob Ezrin would go on to work on Pink Floyd's The Wall, which this feels a lot like a precursor to (especially the wonderful Sad Song's Comfortably Numb-ish strings). Overall I enjoyed this album a lot, dark and devastating as it was.

Sometimes you hear and album that makes you say, "Holy cow, I need to recalibrate my rating scale." This, folks. This is what a 5-star album sounds like. From simple piano melodies to wailing electric guitar over sax and horns, the story packs a heavy emotional punch. I'm overwhelmed.

Holy shit this album is sad. As a follow up to transformer I was expecting something along the same lines, but I can honestly say I was caught off guard and also extremely impressed. This album is the definition of “gauntly beauty”- I bet Tim Burton loves it. A really solid listen, but don’t listen to it if you’re depressed cause it won’t make things better

A heartbreaking album, this. There aren't many albums like this for me, ones that I both love and fear. This is one of those albums I listen to and am grateful for my Lady's mantle to hide in while listening. This album is basically the chronicle of a couple falling in love over drugs and falling apart through the abuse of said drugs, the abuse of each other, prostitution, the disintegration of their family, and eventually suicide by one partner, while the surviving partner, though sad, sees the suicide as a necessary escape and relief. oh oh oh oh oh oh oh what a feeling!

Casualidades que haya tocado White Light primero de Velvet, todavía sin el debut y ahora aparece primero Berlin antes de Transformer. Está dejando en un lugar extraño al pobre Lou Reed para quien no lo conoce mucho. Creo que este disco puede verse ya sea como una obra de arte de genio macabro o un pozo sin fondo de desesperanza y sonido estridente. No sorprenderé a nadie al decir que mi opinión está en el primer campo. Cuando la gente quizá esperaría otro disco hacia el rock glam después de Transformer este inicia totalmente barroco, con un sonido justamente como si fuera un cabaret de Berlin en los 20s y de ahí comienza musicalmente a saltar, con ese sonido característico en toda canción que se puede saber inmediatamente que, a pesar de ser unas caóticas, otras más romanticonas otras hacia rock, tienen ese sonido de Lou Reed. Puedo entender cierta parte de lo que algunos pudieran criticar en esa inflexión un poco repetitiva y cortada que tiene siempre al cantar y que se nota mucho en este disco pero debo decir que ahí de manera personal me agrada y nunca he tenido problema con ella. Líricamente ha quedado patente que me agradan los proyectos llenos de desolación y de historias trágicas (mira se enamoraron... ahora son drogadictos... ahora les quitaron a sus hijos.... ahhh ahora se suicido! AAAH vale madre que se vaya a la chingada otra persona se hubiera roto los dos brazos!) e incluso fuera de la historia literal tanto la prosa como rima de Lou Reed es como siempre inmejorable hacia lo que se puede interpretar de manera personal al ver el disco como la metáfora de un rompimiento y lo personal que pueden hacerse estas canciones. Un disco concepto que funciona de manera perfecta en su concepto y de manera separada. No tengo ningún punto malo personalmente, es musicalmente variado, atrevido e hipnótico y en su contenido temático perfectamente ejecutado. Como mencioné, puedo entender quizá algo de la crítica y por qué a alguien podría no gustarle (o incluso sentirse repelido de primera instancia y no terminar de escuchar el fondo real del disco), pero para mí es de esos discos que son prácticamente perfectos.

Berlin I liked Transformer, but this feels like a much more fascinating and ambitious album than that, but also a lot more downbeat and despondent, and in parts it feels genuinely sad, as on Kids when you hear the crying children. I suppose if you are going to do a story of two drug addicts it’s likely to end up feeling pretty bleak. I like the jazzy/cabaret/Weimar vibes to the intro song, building into the sweeping and dramatic but still showtuney Lady Day. The bass on Men of Good Fortune is great, which makes sense as its Jack Bruce, and there are some nice guitar moments too. Caroline Says I and How Do You Think It Feels I really like too, some great horn and guitar on the outro of the latter. But I can only think of our Jim or American Pie with Oh, Jim. Caroline Says II is a re-working of Stephanie Says, but it’s a great track setting up the fantastic, but sorrowful Kids, whose forlornness and sadness continues with the death of Caroline in The Bed and then Sad Song, both excellent, if mournful tracks. It definitely works best as a whole album, telling the story, the more upbeat if more prosaic first side leading to the very sad but excellent second side, with the run from Caroline Says II to the strongest track, Sad Song. The string arrangement, circling and swirling as it all ends is absolutely superb It was a 3 on first listen, but it’s an easy 4 now, the concept, although bleak, is explored to its logical end, the music emphasising the sadness of the story for a downcast but fascinating album. 🇩🇪🇩🇪🇩🇪🇩🇪 Playlist submission: Sad Song

When Spotify finished this album, it jumped to Nick Drake, which I thought was appropriate, because it has the same feeling of sadness and down-and-outness. Nick is more whimsical and poetic while Lou is gritty, blunt and degrading. The arrangements and muddy production add to the feeling of gloom. Kudos for even attempting something like this.

мир не простит тебе коллаборации с Металликой

Serious stuff, but also beautiful. This is a challenging and rewarding record.

After the first listen, I thought that the album was interesting, but not one that I am likely to ever revisit. But as I listened again today, I became very captured by it all. I can now see spending much more time with this one.

Lou Reed isn't one to placate the listener's imagination. As the Bowie sprinkled, roughed up glam of Transformer became the de-facto go-to album, one would assume that he would gain more momentum by ploughing the same field and reaping more plentiful results. That's not how he worked. He made Berlin instead. Centering on the doomed couple Jim and Caroline, peaking at the harrowing and heartbreaking one-two punch of The Kids and The Bed, this uncompromising study of hopeless love is Lou at his most unforgiving and yet most empathetic. To hell with this not being what anyone wanting to hear in 1973, it is still gripping, unsettling and unrelenting almost fifty years on. Oh, what a feeling.

5.0 + Lou Reed set out to create a novel-like album and to me this reads like "Thérèse Raquin" by Emile Zola. He offers us an unflinching look at the insanity of drug addiction - we hear children crying out for "mommy" ("The Kids"), delve into messy sexual liaisons ("Oh, Jim"), feel the humiliation ("How Do You Think It Feels") and witness the violence ("Caroline Says II"). Listening to this record, I can almost inhale the stench of these NYC hovels and see the grime on the counters and walls.

I'm not sure I've ever said something was beautiful and sad, but this was beautiful and sad.

A sad song titled "Sad Song" that repeats the words "sad song" and children crying during a song called "The Kids" is quite memorable.

Can see cultural value, will not listen again

It's no transformer but was still an interesting listen, especially kids. Sad song was decent too

My stereotype of a Lou Reed solo album is that they’re often long, meandering concept albums and are usually depressing. Berlin fits that bill pretty well. It’s ambitious, yet downtrodden and I quite like this line from the allmusic.com review: “…while Reed had often been accused of focusing on the dark side of life, he and Ezrin approached Berlin as their opportunity to make The Most Depressing Album of All Time, and they hardly missed a trick.” I don’t think it’s a bad record, but it’s not the most cohesive and instrumentally, it’s a little bloated, suffering from the idea that “the more instruments we put on a song, the better.” Anyway, here’s my list of the top 5 Lou Reed songs with song titles that consist of a woman’s name followed by the word “says”: 1. Stephanie Says 2. Candy Says 3. Lisa Says 4. Caroline Says I 5. Caroline Says II …in fact, I’m really mad about “Caroline Says II”. It’s a reworking of “Stephanie Says” and, subject matter aside, its stilted, ornate structure takes a damn near perfect song and makes it clunky. Really disappointing, but because “Stephanie Says” wasn’t officially released until the 80’s on the “VU” album, I realize people went years without knowing it existed and that is a shame, because, frankly, it’s better than “Caroline Says II”.

big fan of Sad Song. the rest was just ok for me.

Saaaaaad song

"Can't really sing" singers don't really do it for me.

I thought I was going to hate this but it turned out to be a bit better than I expected. I finally can put a name to "How Do You Think It Feels", which I've heard a bunch before but never cared enough to look up. The bassline is great, and it honestly feels like the most "complete" and accessible song on the album. I have to mention the more than a few minute length of the crying children in "The Kids". I don't say this as some sort of bleeding heart "think of the children" person, I say this as a father who was driven insane by these kinds of noises and I do not wish to relive any of that. The concept is good, and it tells a sad story well, but the music doesn't do it for me. I've never been a huge fan of Lou Reed's voice in any case so that didn't help. I can see how this was influential, and why people like it, but eh.

This was incredibly boring. The lyrics were meh, just super melodramatic sad lyrics. Don't like his voice at all. Really boring don't get the hype.

Jesus Christ, this is the most depressing shit I've ever heard.

Je suis sincèrement désolé Lou Reed mais je me suis levé du mauvais pied et tu vas prendre pour tous tes petits camarades à qui j'ai mis 3 alors que je n'étais pas franchement emballé. Maintenant écoute-moi bien petite merde, ce que tu fais est nul à chier, tu n'as pas une once de talent. Que cette critique te serve de leçon mais serve aussi d'exemple à tous ceux qui oseraient s'aventurer dans un style proche du tien.

Seems like a heroin riddled, disjointed, autobiographical confession set to music.

I really dislike Lou Reed's sing/talk style; this was not enjoyable. "The Kids" was particularly horrific, I couldn't even get through it. Several of the songs were very depressing.

Love this.

What an incredible city!

Lou Reed wrote some good songs here

Awesome, no notes :P

I think I listened to this once like ten years ago and remember not feeling it at the time. I know it has a reputation for being out there and divisive, and is considered his best by many (even over Transformer). Revisiting this as part of this project is a great reminder of why I’m enjoying this project so much. It’s weird, pretty depressing, and pretty fantastic. I’d need to give it several more spins before fully understanding it. Perhaps drugs are required as well, though I’d never touch some of them that probably contributed to Lou’s output here. How Do You Think It Feels and Sad Song especially rule.

For Lou Reed albums, I’ve been unfairly judging it by Transformer. It’s tough because that album has been as influential as some VU albums. But Berlin should stand as its own perfect work. It’s a story and really shows the composition skills of Lou Reed.

Excellent!

This album is a clear evolution on the music from just a couple years prior and it's quite beautiful. It's much more restrained than a lot of the hard rock that was devloping around this time. Lou Reed has a calming voice and subtle guitar that can pop off in spots, but is generally a tone setter. How Do You Think It Feels, Caroline Says II, and The Kids are great. The Bed is hauntingly emotional, and then the album ends on the great Sad Song. I liked this album on first pass, and on a second pass really loved it.

The rich son waits for his father to die, the poor just drink and cry. And me, I just don’t care at all.

I found this a fascinating album. First, it felt dusky, like the smoke-lit jazz bars of post-war Europe. Cabaret and jazz. Marlene Dietrich. Unrequited love over a piano. And the band sitting behind that is nothing less than superb, sometimes deciding to show off as Jack Bruce marvelously does in the great 'Men of Good Fortune'. Lou fits into that aesthetic of singing about eccentric outsiders from a seedy underworld. But a sense of melody runs through the whole thing. I for one thought it worked with very few missteps. And what's more this feels extremely unique; maybe can be compared to Histoire de Melody Nelson? Enthralling.

One of the bleakest, harrowing and beautiful albums I know. It's never an easy listen, even if the music is great and played with all the feeling that heroin and depression can give.

Solid. Caroline says FTW. I like all of this. The Bed feels like an Ari Aster film. Phenomenal.

Starts off quite beautiful, follows up with some really epic shit. How did I miss this in my life until now?? Lovely.

Cliche, but I listened to this album while travelling around Germany alone and when I spent two weeks in Berlin. I love it.

When this album first came out, it was a commercial failure because fans and critics were expecting Transformer Part Two. But after only hearing Transformer a handful of times, I can say I enjoyed this one way more right from the start. Honestly, I wish this had been my introduction to Lou Reed, because I probably would have appreciated him more as a solo artist. This album is a concept piece centered around a couple in early 1970s West Berlin, following their relationship as it spirals into jealousy, substance abuse, physical violence, infidelity, and more. Musically, it leans more into art rock and singer-songwriter territory, with orchestration that adds to its dramatic and cinematic feel.

10/10

Unbelievably sad, but Lou Reed has a way of turning that sadness into beauty.

Wow. Really enjoyed this, felt like it came out of nowhere. I kinda feel this would have been seen as out if character for Lou at the time, but I think nowadays this sort of concept album holds up strong. Gonna be a 5 star to make sure I come back to this one.

What a depressing mess. Luckily, depressing messes are my favorite albums.

- A really hard record. Rough in a good way, sad, haunting, beautiful, Lou makes you work for this one. So rewarding if you have the stomach and heart for it. -

Probably the best bummer of an album ever made.

Melancholy drips On music bold, beautiful, And rocking weirdness

I love Lou Reed. I live in Berlin. There is only one thing for me to do here.

Underrated

Nice.

Overall: 9/10 I must be crazy or something cause I actually much prefered this over Transformer! It seems more cohesive and I feel like the songs fit his voice better for the most part. I had a stupid grin on my face for most of the album and there's a couple songs that are definitely gonna be overplayed over the next few weeks. I'm a little sad I got both Lou Reed albums so early, but thankfully I still have some Velvet Underground coming up! Fav Song: Caroline Says I Least Fav Song: Berlin

Wow. Outside of the VU Lou Reed has always been very hit and miss for me, but this was great. Beautiful, delicate, dark, foreboding, and engaging, Lou's limited vocals really compliment the music on this one. The strong narrative and subject matter might not be everyone's cup of tea but it certainly isn't boring.

Vivid lyrics. Storytelling, some of it sad. And some fun cool tempo/key changes - I wish I could remember which song.

Nothing to say. Great album.

In Berlin, by the wall, you were five foot ten inches tall. Sounding like German cabaret music with lyrics from an addled mind this should be awful. Instead, it’s one of the greatest musical works in the modern era with its tales of suffering and joy. It needs six stars

... wonderfully terrifyingly cathartic sad

A harrowing nosedive into the bowels of hell

Lou Reed is a very complex person, and this album is a perfect example of that complexity. Its not like the other stuff of its time, but you can hear how he influenced pretty much everything in this. 5/5

Starts out as a glam opus before belying any pretense of glamour at all. The arrangements in the first songs are truly gorgeous, with the guitar solo on "How Do You Think It Feels" stopping me in my tracks, while the lyrics start clawing away at the darkness underneath. Of course, all is laid bare by "Caroline Says II", and things only get more devastating somehow by the time we get to "The Kids" and "The Bed". We get a plot resolution but maybe not a moral one, as the narrator intones the "sad sad song" ad nauseum at the end; of course, the irony being that compared to what we've just heard that sad song isn't that sad at all. Meticulously constructed, truly harrowing, but a true head rush.

A perfectly different follow-up to 'Transformer' and as enjoyable as an album with this subject matter can be.

Hard to make something as simple yet powerful

I didn't expect this album to be a downer. Anyways, I've always liked Lou Reeds softer songs better, and there are a lot of great guitar and piano ballads here. This may be favorite Lou Reed project I've heard so far. Definitely going to need to give this a few more listens.

Legendary concept album about a relationship that after a good start (Berlin) starts to fall apart in awful ways (Caroline Says II, The Kids, The Bed). Not the happiest lyrics, but an emotional rollercoaster.

Lyrical. Emotive. Genius.

helvíti gott.

Dark and beautiful. Rough and delicate. What an album.

This was one of my favourite albums as a child. I was in awe of the storytelling. The music was haunting and even the sound effects contributed to such a poignant narrative. The crying children on the kids got me every time. As a concept album, I think it’s complete and not overly long. Deceptively simple but just beautiful in a sometimes sad and horrific way. There is not one weak song here and even though some songs are rewrites or rehashes of older material, they make a cohesive whole. Heartbreaking but a true classic.

lou reed should have lived for ever oh yeah! this is groovy!

A dour piece of greatly arranged and lyrical commercial suicide. I love it.

This is the album that made me stumble upon the 1001 album book! What a powerful album.

I'm usually pretty ambivalent when it comes to Lou Reed, but this record was a very pleasant surprise. The orchestration here gave a very proto-Spiritualized vive, which I'm all in on. Immediately my favorite Lou Reed project I've heard.

New to this album. The Bed was haunting.

10/10 definitely a bit different from his other work, but still so great

Every so often you come across an album where you just can't believe it wasn't on your radar before. Rock operas/concept albums always fit that bill for me - I love albums to have a narrative focus. This one is inventive while also being tuneful. It creates a soundscape that alternates between grooving and being ethereally expansive. Great album!

How much fiction was poured into this story? What to do with this moving tragedy? Do you think Irvine Welsh was inspired by Lou while writing Trainspotting? Do you think Lou knew the power of his work and its influence on upcoming generations?

Better than "Transformer." Sweeps from cabaret act to soaring orchestral movements without dropping the ball.

Reed, Bowie, heroin. Most people can't even function on drugs and these guys were blasting out killer albums. Fucking wild.

Standout- "Lady Day," "Men of Good Fortune,""Oh Jim," "Caroline Says I & II," Lyrics/Vocals- 4/5 Instrumentals- 5/5 Vibes- 5/5 Overall- 5/5 I love Lou Reed, so I went into this with high expectations and was not disappointed. Lou Reed's voice may not be for everyone, but it's distinct. This album felt fun, and a lot of the production value really shined in this album. Lou Reed was a very talented musician, and I say that even without my previously mentioned biases.

In terms of being a concept album that gives you its story from start to finish, backs that up with great instrumentation, and keeps you rather compelled once it really kicks in, then… yeah. We’ve got a great album here. It’s not perfect; even though I think Lou’s voice still ended up being the perfect tone by the end of the album, I don’t think the sort of monotony works at the start, when Jim hasn’t gone completely drug-addicted and insane. It also doesn’t really spell out the idea that there’s a story going on here until about track 6, at least for a presumed “casual” listen like I was doing. If you want to go all in on the concept album, then start with a curtain opening or something; give the listener a very audible clue that this is an overarching story and each song has a part to play in it. I think just because I got so enthralled by it, I have to give it a 5 out of respect for absolutely nailing what it went for, but it's not a very replayable album: if we were going out of 10, I'd probably give it an 8.5/10. I'd recommend the album to anyone, as long as you tell them there's a story first.

YUHHHHHH berlin- happy birthdayyy. piano. me when its paradise. 7. lady day- i like that weird piano part its like a villain song. 7 or 8. men of good fortune- he gets me. 6 caroline says I- sorry i was playing red ball 4. 7 how do you think it feels- i like the horns. foxy? like fnaf? 7 or 8 oh jim- theyre shooting me up with pills?? huh. the fade out is interesting. 8 caroline says II- omg just like stephanie... i really love the (womens name) says series. my favorite. 8 or 9. i the kids- ronette my dear dont ever disappear. sorry. 7 or 8. i like the kid crying the bed- damn she slit her wrists? and all he said was oh oh oh. 8 for suicide. the little choir is nice. sad song- flute. im ascending to heaven. the guitar is funny. its not very sad. he gets me. favorite track was caroline says II

Wow! That was something else! I really didn't want to keep listening breeches the end was inevitable, compelling, and tremendously sad.

Precioso. Bastante triste. Pero precioso.

it was hard not to love this for me. i found it's experimental in a familiar way so it ends up with a very unique sound. elements which struck me as "oh, interesting" are ones that grow on you quickly as he blends the familiar with the new very well. there were bits i disliked, such as the crying in The Kids, but they all make sense thematically so i cannot fault them. in general i really liked this album and it was a big surprise it grew on me so much as when i first listened, i didn't expect such a result

Lou Reed annoys me but I liked this album. The stories remind me of a Nelson Algren novel who also wrote Walk on the Wild Side

beautiful and devastating; they were right to take her children away, though, at least until she cleaned up

Going in I did not expect much. I'm really not familiar with Lou Reed's work. Also not to familiar with VU except for the two albums I listened to on this list from which I liked one and disliked the other. This is straight up a masterpiece. This is going on my regular rotation

Great album the songs Caroline Says 1&2 were great and Lou Reed is a legend

I ❤️ Lou

Full of emotion and great instrumentals; love the bass and its tone and not surprised to find out it’s Jack Bruce playing!

Highlight of this album is obviously Reed’s lyrics, but the instrumentation creates a really great and chilling atmosphere on a lot of the tracks Favourite tracks: Berlin, Lady Day, Men of Good Fortune, Caroline Says II, The Kids, The Bed

No sé quantes escoltes al llarg dels anys m'ha costat poder 'disfrutar' (una manera de dir) de 'Berlin'. Moltes, sens dubte. Depressiu, dur, complicat, opressiu. Més mèrit encara que aparegués després d'un disc tan rotund com 'Transformer'. Hom no li pot posar en dubte a Lou Reed la seva valentia al llarg de la seva carrera. Ni la seva genialitat artística

Easy rating

This album is nothing but bangers Favorite track: How Do You Think It Feels

This album was really heavy, but also really good. I don't really have the experience to really understand a lot of it, it'll be interesting to come back to when I'm older. The music and lyrics are both memorable, they create a gloomy and uncertain atmosphere together. The music gets better as the album goes on. BT: - Men of Good Fortune - How Do You Think It Feels - Oh Jim - The Kids - The Bed

Precioso. Bastante triste. Pero precioso.