Fox news on his death.

I've heard he was a bigger asshole than G.G. Allin and Seth Putnam combined and still had people eating out of his hand for most of his life.......I applaud him for that.

No idea what his personify was like, but he did amazing at writing about other performers, and he was quite quotable off the cuff in interviews. All I know is I was late to the game at 17 when the first VU song I heard was Venus in Furs. Sure, I heard Walk On the Wild side on the radio, but thought nothing of it beyond how I really imagined Candy. Venus in Furs, and I was hooked. Whatever money I had went to VU albums. This was back when you were really taking a chance with music. There was no Internet to preview for free. You commit and you bought. It still feels bizarre that 17 was so late when bands I loved like Jesus and Mary Chain listed them as inspiration in mags like ID or The Face, and I'd read so much about the Warhol scene by then. Glad I took a chance. I was immediately taken.

Pic on my twitter from a few months back. I'm in NYC at the jukebox honoring my VU pick.

best quote about Lou Reed and his influence:

"The first velvet underground album only sold 10,000 copies. but every buyer started their own band"

a few slightly different opinions...

In hindsight, Scott Fayner looked surprisingly like Lou Reed. I wonder if Lou ever owned a dog named Bandit.