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DISCID=7a0b9d0a
DTITLE=Lou Reed / Berlin (1998 Remaster)
DYEAR=1973
DGENRE=Progressive Rock
TTITLE0=Berlin
TTITLE1=Lady Day
TTITLE2=Men Of Good Fortune
TTITLE3=Caroline Says
TTITLE4=How Do You Think It Feels
TTITLE5=Oh Jim
TTITLE6=Caroline Says II
TTITLE7=The Kids
TTITLE8=The Bed
TTITLE9=Sad Song
EXTD=Berlin (1998 Remaster)\n\nOriginally Released October 1973\nCD Ed
EXTD=ition Released August 29, 1989\nRemastered CD Edition Released Ma
EXTD=rch 24, 1998\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Transformer and "Walk on the W
EXTD=ild Side" were both major hits in 1972, to the surprise of both L
EXTD=ou Reed and the music industry, and with Reed suddenly a hot comm
EXTD=odity, he used his newly won clout to make the most ambitious alb
EXTD=um of his career, Berlin. Berlin was the musical equivalent of a 
EXTD=drug-addled kid set loose in a candy store; the album's songs, wh
EXTD=ich form a loose story line about a doomed romance between two ch
EXTD=emically fueled bohemians, were fleshed out with a huge, boomy pr
EXTD=oduction (Bob Ezrin at his most grandiose) and arrangements overl
EXTD=oaded with guitars, keyboards, horns, strings, and any other kitc
EXTD=hen sink that was handy (the session band included Jack Bruce, St
EXTD=eve Winwood, Aynsley Dunbar, and Tony Levin). And while Reed had 
EXTD=often been accused of focusing on the dark side of life, he and E
EXTD=zrin approached Berlin as their opportunity to make The Most Depr
EXTD=essing Album of All Time, and they hardly missed a trick. This al
EXTD=l seemed a bit much for an artist who made such superb use of the
EXTD= two-guitars/bass/drums lineup with the Velvet Underground, espec
EXTD=ially since Reed doesn't even play electric guitar on the album; 
EXTD=the sheer size of Berlin ultimately overpowers both Reed and his 
EXTD=material. But if Berlin is largely a failure of ambition, that se
EXTD=ts it apart from the vast majority of Reed's lesser works; Lou's 
EXTD=vocals are both precise and impassioned, and though a few of the 
EXTD=songs are little more than sketches, the best -- "How Do You Thin
EXTD=k It Feels," "Oh, Jim," "The Kids," and "Sad Song" -- are powerfu
EXTD=l, bitter stuff. It's hard not to be impressed by Berlin, given t
EXTD=he sheer scope of the project, but while it earns an A for effort
EXTD=, the actual execution merits more of a B-. -- Mark Deming\n\nAma
EXTD=zon.com Editorial Review\nEternally perverse, Reed responded to h
EXTD=aving a pop hit with Transformer by making a massive bummer of an
EXTD= album, built around reworked versions of a couple of older songs
EXTD=. Berlin is psychologically grueling and unremittingly dark (scar
EXTD=iest moment: "The Kids," which ends with a very long tape of chil
EXTD=dren screaming in terror), but the savage contrasts of its sound 
EXTD=have gotten more impressive with time. The big production flouris
EXTD=hes hit like a hangover, Reed's voice sounds like he's trying to 
EXTD=stave off emotional involvement with his lyrics because it would 
EXTD=hurt too much, and the multi-layered textures of "Oh Jim" surge a
EXTD=nd recede like details of a nightmare. The album takes strength t
EXTD=o hear, and rewards it. --Douglas Wolk \n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER RE
EXTD=VIEW\nA Dark Masterpiece!, November 9, 2005\nReviewer: Morten Vin
EXTD=dberg\n"Berlin", which was Reed's follow-up to his highly succesf
EXTD=ul ( both musically and commercially ) 1972 album "Transformer", 
EXTD=showcases a radical change in Reed's direction. Whereas "Transfor
EXTD=mer" was a mostty light and musically catchy album, "Berlin" is a
EXTD= more complex and darker album; both musically and lyrically. \n\n
EXTD=No tracks have the commercial appeal which characterized many tra
EXTD=cks on "Transformer", and the album contains no new hit-singles. 
EXTD=The album works much better to be listened to as a whole, and onl
EXTD=y few tracks are suited for "Best of" compilations. Songs like "C
EXTD=aroline Says" and "How Do Think it Feels" would be the most obvio
EXTD=us selections to put out. This doesn't mean that this is not good
EXTD= album; on the contrary; it may be his artistically most successf
EXTD=ul. Musically it's very varied in style and instrumentation. \n\n
EXTD=The "Berlin" theme seems to have influenced the arrangements of t
EXTD=he two opening tracks; especially "Lady Day" ( Kurt Weil ). \n\nT
EXTD=he songs are generally longer than on Reed's two previous albums,
EXTD= but you are never bored when listening to the album; and once yo
EXTD=u have gotten to know the songs, you'll notice that it is really 
EXTD=a very melodic album, with no unimportant tracks. \n\nThis is Ree
EXTD=d's Dark Masterpiece!\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nImpossibly d
EXTD=ark, April 16, 2005\nReviewer: John Miele\nAfter the surprise suc
EXTD=cess of Lou Reed's 1972 album Transformer, common sense would've 
EXTD=told anyone he would stick to its glam-rockish style. Of course, 
EXTD=they would be wrong. Lou Reed used his new found stardom to relea
EXTD=se one of the most ambitious and depressing albums ever - Berlin.
EXTD= Critics and fans were hesitant to embrace the cold, dark album. 
EXTD=But it's a tortured masterpiece, brimming with brilliance. Storie
EXTD=s about the recording of this album depict an ambitious Lou Reed 
EXTD=spiralling into speed abuse and decadence, while producer Bob Ezr
EXTD=in has been quoted as saying "I think the best idea is that we pu
EXTD=t it in a box, put the box in a closet, leave it there and don't 
EXTD=listen to it again." \n\nDoes the album actually live up to that 
EXTD=reputation? \n\nAbsolutely. The story of Jim and Caroline's inher
EXTD=ently doomed relationship, their descent into drug abuse (much li
EXTD=ke Lou's own), Jim's dangerous violent rages, and finally Carolin
EXTD=e's emotional collapse and demise are given a dramatic, booming p
EXTD=roduction by Bob Ezrin (who, incidentally, had a sort of nervous 
EXTD=breakdown resulting from these recording sessions). Though Rollin
EXTD=g Stone was impressed, going so far as to call it the Sgt. Pepper
EXTD= of the 70's, it was a massive commercial failure. But its an exc
EXTD=ellent album, unflinchingly realistic and tragic, like Transforme
EXTD=r with the glam and glitter stripped away. The all-time best mome
EXTD=nt: "Caroline Says II" and "The Kids." Those songs pack a one-two
EXTD= punch that can leave the listener dazed, especially because of t
EXTD=he Reed's detached vocal style. He pulls no punches, he barely sh
EXTD=ows any emotion, and he certainly has no sympathy for either Jim 
EXTD=or Caroline. It's as if you're watching the story unfold with you
EXTD=r eyelids held open (a la Clockwork Orange) - you simply can't es
EXTD=cape. On first listen, it's an incredibly difficult album to list
EXTD=en to, but it deserves more credit than most critics give it. By 
EXTD=all means, purchase Berlin, but do it knowing what you're going t
EXTD=o listen to - one of the most depressing, harrowing, and frighten
EXTD=ing albums of all time, but ultimately one of the most rewarding.
EXTD=\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nMostly sad, the shape of thought 
EXTD=in our time, September 28, 2003\nReviewer: Bruce P. Barten (Saint
EXTD= Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A.)\nThere are a few albums that have some 
EXTD=dreary songs I might recognize, but one that is so important, hav
EXTD=ing the CD is the obvious way to get it. "Berlin" starts with a s
EXTD=mall cafe, 'Oh Honey' kind of song that might be a relief for peo
EXTD=ple who can't rock hard all the time. But this is a Lou Reed albu
EXTD=m, and the music starts pounding a bit more with, "I said No No N
EXTD=o, Oh Lady Day" in the second song. Then the songs start to sound
EXTD= better and even intellectually interesting. "Men of Good Fortune
EXTD=" is a historical sociological study with a "Me, I just don't car
EXTD=e at all" attitude, but with an inviting melody. "It takes money 
EXTD=to make money, they say. . . . Anyway, makes no difference to me.
EXTD=" Schopenhauer fans ought to understand this attitude toward beau
EXTD=ty. When the music gets good, other elements of life might lose t
EXTD=heir significance. This is not the most convincing song on the al
EXTD=bum. Mostly it is a contrast between men of good fortune and men 
EXTD=of poor beginnings who might mess things up just as much.\nPointy
EXTD= headed intellectuals spouting off on the obvious are sure to be 
EXTD=the main grabbers of attention in the media which dominate a worl
EXTD=d in which every problem has an answer which is clear, direct, an
EXTD=d wrong. Rock 'n' roll is just as bad. Lou Reed is a perfect exam
EXTD=ple. People who want to know what the music on this album is like
EXTD= might be typical, superfluous superficialities produced by a nat
EXTD=ion of shoppers in a world of global spectators. "Caroline Says" 
EXTD=is about some dramatic queen, with poor Lou Reed singing, "But of
EXTD= course, I thought I could take it all." Then she says she can't 
EXTD=continue to be only mine, "but she's still my queen." I'm not rat
EXTD=ing the music very high on this song.\n\nThe song that makes this
EXTD= CD worthy, for me, is "How Do You Think It Feels" which asks, "A
EXTD=nd when do you think it stops?" Popularity in the media is obtain
EXTD=ed by the ability to communicate feelings, but this song takes it
EXTD=s feelings to extremes, "when you've been up for five days." Desi
EXTD=re is the feeling that this song exudes, and lust seems to be the
EXTD= feeling that gets the biggest workout, as "always make love by p
EXTD=roxy" must be about relying on the media for fulfilling fundament
EXTD=al desires. Those of us who have devoted so much of our lives to 
EXTD=evaluating the things a consumer society can offer ought to ask o
EXTD=urselves if Lou Reed gets out in front of our questions once in a
EXTD=while by asking how we dare to evaluate so much that is fundament
EXTD=ally at loose ends. "Oh Jim" might be a sincere attempt to supply
EXTD= some answer about how people are coping, or failing to cope. The
EXTD= next song, another "Caroline Says" asserts "This is a bum trip."
EXTD= So she put her wrist through a window pane, it's so cold in Alas
EXTD=ka. There is razor that cuts a wrist in a later song, and you mig
EXTD=ht not want to listen to anything that ends this way. It must be 
EXTD="The Bed," in which "I said Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh, what a feeling!
EXTD=" Then the song gets spooky. This might be freaking people out be
EXTD=fore "Sad Song" at the end, which is a relief.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUST
EXTD=OMER REVIEW\nTHE BLACK-EYED DAHLIA, March 29, 2002\nReviewer: tim
EXTD= byrnes (La Junta CO USA)\n"Berlin" is an unflinching look into t
EXTD=he darkest corners of the human soul/psyche. Over stunning orches
EXTD=tration and stellar production (by Bob Ezrin, who is for some rea
EXTD=son more famous for producing "The Wall" than "Berlin") Lou Reed,
EXTD= the voice of cool neutrality, submits for our approval (or rejec
EXTD=tion, i somehow think it's all the same to Lou, and that our feel
EXTD=ings and opinions matter not) the starkly delineated tale of two 
EXTD=expatriate speedfreaks living in Berlin, and how they torture eac
EXTD=h other in a spiritually bankrupt vacuum of tympanis and violins,
EXTD= ghost choruses of sick angels and science-fiction doowop, and ho
EXTD=w the torture of ownership as love and S&M junkiedom leads inexor
EXTD=ably to death. In this case her suicide is of course a literal de
EXTD=ath, but as the male half of this diseased equation wraps himself
EXTD= in the bloody sheets of her deathbed and declares himself good b
EXTD=ecause "somebody else would have broken both of her arms", then w
EXTD=e are left with the sound of the death of a spirit, the wasting o
EXTD=f a soul, a sad song indeed.\n\nFor your listening pleasure? \n\n
EXTD=The "Citizen Kane" of rock and roll. It's that simple.\n\nAMAZON.
EXTD=COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nINSIGHT: rhymes/w TRITE, March 6, 2002\nRevi
EXTD=ewer: Kerry Leimer (Makawao, Hawaii United States)\nWith lyrics l
EXTD=ike "In Berlin, by the wall, you were [ I can no longer remember 
EXTD=the exact measure, let's say ] 5 foot, 6 inches tall", or the equ
EXTD=ally banal "Since she lost her daughter, it's her eyes that flow 
EXTD=with water" - the listener should immediately sense trouble. Beca
EXTD=use when we finally hear the daughter start to scream - by the wa
EXTD=y, was it "daughter" singular, or "daughters" plural? there seem 
EXTD=to be lots of 'em wailing in here - we know we've arrived solidly
EXTD= in the dark, airless basement of unadulterated, manipulative kit
EXTD=sch. And it gets worse: you'd better force yourself to nod knowin
EXTD=gly during "Sad Song". If you laugh, giggle or snicker at the for
EXTD=mula string arrangements you'll simply ruin it for the rest of us
EXTD=.\nTogether with its grade-school lyrics and haunting lack of ima
EXTD=gination, "Berlin" delivers a degree of pretension exceeded only 
EXTD=by the more recent "Drella". What can I say? "Berlin" is easily a
EXTD=s dumb as that other trainwreck, ELP's "Tarkus". While the music 
EXTD=is unrelated, the two are joined by the vast and growing scale of
EXTD= their respective failures. Recall with me the appropriately weep
EXTD=y Moog that ushers us to the tear-filled end of our pretend monst
EXTD=er. ***Sigh*** I can't help but also remember the phony emotions 
EXTD=of "Berlin" and shed a tear, too, for "The Kids". \n\n"Berlin" is
EXTD= little more than a sometimes clever artist straining beyond all 
EXTD=credulity. The album and ideas are pat, shallow and the whole thi
EXTD=ng tends to mope rather than reach any true depth of feeling. Ski
EXTD=p it in favor of "Transformer". Then you'll have shot to someday 
EXTD=join Joel and the bots on the Satellite of Love.\n\nAMAZON.COM CU
EXTD=STOMER REVIEW\nReed's Accidental Masterpiece., November 29, 2001\n
EXTD=Reviewer: Mark Begley "Letterpressed.com" (Fresno, CA USA)\nI bou
EXTD=ght BERLIN after reading Victor Bockris's brutal biography of Ree
EXTD=d, TRANSFORMER. It was hailed as a "masterpiece" throughout the b
EXTD=ook, and having been a big fan of Reed and VU for years, AND sinc
EXTD=e it had just been re-issued on CD, I snatched it up. I had no id
EXTD=ea what a surprise I was in for. Having heard many of the VU vers
EXTD=ions of these songs, and based on my other Reed discs, I was comp
EXTD=letely stunned by the theatrical-German-tavern orchestration, and
EXTD= the blatant violence (particularly misogyny) in the lyrics. None
EXTD= of this turned me off of the album, as I was determined to see i
EXTD=t as a testament of a certain state of mind, which was discussed 
EXTD=at length in TRANSFORMER. And according to the book the recording
EXTD= of this album was a catastrophe, what with Reed's increasing dep
EXTD=endence on speed, and his emotional state. Knowing this, it is am
EXTD=azing that the album turned out as well as it did. But like so ma
EXTD=ny other "masterpieces" it wasn't hailed as such until much, much
EXTD= later, when it could be listened to within its own context, and 
EXTD=not just as the follow-up to the album TRANSFORMER. This leads me
EXTD= to my calling it an "accidental masterpiece," as obviously Reed'
EXTD=s vocals aren't up to par, there's nary a Reed-guitar crunch in s
EXTD=ight, and much of the orchestration is close to being absurdly ov
EXTD=erwrought. However, my reason for giving it five stars is that it
EXTD= IS a perfect testament to Reed's state of mind/being at that par
EXTD=ticular time, flaws and all. Not many albums achieve this. One la
EXTD=st thing, I wish people would stop with the: "I like the VU versi
EXTD=on of this-or-that song better." I happen to like Reed's later ta
EXTD=kes on those songs, and in this case think that the BERLIN versio
EXTD=n of "Sad Song" is much more powerful than the original.\n\nAMAZO
EXTD=N.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nNot a "party album", July 20, 2000\nReview
EXTD=er: vincent artman (Eugene, OR)\n"Berlin," in one word is "depres
EXTD=sing." There is no other way to describe it. It's a great album t
EXTD=hough, following the descent of a a pair of loves from "love at f
EXTD=irst site" to suicide and indifference. One of the most chilling 
EXTD=parts of "Berlin" is the end of "The Kids," which is the sounds o
EXTD=f some children screaming and crying for their mother (according 
EXTD=to legend, this was recorded in the studio, by tricking to youngs
EXTD=ters into thinking their mother was dead. Whether that's true or 
EXTD=not, I'm not sure.). Equally poignant is "The Bed," which describ
EXTD=es the aftermath of a suicide. "Men of Good Fortune" is an excell
EXTD=ent song as well. The liner notes describe Bob Ezrin's reaction t
EXTD=o the album as being "Lock it in a box and never think of it agai
EXTD=n," or something of that nature. A perfectly depressing album for
EXTD= those sad, rainy days, when you're thinking about things in the 
EXTD=past. The album is almost a form of empathy.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOM
EXTD=ER REVIEW\nTough call, May 6, 2000\nReviewer: A music fan\nI'm a 
EXTD=big Lou Reed fan, don't get me wrong, but the mountains of praise
EXTD= heaped upon "Berlin" have mystified me for years. I understand R
EXTD=eed's and producer Bob Ezrin's intentions regarding the layered p
EXTD=roduction (at turns contrast and magnify the emotional point of t
EXTD=he songs while giving the whole show an unsettling air) and I und
EXTD=erstand that this album is a Glam totem and is meant to be a chal
EXTD=lenge. I also have nothing against music that is difficult listen
EXTD=ing; Reed's own later "Magic and Loss" is no walk in the park, an
EXTD=d I didn't become a Velvet Underground fan because "Heroin" made 
EXTD=me feel chipper.\nMaybe it's just a difference in philosophy. Whe
EXTD=n it comes to rock music (or the panoply of styles which now fall
EXTD= under the vague umbrella of rock music), I like to be punched in
EXTD= the gut, even if that punch only comes after many listens. In so
EXTD=me ways, I have to admit, "Berlin" accomplishes that delayed punc
EXTD=h. Many years after first hearing it, I can't seem to shake the a
EXTD=lbum, and from time to time I go back to see if my tolerance for 
EXTD=this recording has improved. So if Reed's ultimate point was to c
EXTD=reate something that nags at the listener (a perverse and very Lo
EXTD=u Reed-ish thing to do), then he succeeded. My difficulty with "B
EXTD=erlin," however, is that there seems to be such squandered potent
EXTD=ial in these songs. The basic material here is outstanding, and i
EXTD=f one listens to earlier versions of "Oh Jim," "Caroline Says" an
EXTD=d "Sad Song" as recorded with The Velvet Underground (on the "Pee
EXTD=l Slowly and See" box), one can hear these songs in their sparest
EXTD= form, when Reed's fiery spirit was still at work and not about t
EXTD=o go on a decade-long binge. When I pick up my guitar and play "M
EXTD=en of Good Fortune" or "How Do You Think It Feels," I think I can
EXTD= hear in the melodies and lyrics the emotions that Reed was getti
EXTD=ng at before they were buried beneath a morass of instrumentation
EXTD= that seems as gaudy to me as a drag queen's jewelry.\n\nI know I
EXTD= can't slight Reed for changing and trying something different. I
EXTD=t's something we all do in one way or another if we're to grow. B
EXTD=y that same token, criticizing Reed by comparing his work from on
EXTD=e album to another is a dead end, since he has explored plenty of
EXTD= stylistic avenues with varying degrees of success. When approach
EXTD=ing "Berlin," then, one has to be careful about which Lou Reed on
EXTD=e expects to hear. This is not the literate rock and roller of th
EXTD=e Velvets years, and neither is this the mature, reflective stree
EXTD=t poet of the eighties and beyond -- it's not even the Reed of th
EXTD=e previous year's "Transformer" -- though elements of those perso
EXTD=nas emerge here. To these ears, "Berlin" sounds like Lou Reed at 
EXTD=his most cold and distant, bereft of the life blood that has made
EXTD= his best music so compelling. If that's the point, then so be it
EXTD=, but I don't have to listen.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nDeep
EXTD=est impact of any rock album ever, February 2, 2000\nReviewer: Jo
EXTD=seph Romano (Ithaca, NY)\nWhen this album was released, the MOVIE
EXTD= reviewer Rex Reed devoted his entire column, (I think for an ent
EXTD=ire week!) to a review of this album, he said he felt he had to b
EXTD=ecause he hadn't slept for over a week since listening to it. It 
EXTD=has been echoing through my soul ever since I first heard it: som
EXTD=ehow the beauty and the ugliness combine to bottle our humaness i
EXTD=nto this simple elegant perfume, "Berlin." As a result, ugliness 
EXTD=is not so ugly, and our beauty is sublime. Thank you Lou Reed for
EXTD= this album and a re-release cd. I can't wait to hear it without 
EXTD=pops, I just hope you've included all the lp art, it is almost ha
EXTD=lf of the vision.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nLou Reed mines t
EXTD=he beauty of despair., January 6, 2000\nReviewer: Stephen Caratza
EXTD=s (Brooklyn, New York)\nIt's sometimes hard for me to think about
EXTD= "Berlin" without conjuring up Mike Myers' Saturday Night Live ch
EXTD=aracter, Dieter (the host of "Sprockets"). Like Dieter ("I find y
EXTD=our agony delicious"), Reed seeks -- and finds, in abundance -- t
EXTD=he beauty in pain and despair on this unforgettable album.\n"Berl
EXTD=in" is all about darkness and decadence, though not the kind Lou 
EXTD=Reed explored on "Transformer", his previous release. Rather than
EXTD= continuing with that disc's celebration of camp fruitery, "Berli
EXTD=n" takes a major turn onto seriously grim sidestreets littered wi
EXTD=th broken souls. A conceptual meditation on feelings most of us w
EXTD=ould rather not acknowledge, "Berlin" is a bitter narrative about
EXTD= the cruelty people can inflict on each other in the supposedly s
EXTD=afe confines of a relationship.\n\nThe most amazing thing about "
EXTD=Berlin", however, isn't the subject matter, it's the music. Produ
EXTD=cer Bob Ezrin assembled an array of the era's most talented music
EXTD=ians (including Steve Winwood, Jack Bruce, Aynsley Dunbar and Ton
EXTD=y Levin) and embroidered the album with lush, breathtaking string
EXTD= and wind orchestrations. The music and lyrics offset each other 
EXTD=in stark contrast, much the same way a German expressionist film 
EXTD=utilizes black and white. \n\nThroughout, Reed delivers his trade
EXTD=mark off-key vocals with a more pronounced sense of detachment th
EXTD=an is usual even for him; on "Berlin" he's not so much an imparti
EXTD=al observer, but a willing accomplice to the proceedings who angr
EXTD=ily refuses to do anything about the destiny unfolding before him
EXTD=.\n\n"Berlin" has been blasted as the ultimate downer of Reed's c
EXTD=areer -- quite an accomplishment, given the breadth of his depres
EXTD=sive catalogue. Which is fair enough, for the faint of heart. For
EXTD= the rest of us, "Berlin" is a groundbreaking masterpiece.\n\nAMA
EXTD=ZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\ndefinitive solo work of a master., April
EXTD= 1, 1999\nReviewer: A music fan\nYet another example of the masse
EXTD=s rejecting anything that doesn't sugarcoat things. This album is
EXTD= not cold, it's objective. Lou Reed presents the story, he doesn'
EXTD=t judge it. The crushing lines in caroline says 2 "Caroline says 
EXTD=as she gets up from the floor,You can hit me all you want to, but
EXTD= I dont love you anymore" illustrates the characters of this play
EXTD= perfectly,detached and hopeless. Many don't like believing these
EXTD= people exist. But reed has never been afraid to confront his lis
EXTD=teners with such true depictions of the human condition. This alb
EXTD=um is also more approprietly produced than the critically acclaim
EXTD=ed "transformer". "BERLIN" Belong behind only "blood on the track
EXTD=s" as the best album of the 70's.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\n
EXTD=Rock Hudson for the Teutonic Age, February 14, 1999\nReviewer: A 
EXTD=music fan\nStella! Where are my pills?! Check: a modern-day sludg
EXTD=e-piece that sounds like Sid Vicious-ballroom chic. No bullseye, 
EXTD=but better than average. No, this turkey is as harmless as last n
EXTD=ight's boiled egg. The atmospherics lend a certain hype to the de
EXTD=rivative story-line: wow! we've got a concept album on our hands.
EXTD= But then, maybe Lou's got his fingers wire-tapped to popular his
EXTD=trionics. In that case, not bad for a blathering idiot who steppe
EXTD=d out of the Velvet time machine and decided to impregnate Lawren
EXTD=ce Welk. Call it a blue-collar workingman's blues; call it anythi
EXTD=ng you like. It's still Berlin, and it's still Lou Reed as the un
EXTD=complicated genius of musicaldom.\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\n
EXTD=Another concept album, why?, February 11, 1999\nReviewer: A music
EXTD= fan\nLou Reed, a songwriter of enormous talent, must have realiz
EXTD=ed how talented he was. That was his mistake. Concept albums, usu
EXTD=ally, are dreadful experiences, and this is nothing more than a s
EXTD=lightly above average concept album. Produced by the guy who even
EXTD=tually produced rocks most overrated yawner "The Wall" by Pink Fl
EXTD=oyd, the grit and streetmuck feeling of The Velvet Underground is
EXTD= gone and replaced with Mantovani dribble. As far as the songs, "
EXTD=The Kids" is a harrowing song, and at times on "Berlin," the melo
EXTD=drama works. But now, due to the advance in reissue technology, t
EXTD=he original versions of these songs by the Velvet Underground are
EXTD= superior ("Oh Jim" [on "Peel Slowly and See"] as "Oh Gin" and "S
EXTD=ad Song"], and make the "Berlin" versions sound extremely pretent
EXTD=ious. Lou Reed fans must own this record, because it is his most 
EXTD=elaborate recording, and reportedly, one of his favorite of his o
EXTD=wn albums. It will probably bore to tears just about everybody el
EXTD=se. "Berlin" is well represented on the Lou Reed box-set, "Betwee
EXTD=n Thought and Expression," which is highly recommended.\n\nAMAZON
EXTD=.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThis is a very dark record, but perhaps Ree
EXTD=d's finest., August 23, 1998\nReviewer: A music fan\nThis album f
EXTD=eatures an all-star cast performing a grisly array of tunes evoki
EXTD=ng a depressing Berlin underworld. Performers include Jack Bruce 
EXTD=(of Cream) on bass, Aynsley Dunbar (of the Mothers of Invention) 
EXTD=on drums and Bob Ezrin as pianist and arranger. For all the miser
EXTD=y portrayed (drug abuse, abandonment, suicide, physical abuse, et
EXTD=c.)the record ends with a chorus of angels. Not exactly life affi
EXTD=rming, but at least laying claim to a transcendent beauty. I have
EXTD=n't listened to this record in years, frankly, because it's too s
EXTD=ad. But I still think it's great music which speaks some dark tru
EXTD=ths. Like the paintings of Goya, it's not for everyone.\n\nHalf.c
EXTD=om Details \nContributing artists: Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker
EXTD=, Steve Winwood \nProducer: Bob Ezrin \n\nAlbum Notes\nPersonnel 
EXTD=include: Lou Reed (vocals, acoustic guitar); Gene Martynec (acous
EXTD=tic guitar, synthesizer); Dick Wagner (electric guitar, backgroun
EXTD=d vocals); Steve Hunter (electric guitar); Michael Brecker (tenor
EXTD= saxophone); Randy Brecker (trumpet); Jon Pierson (bass trombone)
EXTD=; Bob Ezrin (piano, Mellotron); Blue Weaver, Allan Macmillan (pia
EXTD=no); Steve Winwood (harmonium, organ); Tony Levin, Jack Bruce (ba
EXTD=ss instrument); Aynsley Dunbar, B.J. Wilson (drums).\n\nLiner Not
EXTD=e Author: Michael Hill.\nRecording information: Morgan Studios, N
EXTD=orth London, United Kingdom.\n\nAfter the success of his glam-roc
EXTD=kish TRANSFORMER, the expectation was that Lou Reed would plow de
EXTD=eper into commercial territory. As usual, Reed delighted in confo
EXTD=unding expectations. BERLIN is a song cycle that uses the decaden
EXTD=ce of its namesake and some Brecht/Weill-esque orchestrations to 
EXTD=tell a story of two psychically damaged people and their doomed r
EXTD=elationship. (Aided by Berlin producer Bob Ezrin, Pink Floyd woul
EXTD=d attempt a similar feat several years later on THE WALL).\nFar f
EXTD=rom the rock-star poses of TRANSFORMER, BERLIN is lyrically and m
EXTD=usically frank and blunt. The arrangements move from sophisticate
EXTD=d, arch orchestration to naked-sounding acoustic sparseness, but 
EXTD=the words are uniformly unflinching in their depiction of violenc
EXTD=e, addiction, and desperation. Not for the faint of heart, BERLIN
EXTD= is a harrowing journey through the aforementioned tribulations, 
EXTD=and one of Reed's most unusual, demanding, but ultimately rewardi
EXTD=ng albums.\n\nIndustry Reviews\n5 Stars - Indispensable - ...a me
EXTD=lancholy masterpiece...places Reed's dry narrative in sophisticat
EXTD=ed settings...\nQ (05/01/1992)\n\nRanked #33 among The Greatest A
EXTD=lbums Of The '70s.\nNME (09/18/1993)
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