Having played guitar and sung in doo-wop groups in high school, Reed studied poetry at Syracuse University under Delmore Schwartz, and had served as a radio DJ, hosting a late-night avant garde music program while at college. After graduating from Syracuse, he went to work for Pickwick Records in New York City, a low-budget record company that specialized in sound-alike recordings, as a songwriter and session musician. A fellow session player at Pickwick was John Cale; together with Sterling Morrison and Angus MacLise, they would form the Velvet Underground in 1965. After building a reputation on the avant garde music scene, they gained the attention of Andy Warhol, who became the band's manager; they in turn became something of a fixture at The Factory, Warhol's art studio, and served as his "house band" for various projects. The band released their first album, now with drummer Moe Tucker and featuring German singer Nico, in 1967, and parted ways with Warhol shortly thereafter. Following several lineup changes and three more little-heard albums, Reed quit the band in 1970.
After leaving the band, Reed would go on to a much more commercially successful solo career, releasing twenty solo studio albums. His second, Transformer (1972), was produced by David Bowie and arranged by Mick Ronson, and brought him mainstream recognition. The album is considered an influential landmark of the glam rock genre, anchored by Reed's most successful single, "Walk on the Wild Side". After Transformer, the less commercial but critically acclaimed Berlin peaked at No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart. Rock 'n' Roll Animal (a live album released in 1974) sold strongly, and Sally Can't Dance (1974) peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard 200; but for a long period after, Reed's work did not translate into sales, leading him deeper into drug addiction and alcoholism. Reed cleaned up in the early 1980s, and gradually returned to prominence with The Blue Mask (1982) and New Sensations (1984), reaching a critical and commercial career peak with his 1989 album New York.
Reed participated in the re-formation of the Velvet Underground in the 1990s, and made several more albums, including a collaboration album with John Cale titled Songs for Drella which was a tribute to their former mentor Andy Warhol. Magic and Loss (1992) would become Reed's highest-charting album on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at No. 6.
He contributed music to two theatrical interpretations of 19th century writers, one of which he developed into an album titled The Raven. He married his third wife Laurie Anderson in 2008, and recorded the collaboration album Lulu with Metallica. He died in 2013 of liver disease. Reed has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice; as a member of the Velvet Underground in 1996 and as a solo act in 2015.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Reed
Studio albums
Lou Reed (1972)
Transformer (1972)
Berlin (1973)
Rock 'n' Roll Animal (1974)
Sally Can't Dance (1974)
Metal Machine Music (1975)
Coney Island Baby (1975)
Rock and Roll Heart (1976)
Street Hassle (1978)
The Bells (1979)
Growing Up in Public (1980)
The Blue Mask (1982)
Legendary Hearts (1983)
New Sensations (1984)
Mistrial (1986)
New York (1989)
Magic and Loss (1992)
Set the Twilight Reeling (1996)
Ecstasy (2000)
The Raven (2003)
Hudson River Wind Meditations (2007)
This Magic Moment
Lou Reed Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So different, and so new
Was like any other
Until I met you
And then it happened
You took me by surprise
I knew that you felt it too
I could see it by the look in your eyes
Softer than a summer's night
Everything I want, I have
Whenever I hold you tight
This magic moment
While your lips are close to mine
Will last forever
Forever, 'til the end of time
So why won't you dance with me
Hey babe
Why won't you dance with me
This magic moment
So different, and so new
Was like any other
Until I met you
And then it happened
You took me by surprise
I knew that you felt it too
I could see it by the look in your eyes
Sweeter than wine
Softer than a summer's night
Everything I want, I have
Whenever I hold you tight
This magic moment
Sweeter than wine
Softer than a summer's night
So please, baby
So please
Save the last dance for me
In Lou Reed's song "This Magic Moment," he describes the moment when he met someone special who changed his life. The lyrics are romantic, nostalgic and beautifully describe the moment when you meet someone who takes your breath away. The song opens on a hopeful note, suggesting that this special moment could happen to anyone, yet it also recognizes that it is rare and precious. Reed sings that it was "like any other, until I met you" implying that there was something unique about the experience he had with the person he's singing to. This mysteriousness and magic of the unknown is a constant throughout the song.
The chorus captures how he feels when he is with the person he's singing to. "Sweeter than wine, softer than a summer's night, everything I want I have, whenever I hold you tight, this magic moment." The description of the moment is palpable, as we can imagine Reed's feelings of happiness, contentment, and feeling in the moment when he is with this special person. There is a sense of longing in the last verse, as Reed begs his partner to save the last dance for him, recognizing that even a magic moment needs to end.
Line by Line Meaning
This magic moment
The feeling of this moment is amazing and special
So different, and so new
This experience is unlike any other before, and it's new to me
Was like any other
At first, this moment didn't seem special or different from previous experiences
Until I met you
But then, I met you, and everything changed
And then it happened
Something unexpected and special occurred
You took me by surprise
You did something unexpected that surprised me
I knew that you felt it too
I could tell that you were experiencing the same magical feeling
I could see it by the look in your eyes
I could see the same magic in your eyes
Sweeter than wine
The sweetness of this moment is indescribable
Softer than a summer's night
The feeling is gentle and comforting, like a warm summer night
Everything I want, I have
In this moment, I have everything I could ever want
Whenever I hold you tight
The feeling is strongest when we are close to each other
This magic moment
The feeling of this moment is amazing and special
While your lips are close to mine
The special feeling is especially strong when we're kissing
Will last forever
This feeling is so special, it will last forever
Forever, 'til the end of time
This feeling will never end and will last for eternity
So why won't you dance with me
I want to share this magical feeling with you through dancing
Hey babe
Affectionate term of address to the person being addressed
Why won't you dance with me
I really want to share this moment with you through dancing
This magic moment
The feeling of this moment is amazing and special
Sweeter than wine
The sweetness of this moment is indescribable
Softer than a summer's night
The feeling is gentle and comforting, like a warm summer night
So please, baby
I really want to share this moment with you
So please
Please don't leave me or end this special moment
Save the last dance for me
Please save the last dance for me so we can share this special feeling until the end of the night
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Jerome Pomus, Mortimer Shuman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind