It’s often said that only 10,000 people bought the Velvet Underground's first album, but everyone who bought a copy started a band. Whether it’s true or not, the quote (often attributed to Brian Eno) demonstrates how much of an impact Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground made on the music scene since they got started in the 1960s. 

March 2 would have been Lou Reed’s 80th birthday. Leading up to an upcoming exhibition at the Library for the Performing Arts, NYPL celebrates his life and legacy with an event, items from the Library's collections, and more. 

Coney Island Baby: A Virtual Dance Party with The Lot Radio 

Although experimental sounds pulse throughout his musical catalog, Lou Reed got his start in doo-wop music. His sixth solo studio album referenced those roots. Coney Island Baby paid tribute to his Long Island origins, as both a shout-out to the mentality of his adolescent years and a reference to a 1962 doo-wop song by The Excellents. Every year for his birthday, Reed would host a doo-wop party at his house and revel in the music of his youth with friends.

In honor of this memory, on March 2, Link Cromwell (aka Lenny Kaye) will spin selections of doo-wop 45s from Lou Reed’s archive at LPA, in partnership with The Lot Radio

Transformer Mock-up, an NYPL Treasure

Reed left the Velvet Underground in 1970. His first solo album was self-titled and received little attention and acclaim, but his second effort was a huge hit. It was called Transformer, produced by David Bowie and Mick Ronson. 

Rock photographer Mick Rock designed the record jacket using his most famous photo of Reed. On NYPL’s TikTok, learn more about the making of the iconic image, featured in the Polonsky Exhibition of the New York Public Library’s Treasures.

@nypl Let’s talk about Lou Reed! #NYPLTreasures #NYPL #Library #Museum #Archives #MusicHistory #LearnOnTikTok ♬ original sound - nypl

Lou Reed: Caught Between the Twisted Stars

In 2022, which would have been the year of Lou Reed's 80th birthday, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center will mount Lou Reed: Caught Between the Twisted Stars, the first large-scale exhibition featuring previously unseen and unheard work from Reed’s incredible archive.

The Lou Reed Papers

The Lou Reed Papers span nearly six decades, from 1958 to 2015, of Reed’s career through audio and video recordings, office files, photographs, artwork, and press clippings. The collection details Reed's musical output, as well as the administrative and business dealings involved in producing records and touring worldwide.