Siamo nel 1978, Lou Reed è ormai un artista affermato e conosciuto in campo musicale, vuoi anche per la grande quantità di lavori prodotti sinora: dopo il primo album omonimo (1972) dai toni scialbi, Lou viene accolto tra le braccia di "Papà" Bowie che lo fa diventare una grande star e lo aiuta a comporre quella pietra miliare del glam-rock che è "Transformer" (1972); in seguito il nostro si distacca dal glam-rock e svolta con un album dai toni molto deprimenti "Berlin", anch'esso una pietra miliare del rock. Poi è la volta del sufficiente "Sally Can't Dance" (1974), dell'avanguardistico "Metal Machine Music", con quattro lati contenenti ciascuno 16 minuti e 16 secondi di puro feedback; e non sono da dimenticare i live "Rock'n'Roll Animal" (1974) e "Lou Reed Live" (1975) che coronano questo primo periodo con la RCA.
In seguito Lou passa sotto le grinfie della Arista, ed in questo periodo sforna prima "ConeyIsland Baby" (1976), buon album dalle atmosfere vagamente bluesy, e poi il deludente "Rock'n'Roll Heart". A questo punto, sempre più accompagnato nella vita dall'eroina e dall'alcohol, pubblica questo "Street Hassle" (1978), lavoro molto controverso con canzoni che passano da un banale rock ad un suono sinfonico; lavoro in certi punti quasi spettrale, strano, con un Lou che canta in un modo mai sentito.
L'abum inizia con "Gimme Some Good Times" una canzone che riprende il riff, ormai famoso, di "Sweet Jane" stavolta rifatto da una sezione di fiati con un testo banale ed una melodia dai toni quasi patetici. Il secondo capitolo è "Dirt", un rock monotono ed incalzante in cui Lou da forse il meglio. Ora è la volta del capolavoro del disco "Street Hassle" una suite sinfonica di quasi 11 minuti divisa in tre sezioni: a-"Waltzing Matilda" accompagnata da un grande riff di archi e con un cantanto per così dire un po' "tremolante"; b-"Street Hassle", il tema qui è ripreso da un coro femminile a cappella ed in seguito vi è lo stesso riff suonato in maniera meno orchestrale; c-"Slipaway", capitolo finale introdotto da un recitato parlato (a opera di Bruce Springsteen) a cui poi si sovrappone il cantato dai toni melodrammatici di Lou Reed. Dopo questo capolavoro c'è il R&B di "I Wanna Be Black", buon arrangiamento e testo ridicolo; poi la sperimentale "Real Good Time Together" ed il frastornante rock di "Shooting Star". Il disco finisce con due buoni capitoli: "Leave Me Alone" con pesanti distorsioni accompagnate da una sezione di fiati (nel disco sempre molto presenti) e con un gran Lou alla voce, ed il congedo melodico di "Wait".
Un gran lavoro, non c'è che dire, ma pecca forse per la mancata continuità all'interno della track-list. Ma del resto un disco così ispirato è veramnete molto bello, uno dei migliori capitoli nella discografia dell'Animale del Rock'n'Roll.
Elenco tracce testi e video
03 Street Hassle (10:54)
a) Waltzing Matilda
Waltzing Matilda whipped out her wallet
the sexy boy smiled in dismay
She took out four twenties 'cause she liked round figures
everybody's queen for a day
Oh, babe, I'm on fire and you know I admire your -
- body why don't we slip away
Although I'm sure you're certain, it's a rarity me flirtin'
sha-la-la-la, this way
Oh, sha-la-la-la-la, sha-la-la-la-la
hey, baby, come on, let's slip away
Luscious and gorgeous, oh what a humpin' muscle
call out the national guard
She creamed in her jeans as he picked up her knees
from off of the formica topped bar
And cascading slowly, he lifted her wholly
and boldly out of this world
And despite people's derision
proved to be more than diversion
sha-la-la-la, later on
And then sha-la-la-la-la, he entered her slowly
and showed her where he was coming from
And then sha-la-la-la-la, he made love to her gently
it was like she'd never ever come
And then sha-la-la-la-la, sha-la-la-la-la
when the sun rose and he made to leave
You know, sha-la-la-la-la, sha-la-la-la-la
neither one regretted a thing
b) Street Hassle
Hey, that cunt's not breathing
I think she's had too much
of something or other, hey, man, you know what I mean?
I don't mean to scare you
but you're the one who came here
and you're the one who's gotta take her when you leave
I'm not being smart
or trying to be cold on my part
and I'm not gonna wear my heart on my sleeve
But you know people get all emotional
and sometimes, man, they just don't act rational you know,
they think they're just on TV
Sha-la-la-la, man
why don't you just slip her away
You know, I'm glad that we met man
it really was nice talking
and I really wish that there was a little more time to speak
But you know it could be a hassle
trying to explain this all to a police officer
about how it was that your old lady got herself stiffed
And it's not like we could help
but there wasn't nothing no one could do
and if there was, man, you know I would have been the first
But when someone turns that blue
well, it's a universal truth
and then you just know that bitch will never fuck again
By the way, that's really some bad shit
that you came to our place with
but you ought to be more careful around the little girls
It's either the best or it's the worst
and since I don't have to choose
I guess I won't and I know this ain't no way to treat a guest
But why don't you grab your old lady by the feet
and just lay her out in the darkest street
and by morning, she's just another hit and run.
You know, some people got no choice
and they can never find a voice
to talk with that they can even call their own
So the first thing that they see
that allows them the right to be
why they follow it, you know, it's called bad luck.
c) Slipaway
well hey(man), that's just a lie,
it's a lie she tells her friends.
'cause the real song, the real song
where she won't even admit to herself
the beatin' in her heart.
It's a song lots of people know.
It's a painful song
a little sad truth
but life full of sad songs
penny for a wish
But wishin' won't make you a soldier.
With a pretty kiss for a pretty face
can't have its way
Y'know tramps like us, we were born to pay.
Love has gone away
and there's no one here now
And there's nothing left to say
but, oh, how I miss him, baby
Oh, baby, come on and slip away
come on, baby, why don't you slip away
Love is gone away
took the rings off my fingers
And there's nothing left to say
but, oh how, oh how I need him, baby
Come on, baby, I need you baby
oh, please don't slip away
I need your loving so bad, babe
please don't slip away
04 I Wanna Be Black (02:56)
I wanna be black, have natural rhythm
Shoot twenty foot of jism too
and fuck up the jews
I wanna be black, I wanna be a panther
Have a girlfriend named Samantha
and have a stable of foxy whores
Oh, oh, I wanna be black
I don't wanna be a fucked up
middle class college student anymore
I just wanna have a stable of
foxy little whores
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Oh, oh, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
I wanna be black, wanna be like Martin Luther King
And get myself shot in the spring
And lead a whole generation, too
and fuck up the jews
I wanna be black, I wanna be like Malcolm X
And cast a hex
over President Kennedy's tomb
and have a big prick, too
Oh, I don't wanna be a fucked up
middle class college student no more
Yeah, I just wanna have a
stable of foxy little whores
Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
I wanna be black
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I wanna be black
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
(Yeah, yeah, I wanna be black, oh, oh)
06 Shooting Star (03:11)
All the people had their share of the glory
looking out after you
It's just a story about winners and glory
and you know that it's true
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
Some men may glory from a different condition
of another car
And later persuasion would permit the arranging
of a ...
And to cause more confusion, and to make this illusion
would have gone too far
And it's my ambition, of a jacket ignition
in a Cadillac metal car
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
Ah ha, oh yeah, you're just a shooting star
You're just a shooting star
07 Leave Me Alone (04:45)
Everybody's gonna try to tell you what to do, uhh-haa
And never, never, never, never, let it be said that it's true
oh-oh, hey, give it to my baby
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
They're the kind of people that'll always let you down
I know you, too, you don't ever give it a frown
oh, do it, do it, now, do it, do it
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
get down, baby
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
oh, come now, leave me alone, mam, okay, baby
Oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha
Don't you know some people, they just don't know when to stop
give it to me, now
They can't tell the floor from the ceiling or the top
And there're other types, they always make you wait
And they're always the first to say, the state you come from
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
Love me, love me, love me, love me, love me forever
Love me, love me, love me, love me, love me forever
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone, oh
Leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me, leave me alone
leave me alone
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
ah-ha-ha, oh, oh, yeah
Ah-ha-ha
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