Why is Lou Reed so often referred to as the Godfather of Punk?

xpost

Right. And obviously New York punks were significant in the development of punk in the '70s.

that hat
Somehow it reminds of the one John Osbourne had when he was a nipper.

duh, they were punx!

1966 and 1967 and 1969 were the same year?

The Doors and their bloated ilk started the need for fucking punk rawk

if you actually remember that they were different years, then you obviously weren't there, as they say!

they didn't start out bloated!!!! they had to sit in the tub for a while. doors were hawwwwwwt!!

Dead cats, dead rats, did you see what they were at, alright
Dead cat in a tophat

Sucking on a young man's blood
Wishing he would come, yeah
Sucking on a soldier's brain
Wishing it would be the same

Dead cat, dead rat, did you see what they were at
Fat cat in a tophat
Thinks he's an aristocrat
Thinks he can kill and slaughter
Thinks he can shoot my daughter

Yeah, right...oh yeah...alright...yeah
Dead cats, dead rats, think you're an aristocrat
Crap...ah, that's crap

All I know is, I've had discussions with drunk people about where punk came from and as hard as I try to be reasonable and light-hearted about the whole damned thing, it always ends up with my girlfriend having to tell the other guy's girlfriend that I'm really a nice guy, so I tend to avoid such conversations. I do know that I don't think Lou Reed is the godfather of punk, and that I never listen to Lou Reed these days, never. I haven't listened to any of those VU albums in years, in fact I do not own any of them at this point. I've heard the Ramones plenty but have never owned a Ramones album I can remember. I probably like the Vibrators better. I'm just as comfortable saying that "Wooly Bully" or "Diddy Wa Diddy" (however one spells that) by Capt. Beefheart is the origin of punk. I like the Adverts quite a lot, Liliput ever better, "I'm Stranded" a lot. This has been a long post to say that I try not to think about it, but of course I end up doing it just the same.

Really dig this statement Ken L., you made my day:

The Age when the Doors Were "Hawwwt" recedes further and further back into the mists of time, and is now almost lost, like the Age When Buddy Bolden Charmed All of Storyville With His Horn.

And really, I admit I don't exactly have affinities with anything like "punk" too much, you know, I'm obviously just another vicarious liver who'd much rather groove to the Dramatics or the Detroit Emeralds than listen to most of it.

As for Sister Ray, I thought of whole new question worth our puzzlement -- Who insulted Ray Charles more? The VU, Elvis Costello, or Jamie Foxx?

It's not that Drugs & Death are a "key part" of the definition of punk, it's that the Velvets were completely shunning convention by exploring lyrical/conceptual territory normally verboten in conventional pop/rock. That they were concentrating on more girtty topics (though not exclusively) when the rest of the world was wearing Nehru jackets and singing about flower power, THAT'S what makes them "punk".

And the sunglasses.

xxpost:
Now that I think of it, I have heard Steve Jones say several times on his radio show that he was inspired to be a musician when he saw the New York Dolls and that the way he learned to play guitar was by playing along to the first Stooges record and the two Dolls records, playing them over and over again. He has also said that his favorite guitar player is Mick Ronson, and, as everybody knows, a lot of the Pistols equipment was stuff Steve stole from the Spiders From Mars, especially after "the last show they ever did." After Johnny Ramone passed away, Jonesy's Jukebox replayed an interview with Johnny and Steve asked him if he ever went to see the Dolls and Johnny said, "Oh yeah, I went every time. I used to see Johnny and Jerry around town and they looked so cool. Then I heard they were in a band, but Tommy Ramone told me 'Yeah, but they're no good.' But I went anyway, because how could they be bad if they looked so cool."

Anyway, I don't know how this exactly answers the original question, I'm just trying to say that the canonical punk lineage isn't just an invention, although it was probably a simplification. In this version of the story Lou enters through the sidedoor of the Bowie connection and through John Cale producing the Stooges album. I'm still trying to think how the Lou/Jonathan Richman thing fits in here. Maybe Lou is actually the Godfather of New Wave, through the Modern Lovers alumni.

Indie Rock's roots = Punk Rock.

Why is everyone hung up on the notion that "Punk" has to be fast and stupid?

but if Television, Suicide, Patti Smith, and even the Dolls are punk you're crazy to slight him.

check out

Did Lou's Man take American Express, I wonder?

lou wasn't *really* punk until last year IMO

when does Re-Lulu come out anyway?

Jack is in his corset Jane is in her vest
Lou is hawking scooters and American Express

Visa Says

lol

wild guess:

the WHO + 1,000 american garage bands = godfathers of punk.

Between thought and Express lies a lifetime...