"Dirty Blvd." | ||||
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Single by Lou Reed | ||||
from the album New York | ||||
Released | February 1989 [1] | |||
Recorded | 1988 | |||
Studio | Mediasound Studio B, New York City | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:29 | |||
Label | Sire | |||
Songwriter(s) | Lou Reed | |||
Producer(s) |
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Lou Reed singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Dirty Blvd.” on YouTube |
"Dirty Blvd." is a song by American musician Lou Reed from his 1989 album, New York . The song contrasts the poor and the rich in New York City, and topped the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks in early 1989. [4] Live versions appear on Perfect Night: Live in London and Animal Serenade . "Dirty Blvd." was one of the four songs Reed performed with David Bowie on the latter's 50th birthday celebration in 1997. [5] "Dirty Blvd." is a three-chord rock song [6] featuring a progression with a repeated sequence of G D A D. [7]
Chart (1989) | Peak position |
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Australia (ARIA) [8] | 45 |
Billboard Album Rock Tracks [9] | 18 |
Billboard Modern Rock Tracks [10] | 1 |
Lewis Allan Reed was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band The Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Although not commercially successful during its existence, the Velvet Underground became regarded as one of the most influential bands in the history of underground and alternative rock music. Reed's distinctive deadpan voice, poetic and transgressive lyrics, and experimental guitar playing were trademarks throughout his long career.
Transformer is the second solo studio album by American recording artist Lou Reed. Produced by David Bowie and Mick Ronson, the album was released in November 1972 by RCA Records. It is considered an influential landmark of the glam rock genre, anchored by Reed's most successful single, "Walk on the Wild Side", which touched on controversial topics of sexual orientation, gender identity, prostitution and drug use. Although Reed's self-titled debut solo album had been unsuccessful, Bowie had been an early fan of Reed's former band The Velvet Underground and used his fame to promote Reed, who had not yet achieved mainstream success.
"Dancing in the Street" is a song written by Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson and Ivy Jo Hunter. It first became popular in 1964 when recorded by Martha and the Vandellas whose version reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and peaked at No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart. It is one of Motown's signature songs and is the group's premier signature song. A 1966 cover by the Mamas & the Papas was a minor hit on the Hot 100 reaching No. 73. In 1982, the rock group Van Halen took their cover of "Dancing in the Street" to No. 38 on the Hot 100 chart and No. 15 in Canada on the RPM chart. A 1985 duet cover by David Bowie and Mick Jagger charted at No. 1 in the UK and reached No. 7 in the US. The song has been covered by many other artists, including The Kinks, Tages, Black Oak Arkansas, Grateful Dead, Little Richard, Myra and Karen Carpenter.
"Walk on the Wild Side" is a song by American rock musician Lou Reed from his second solo studio album, Transformer (1972). It was produced by David Bowie and Mick Ronson and released as a double A-side with "Perfect Day". Known as a counterculture anthem, the song received wide radio coverage and became Reed's biggest hit and signature song while touching on topics considered taboo at the time, such as transgender people, drugs, male prostitution, and oral sex.
Ziggy Stardust: The Motion Picture is a live album by English musician David Bowie, released in October 1983 in conjunction with the film of the same name. The music was recorded during the Ziggy Stardust Tour at the Hammersmith Odeon in London on 3 July 1973, although the album was not issued by RCA Records until 1983. Prior to that it had existed in bootleg form, notably His Masters Voice – Bowie and the Spiders From Mars' Last Stand.
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New York is the fifteenth solo studio album by American musician Lou Reed, released in January 1989 by Sire Records.
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Songs for Drella is a 1990 studio album by Lou Reed and John Cale, both formerly of the Velvet Underground; it is a song cycle about Andy Warhol, their mentor, who had died following routine surgery in 1987. Drella was a nickname for Warhol coined by Warhol superstar Ondine, a contraction of Dracula and Cinderella, used by Warhol's crowd but never liked by Warhol himself. The song cycle focuses on Warhol's interpersonal relations and experiences, with songs falling roughly into three categories: Warhol's first-person perspective, third-person narratives chronicling events and affairs, and first-person commentaries on Warhol by Reed and Cale themselves. The songs, in general, address events in their chronological order.
"Save the Last Dance for Me" is a song written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, first recorded in 1960 by American musical group the Drifters with Ben E. King on lead vocals. It has since been covered by several artists, including Dalida, the DeFranco Family, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, and Michael Bublé.
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