days_unfolding

I've been sidetracked by the news that Lou Reed has died. I've been watching CNN to see their coverage about him. They've been saying that not a lot of people know of him except for a core group of fans and other musicians, but the news about his death swept through my Facebook friends (most of whom are the same age as I am) like wildfire.

I suppose that I qualify as a fan; I have a boxed set of his music somewhere. I haven't listened to him in years though. I've read his biography, and he wasn't a terribly nice person, but a great lyricist.

I wonder why it's important to me to read his obituaries and watch coverage of him on CNN when he'll be just as dead if I don't. It's a milestone of sorts, I guess. And 71 is awfully young to die, but given his years of drinking and drug use, not terribly surprising. (And I also wonder when 71 became "young," but we're all getting on.)

The Guardian had the best obituary: http://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/27/lou-reed-velvet-underground-rock-music