Live: Take No Prisoners

• Artist: Lou Reed
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1978
• Total Time: 92:02
• Type: Live
• Genre: Rock

Review

"I do Lou Reed better than anybody, so I thought I'd get in on it," Reed says at one point during this double live set, and that seems to sum up the album's theme quite well. Recorded during a week of shows at New York's Bottom Line in 1978, Live: Take No Prisoners presents Lou Reed the Standup Comic, doing schtick on Patti Smith ("F*ck Radio Ethiopia, man! I'm Radio Brooklyn!"), political activism ("Give me an issue, I'll give you a tissue, and you can wipe my ass with it"), and the agony of playing "Walk on the Wild Side" ("It's not that I don't want to play your favorites, but there are so many favorites to choose from!") while occasionally pausing to play a song. As a comic, Lou is no Lenny Bruce or Bill Hicks, but he's funny by fits and starts (and he plays guitar better than either of them). On the odd moments when Lou is focused enough to actually perform a song from start to finish (such as "Pale Blue Eyes" or "Coney Island Baby"), he's in fine form, sounding loose but enthusiastic, but those moments don't happen especially often, and this album plows through a mere ten songs in close to 100 minutes, which gives you an idea of just how far he stretches out here. If you're a fan who wants a look into the mind of Lou Reed, comic or otherwise, Live: Take No Prisoners certainly fills the bill, but if you want to hear Lou actually play his music, you're better off with Rock N Roll Animal or Live in Italy. But then again, as Lou himself points out, "What's wrong with cheap dirty jokes? I never said I was tasteful." ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide

Tracks

CD 1

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Sweet Jane	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(10:44)
I Wanna Be Black	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(6:29)
Satellite of Love	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(7:07)
Pale Blue Eyes	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(7:37)
Berlin	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(6:14)
I'm Waiting for My Man	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(13:59)

CD 2

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Coney Island Baby	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(8:39)
Street Hassle	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(13:16)
Walk on the Wild Side	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(16:54)
Leave Me Alone	Lou Reed	Lou Reed	(7:28)

Credits

Marty Fogel (Electric Saxophone), Stuart Heinrich (Vocals), Betty Ann Rizzo (Project Coordinator), Michael Fonfara (Mixing), Christine Faith (Vocals), Steve Strauss (Production Assistant), Lou Reed (Producer), Michael Fonfara (Piano (Electric)), Angela Howell (Vocals), Marty Fogel (Saxophone), Jeremy Holiday (Project Coordinator), Julie Last (Engineer), Michael Fonfara (Keyboards), Ellard Bowles (Guitar), Ted Jensen (Mastering), Dennis Menace Weeden (Design), Ellard Bowles (Synthesizer), Ellard Bowles (Bass), David Fricke (Liner Notes), Ellard Bowles (Vocals), Lou Reed (Mixing), Stuart Heinrich (Guitar), John Hudson (Product Manager), Lou Reed (Synthesizer), Lou Reed (Guitar), Manfred Schunke (Engineer), Rene Tinner (Assistant Engineer), Elliott Federman (Mastering), Lou Reed (Vocals), Stephanie Kika (Project Coordinator), Lou Reed (Keyboards), Donn Davenport (Art Direction), Gregg Caruso (Engineer), Rob Santos (Reissue Producer), Jay Krugman (Engineer), Manfred Schunke (Mastering), Manfred Schunke (Mixing), Ellard Boles (Bass), Ellard Boles (Mixing), Glenn Korman (Production Assistant), Ellard Boles (Vocals), Traci Werbel (Project Coordinator), Lou Reed (Roland Synthesizer), Michael Suchorsky (Drums), Sue Raffman (Project Coordinator), Tom Tierney (Production Assistant), Angela Howell (Tambourine), Manfred Schunke (Recording Supervision), Laura Dorson (Project Coordinator), Lou Reed (Mastering)

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