Interviews
White Light White Heat
Interview by Bill Flanagan. Published in Musician no. 126 - April 1989
Lou Reed and John Cale remember Andy Warhol
CALE: Christian imagery.
REED: Andy was really an astonishing person. When he talked to you he never ceased to say the most amazing things. Just another way of looking at it that at least in my case would make me stop right in my tracks and think about what he said.
MUSICIAN: In "Forever Changed" Andy lists a number of people who "will see me through." Edie Sedgwick was one, I didn't know the other names. Are they all dead? All saints?
CALE: No. They were all people – like Henry Geldzahler – who were influential on him at one point or another. When we first hooked up with Andy he had the mixed-media-event bull by the horns, and it was a major effort to then enter the salons of Central Park West [Reed laughs) and shake the sensibilities of the art cabal. Some of these people are mentioned in the songs.
MUSICIAN: You mentioned absolution and Christian imagery John. There was quite a funereal feel to the whole presentation of 'Drella – partly because it was presented in a church.
CALE: Yeah, that building is really overpowering.
REED: It's just my own personal taste, but when we do the BAM version I wish we would stay in that church. 'Cause I think the church itself was incredible; it made us into a trio – John, myself and the church. [laughter]
CALE: And God!
REED: The father; son and holy ghost! When we go on the road we have to take the church with us! It was a very powerful part of the thing. We didn't realize during soundchecks and dress rehearsals that when there were people in it and we were up there with the stained windows... you suddenly felt this incredible surge that this house devoted to belief can generate.
CALE: [bursts out laughing] Come on, Lou!
REED: Let me try a little harder. Give me a half hour. I've got to rephrase that one so it's proper... Thanks, John, I appreciate that.
CALE: I have to say that that's sort of like typecasting. The building is not the star of the show, it's Andy.
REED: Except that Andy always went to church, which was something that a lot of people either didn't know, or didn't associate with him even though they'd heard about it. Every Sunday he went to church with his mother. We wanted to give people some taste, if it was possible, of how brilliant he was. That this was not just some...
CALE: This was no fool manipulating headlines.
REED: Right, exactly.
CALE: He was a very penetrating individual.
REED: Right. A very, very talented, extremely brilliant spark of light.