Andy's Chest

• Performances
• History
• Lyrics
• Artist
  • Phish
  • Fish
  • Mike
  • Page
  • Trey
  • All

History

Lou Reed is one of the most influential, innovative, and bizarre artists in rock and roll history, and the primary creative talent behind The Velvet Underground. “Andy’s Chest” was first written in the VU days, but was not released until 1972, on Reed’s second solo album, Transformer. It was with this album – produced by David Bowie – that Reed first gained some amount of (long overdue) public recognition with the track “Walk on the Wild Side,” an unusual top-10 hit single that mentions transvestism, prostitution, and oral sex.

Listening to the lyrics to “Andy’s Chest,” you really have to wonder what it must be like to be Lou Reed, and have that sort of thing going on in your mind all the time. Thankfully, we don’t all have his gift. But thankfully, he does. Also, thankfully, Trey is not Lou Reed, which may explain why this song was only covered once, on 9/13/88. 

Submit notes/corrections