Lou Reed - Transformer
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Lou Reed – lead vocals; rhythm guitar
David Bowie – backing vocals; keyboards; acoustic guitar on "Wagon Wheel" and "Walk on the Wild Side" [click here to see more vinyl featuring David Bowie]
Mick Ronson – lead guitar; piano; recorder; string arrangements
Herbie Flowers – bass guitar; double bass; tuba on "Goodnight Ladies" and "Make Up"
John Halsey – drums
Trevor Bolder – trumpet
Ronnie Ross – soprano saxophone on "Goodnight Ladies"; baritone saxophone on "Walk on the Wild Side"
Thunderthighs – backing vocals
Barry DeSouza – drums
Ritchie Dharma – drums
Klaus Voormann – bass guitar on "Perfect Day", "Goodnight Ladies", "Satellite of Love" and "Make Up"
Written by Lou Reed
1 LP, standard sleeve
Original analog Master tape : YES
Heavy Press : 180g
Record color : black
Speed : 33 RPM
Size : 12'’
Stereo
Record Press : Pallas GmbH in Germany
Label : Speakers Corner
Original Label : RCA
Recorded at Trident, London in 1972 by Arun Chakranerty
Mixed at Trident Studios, London, England by Mike Stone, David Bowie, Lou Reed
Mastered by Arun Chakranerty
Produced by Mick Ronson and David Bowie
Originally released in 1972
Reissued in 2020
Tracks:
Side A :
- Vicious
- Andy's Chest
- Perfect Day
- Hangin' 'Round
- Walk on the Wild Side
Side B :
- Make Up
- Satellite of Love
- Wagon Wheel
- New York Telephone Conversation
- I'm So Free
- Goodnight Ladies
Award :
Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - Rated 109/500
1000 Recordings You Must Hear Before You Die - Ranked 251
Reviews :
« David Bowie has never been shy about acknowledging his influences, and since the boho decadence and sexual ambiguity of the Velvet Underground's music had a major impact on Bowie's work, it was only fitting that as Ziggy Stardust mania was reaching its peak, Bowie would offer Lou Reed some much needed help with his career, which was stuck in neutral after his first solo album came and went. Musically, Reed's work didn't have too much in common with the sonic bombast of the glam scene, but at least it was a place where his eccentricities could find a comfortable home, and on Transformer Bowie and his right-hand man, Mick Ronson, crafted a new sound for Reed that was better fitting (and more commercially astute) than the ambivalent tone of his first solo album. Ronson adds some guitar raunch to "Vicious" and "Hangin' Round" that's a lot flashier than what Reed cranked out with the Velvets, but still honors Lou's strengths in guitar-driven hard rock, while the imaginative arrangements Ronson cooked up for "Perfect Day," "Walk on the Wild Side," and "Goodnight Ladies" blend pop polish with musical thinking just as distinctive as Reed's lyrical conceits. And while Reed occasionally overplays his hand in writing stuff he figured the glam kids wanted ("Make Up" and "I'm So Free" being the most obvious examples), "Perfect Day," "Walk on the Wild Side," and "New York Telephone Conversation" proved he could still write about the demimonde with both perception and respect. The sound and style of Transformer would in many ways define Reed's career in the 1970s, and while it led him into a style that proved to be a dead end, you can't deny that Bowie and Ronson gave their hero a new lease on life -- and a solid album in the bargain. » AllMusic Review by Mark Deming
"David Bowie counted the former Velvet Underground leader as a major inspiration and paid back the debt by producing Transformer. The album had glam flash courtesy of Ziggy Stardust guitarist Mick Ronson as well as Reed's biggest hit, "Walk on the Wild Side" which brought drag queens and hustlers into the Top Twenty and the exquisite ballad "Perfect Day." It was Reed's first producer, VU impresario Andy Warhol, who inspired the lead cut when he suggested "Vicious" as a song title. "You know, like, 'Vicious/You hit me with a flower,' " Warhol elaborated. Reed took him at his word, penning the song and cribbing the lines verbatim." - www.rollingstone.com
Ratings :
AllMusic : 4.5 / 5 , Discogs : 4.51 / 5 , Rate Your Music : 3.98 / 5