music.wikisort.org - Composition

The Bells is the ninth solo studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed, released in April 1979 by Arista Records. It is recorded in binaural sound at Delta Studios in Wilster, West Germany. Production was handled by Reed with Michael Fonfara serving as executive producer. Three out of nine songs on the album are the product of a short-lived writing partnership between Reed and Nils Lofgren. More of the team's work appeared on Nils' album Nils, released the same year. Lofgren released his version of "Stupid Man" as "Driftin' Man" on Break Away Angel (2001).[1] Lofgren resurrected five songs he wrote with Reed in the late 70s on Blue with Lou (2019).[2]

The Bells
Studio album by Lou Reed
Released	April 1979
Recorded	1979
Studio	Delta Studios (Wilster, West Germany)
Genre	Rock
Length	40:37
Label	Arista
Producer	Lou Reed
Lou Reed chronology
Live: Take No Prisoners (1978) The Bells (1979) Growing Up in Public (1980)
Singles from The Bells
"Disco Mystic" Released: 1979 "City Lights" Released: August 1979

The album features contributions from Michael Fonfara, Ellard "Moose" Boles, Don Cherry, Marty Fogel and Michael Suchorsky. The album peaked at No. 13 in New Zealand, No. 44 in Sweden, No. 58 in Australia, and No. 130 in the United States.

Recording

Reed said: "I mastered the art of recording known as 'capture the spontaneous moment and leave it at that'. The Bells was done like that, those lyrics were just made up on the spot and they're absolutely incredible. I'm very adept at making up whole stories with rhymes, schemes, jokes".[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
Chicago Tribune	[5]
The Village Voice	B+[6]

In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone, music critic Lester Bangs wrote, "With The Bells, more than in Street Hassle, perhaps even more than in his work with The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed achieves his oft-stated ambition—to become a great writer, in the literary sense".[7] The Village Voice critic Robert Christgau said:

"Lou is as sarcastic as ever—the lead cut is called 'Stupid Man,' and in a typically acid rhyme he links 'capricious' and 'death wish.' But due in part to the music's jazzy edge and warmly traditional rock and roll base (special thanks to Marty Fogel on saxophone) he also sounds ... well-rounded, more than on Street Hassle. The jokes seem generous, the bitterness empathetic, the pain out front, the tenderness more than a fleeting mood. And the cuts that don't work—there are at least three or four—seem like thoughtful experiments, or simple failures, rather than throwaways. I haven't found him so likable since The Velvet Underground."[6]

In a less enthusiastic retrospective review, Select magazine wrote that "The Bells saw his music disappearing down the pan ... Even self-parody is barely achieved in these half-assed songs played by a bunch of dullards, with Lou sounding painfully uninspired".[8]

Track listing

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the The Bells liner notes.[9]

Musicians

• Lou Reed – lead and backing vocals, electric guitar, guitar synthesizer, bass synthesizer (track 8), horn arrangement (tracks: 1-3, 5-9), producer
• Ellard "Moose" Boles – 12-string electric guitar (track 8), bass guitar, bass synthesizer, backing vocals
• Michael Fonfara – piano, Fender Rhodes, synthesizer, backing vocals, executive producer
• Don Cherry – African hunting guitar, trumpet, horn arrangement (track 4)
• Marty Fogel – ocarina, soprano and tenor saxophone, Fender Rhodes (track 9), horn arrangement
• Michael Suchorsky – percussion

Production and artwork

• René Tinner – engineer
• Manfred Schunke – mixing
• Ted Jensen – mastering
• Donn Davenport – art direction, design
• Howard Fritzson – art direction, design
• Garry Gross – photography

Charts

Chart (1979)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[10]	58
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[11]	13
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[12]	44
US Billboard 200[13]	130

References

External links

• The Bells at Discogs (list of releases)

На других языках

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- [en] The Bells (Lou Reed album)

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[es] The Bells

The Bells es el noveno álbum de Lou Reed, lanzado en 1979 por Arista Records.

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[it] The Bells (album)

The Bells è il nono album di Lou Reed ed è stato pubblicato dalla Arista Records nel 1979. Il disco è stato registrato con tecnologia binaurale.

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[ru] The Bells (альбом)

The Bells (с англ. — «Колокола») — девятый сольный студийный альбом американского музыканта Лу Рида, выпущенный в апреле 1979 года на лейбле Arista.

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