Lou Reed

Playlist: The Very Best of Lou Reed features an eclectic set of tracks defined on the back jacket as "the life-changing songs, the out-of-print tracks, the hits, the fan favorites everyone loves, and the songs that make the artists who they are." Reed, with his myriad personas and wildly uneven catalog makes for a difficult subject to dutifully chronicle, and Playlist is no better nor worse than other attempts. Through 13 cuts (four songs off of Transformer, two from Coney Island Baby, and a smattering of one-offs from Berlin, Rock 'N' Roll Animal, Sally Can't Dance, New Sensations, Live in Italy, Lou Reed, and Street Hassle), listeners can decide for themselves whether or not bona fide Reed classics like "Satellite of Love," "Sweet Jane," and "Vicious" pair well with all 11 minutes of "Street Hassle," but at least they managed to leave out any Velvet Underground tracks this time around and let the focus stay on the man's far more prolific solo career. [Legacy's Playlist series functions both as a conventional CD and as a CD-ROM, featuring a large .pdf file with complete liner and track info, CD-quality plus mp3-ready files, photos, wallpaper, and other extras.] ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide