The Art of the Straight Line, Lou Reed
The Art of the Straight Line, Lou Reed
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The Art of the Straight Line
My Tai Chi

Author: Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson

Narrator: Laurie Anderson, Stephan Berwick, Bob Currie, Scott Richman, Ron Butler, Feodor Chin, Adam Grupper, Jeff Gurner, Hillary Huber, Brian Nishii, Rob Shapiro, Oliver Wyman, Eric Yang, Emily Woo Zeller

Unabridged: 8 hr 58 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: HarperAudio

Published: 03/14/2023

Synopsis

The Art of the Straight Line captures the energy of Lou Reed’s worlds of Tai Chi, music, and meditation. It was edited by his wife, the artist Laurie Anderson, with Stephan Berwick, Bob Currie, and Scott Richman.Lou Reed was a musician, singer, songwriter, poet, and founding member of the legendary rock band the Velvet Underground. He collaborated with many artists, from Andy Warhol and John Cale to Robert Wilson and Metallica. Reed had a groundbreaking solo career that spanned five decades until his death in 2013.Reed was also an accomplished martial artist whose practice began in the 1980s. He studied with Chen Tai Chi pioneer Master Ren GuangYi. This book is a comprehensive collection of Reed’s writings on Tai Chi. It includes conversations with Reed’s fellow musicians, artists, friends, and Tai Chi practitioners, including Julian Schnabel, A. M. Homes, Hal Willner, Mingyur Rinpoche, Eddie Stern, Tony Visconti, and Iggy Pop.The Art of the Straight Line features Reed’s unpublished writings on the technique, practice, and purpose of martial arts, as well as essays, observations, and riffs on meditation and life.

About Lou Reed

Lou Reed was a musician, singer, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, lead singer, and songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a legendary solo career that spanned five decades. He died in 2013. 

Reviews

Goodreads review by Tommy on May 07, 2023

I've been a fan of Lou Reed since the mid-80's. He was known - to put it politely - as difficult. Yet, I also heard stories of how gentle, funny, and warm he could be. This book reveals all of that: Lou the brutish jerk, Lou the sweetheart, and most of all, Lou the passionate practitioner. Lou felt......more

Goodreads review by None on April 09, 2023

A beautiful eulogy that sheds light on several works and an incredible life of a remarkable artist. If you are not a fan there is less for you here. If you are - I recommend the audiobook instead of the print edition.......more

Goodreads review by Aleks on April 01, 2023

"Any state you canachieve with chemicals, you can achieve with silence." "Don't stretch the body muscle, stretch the inside energy. Stretch your brain. Thai chi makes your mind big." 3.28 "Every system, when it's repetitive, has a drawback, every system has a flaw. (...) Sometimes you can pick things......more

Goodreads review by Monica on June 15, 2023

I really love this book. There are parts I will return to, and resources it suggests that I’m looking forward to looking into. It’s certainly not everyone’s cup of tea—but there’s a lot of good thoughts and expressions of love that I enjoyed.......more

Goodreads review by daniel on April 04, 2023

An interesting biography, told largely in short snippets from those around Reed with special emphasis on his love of Tai Chi. A biography through archive more than narrative. Admittedly, you learn little about his own understanding of Tai Chi, so the subtitle is a bit of a misnomer.......more

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