History Music / Transformer

A documentary about the creative process behind the making of this album can be seen in the ''Series/ClassicAlbums'' TV documentary series. The album was listed at nr. #194 in Magazine/RollingStone's [[Music/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time]]. It was followed by the frankly disquieting ''Music/{{Berlin}}'' which is downbeat and pessimistic - to an extreme - and the complete opposite of this album.

* RecordProducer: Music/DavidBowie, which also makes him a PromotedFanboy, seeing that he admired Reed's work with Music/VelvetUnderground before their first album was even released in the stores!

** "Walk on the Wild Side" refers to Creator/NelsonAlgren's novel "A Walk on the Wild Side".

** Each named character from "Walk on the Wild Side" (Holly, Candy, etc.) is a real person connected with Creator/AndyWarhol's Factory.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: His hit "Walk on the Wild Side" features the line "But she never lost her head/Even when she was giving head" (as well as multiple usages of the already outdated and offensive term "coloured" to refer to African-Americans) and got (and still gets) a lot of airplay.

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Oh, it's such a perfect day/I'm glad I spent it with you..."'']]

A documentary about the creative process behind the making of this album can be seen in the ''Series/ClassicAlbums'' TV documentary series. The album was listed at nr. #194 in Magazine/RollingStone's [[Music/RollingStone500GreatestAlbumsOfAllTime 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time]].

** "Walk on the Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution. Could be considered a subversion, depending on your interpretation; it's a series of vignettes about real people, and Reed doesn't judge them for their life choices - he just talks about them as they are.

** "Can I Kick It?" by Music/ATribeCalledQuest samples the bass-line from "Walk On The Wild Side."
** The original name of Music/PaulKelly's backing band was The Coloured Girls, in direct reference to "Walk On The Wild Side." (The band was composed entirely of white men.) It was later changed to The Messengers to avoid racist overtones.

* ObsessionSong: "Satellite of Love", where Lou observes the object of his affection in everything she [[note]] Or - ''[[RefrainFromAssuming ''he'']]'' It's that sort of album.[[/note]] does.

* RuleOfThree: Harry, Mark and John in "Satellite Of Love" are three people the woman[[note]]do not presume it's a woman[[/note]] in "Satellite Of Love" has been bold with.

** "Walk on the Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution.

* LastNoteNightmare: LyricalDissonance version. The sweet song "Perfect Day" where someone says he had a perfect day behind him and is glad to have "spent it with you" ends with the disturbing line "You're going to reap just what you sow".
* LyricalDissonance: "Walk on the Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution.

* LastNoteNightmare: The sweet song "Perfect Day" where someone says he had a perfect day behind him and is glad to have "spent it with you" ends with the disturbing line "You're going to reap just what you sow".

* DrugsAreBad: "Perfect Day" has been misinterpreted by people taking it at face value as a song about a loving couple enjoying a perfect summer day. It is about a love affair: between a man and heroin.
-->It's such a perfect day;
-->You made me forget myself;
-->I thought I was someone else, someone good....

* LyricalDissonance:
** "Walk on the Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution.
** The sweet song "Perfect Day" where someone says he had a perfect day behind him and is glad to have "spent it with you" ends with the disturbing line "You're going to reap just what you sow".

* TheBear: referenced in ''Andy's Chest'';

* LyricalDissonance: "Walk on the Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution.

''Transformer'' also contains Reed's best known hit songs, including "Walk On The Wild Side", "Satellite Of Love", and "Perfect Day".

# "Walk On The Wild Side" (4:12)

# "Satellite Of Love" (3:40)

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: His hit "Walk On The Wild Side" features the line "But she never lost her head/Even when she was giving head" (as well as multiple usages of the already outdated and offensive term "coloured" to refer to African-Americans) and got (and still gets) a lot of airplay.

* LyricalDissonance: "Walk On The Wild Side" is a smooth, hooky pop single... about drugs and prostitution.

* ObsessionSong: "Satellite Of Love", where Lou observes the object of his affection in everything she [[note]] Or - ''[[RefrainFromAssuming ''he'']]'' It's that sort of album.[[/note]] does.

** "Walk On The Wild Side" refers to Creator/NelsonAlgren's novel "A Walk On The Wild Side".
** Each named character from "Walk On The Wild Side" (Holly, Candy, etc.) is a real person connected with Creator/AndyWarhol's Factory.

** "Goodnight Ladies" took its title from a line in Creator/TSEliot's poem "The Waste Land".

'''''Transformer''''' is the second studio album by Music/LouReed, released in 1972. Music/DavidBowie assisted him as producer and providing vocal and instrumental aid to certain songs.

* ObsessionSong: "Satellite Of Love", where Lou observes the object of his affection in everything she does.

'''''Transformer''''' is the second studio album by Music/LouReed, released in 1972. It has been hailed as his solo MagnumOpus, both commercially and artistically (although some fans would give the nod to ''Music/{{Berlin}}'' or ''New York'' instead). Music/DavidBowie assisted him as producer and providing vocal and instrumental aid to certain songs.

* RuleOfThree: Harry, Mark and John in "Satellite Of Love" are three people the woman in "Satellite Of Love" has been bold with.

A documentary about the creative process behind the making of this album can be seen in the ''Series/ClassicAlbums'' TV documentary series.

'''''Transformer''''' is the second studio album by Music/LouReed, released in 1972. It has been hailed as his MagnumOpus, both commercially and artistically (although some fans would give the nod to ''Music/{{Berlin}}'' or ''New York'' instead). Music/DavidBowie assisted him as producer and providing vocal and instrumental aid to certain songs.

* AccentUponTheWrongSyllable: One character in "Walk on the Wild Side" "went to the A-POL-lo".

* CoverVersion: "Satellite Of Love" was originally a Music/VelvetUnderground song. A recorded version from 1970 exists, but was forgotten until the release of the compilation ''Peel Slowly And See'' (1995).

* AccentUponTheWorngSyllable: One character in "Walk on the Wild Side" "went to the A-POL-lo".

[[caption-width-right:350:''Oh, it's such a perfect day/I'm glad I spent it with you..."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:''Transformer''.]]

--> ''Just a perfect day/ feed animals in the zoo''

[[AC:Side One]]

[[AC:Side Two]]

--> ''Monday, Tuesday, Wednedsay to Thursday''

** The original name of Music/PaulKelly's backing band was The Colored Girls, in direct reference to "Walk On The Wild Side." (The band was composed entirely of white men.) It was later changed to The Messengers to avoid racist overtones.