He’s gone but definitely not forgotten. Lou Reed’s death at age 71 in October continues to produce an outpouring of emotion from the music world. In November, members of TV on the Radio paid homage at a tribute show at Bowery Electric, and last Monday night, friends and family, including Patti Smith, gathered at the Apollo Theater for an invite-only memorial. And in January, Morrissey will release a cover version of Reed’s 1972 song “Satellite of Love.” Here The Post remembers the lifelong New Yorker. This is his New York.
John Cale’s old apartment, 56 Ludlow St., between Grand and Hester streets
It’s said Reed lived here during the mid-1960s, but Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale insists Reed commuted from his parents’ LI home to work on the band’s early demos. “There was no heat in the winter other than the gas stove,” Cale told the Wall Street Journal.
Madison Square Garden, 4 Pennsylvania Plaza
Reed performed with Metallica at one of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 25th anniversary shows in 2009. “We had to warm to each other,” says Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich. “Lou was from a generation that had been severely f - - ke d over by the people they engaged with. So there was a little shell Lou used to protect himself. We had to make him understand we weren’t going to hurt him!” It worked: Two years later, Reed and Metallica released the album, “Lulu,” which turned out to be Reed’s last recordings.
The Factory, formerly at 231 E. 47th St., between Second and Third avenues
Andy Warhol’s infamous studio was the scene of wild parties, and it was also where Reed and the Velvet Underground honed their act from 1965 to 1966. “[Warhol] spotted us right off the bat and got it,” Reed told British magazine NME just before his death. “We were trying to create a diamond. We wanted to make heaven on Earth.”
Lou’s warehouse, undisclosed location, West Village
“When we were working on the ‘Transformer’ book, we would meet at his warehouse,” says photographer Mick Rock. “We were signing prints, and his assistant came in one day and said his dog may have eaten some rat poison. Lou was in tears, but luckily, the dog was whisked off to the vet and was OK. Deep down, he was a very caring guy and a loyal friend.”
Max’s Kansas City, formerly at 213 Park Avenue S., between 17th and 18th streets
The Velvet Underground played regularly at Max’s. Even after the band split, Reed would go there to see new talent — including Patti Smith and her band. “A complicated man, he encouraged our efforts, then turned and provoked me like a Machiavellian schoolboy,” Smith remembered in an obituary for him in the New Yorker.
John Varvatos, 315 Bowery, between First and Second streets
Reed made one of his last public appearances at the former site of legendary rock club CBGB to promote the “Transformer” book alongside Rock (above left). “He was very weak at that point,” Rock says. “But once he got his energy going, he was as feisty as ever. The crowd were talking amongst themselves, and Lou told them all to shut up! And they did!”
John’s of Bleecker Street, 278 Bleecker St., between Jones and Cornelia streets
This was a favorite haunt of Reed’s for years. “Lou used to come in for pizza and Diet Coke all the time up until about two years ago, then it would be more sporadic,” manager Mike Frank tells The Post. “I used to wait tables here about 15 years ago and I was afraid to even talk to him, because he seemed so serious, but finally I did. I started talking to him about [his album] ‘The Blue Mask,’ and his face kind of lit up. I think he was surprised I even knew it. I realized he didn’t take himself too seriously.”
Corner of 125th Street and Lexington Avenue
Of all the New York City locations in Lou Reed’s lyrics, this is the most famous. In the Velvet Underground song “I’m Waiting for the Man,” it’s mentioned as the spot where Reed meets his heroin dealer with “$26 in my hand.” The corner is a place of pilgrimage for Reed fanatics — although the only man you’re likely to wait for on that corner now is the pharmacist behind the counter at the Duane Reade.
St. Ann’s Warehouse, 29 Jay St., between Plymouth and John streets
In 2006, Reed played his 1973 album “Berlin” at the Brooklyn venue and was filmed by director and friend Julian Schnabel. “There was a sense of redemption with those shows,” Schnabel says. “He loved the movie and he, [Lou’s wife] Laurie [Anderson] and I watched it together the Friday before he died at his home in Springs.”
Lou’s childhood home, 35 Oakfield Ave., Freeport, Long Island
Reed grew up in Freeport and returned there for a spell after quitting the Velvet Underground in August 1970. For a short while, he even became a typist at his father’s accounting firm before returning to music and launching a solo career in 1972.