4 Things to Know About Lou Reed’s Pre-Velvet Underground Songwriting Job

He wrote knockoff songs for budget compilations Lou Reed worked as a staff songwriter and session musician at Pickwick Records, a label that produced cheap, trend-chasing knockoff albums.

The work was unglamorous but paid the bills Reed cranked out formulaic songs to mimic current hits, a far cry from his later artistic work with the Velvet Underground.

It taught him how to write quickly and commercially The job forced Reed to produce songs on demand, giving him discipline and an understanding of pop structure he later used.

One of those knockoff songs became a Velvet Underground track The song “The Ostrich,” written for Pickwick, was later reworked and performed by the Velvet Underground.