User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 14
  2. Negative: 1 out of 14

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  1. Cosmo
    Jun 2, 2005
    10
    Makes me want to dance! The most sensual party album of the decade
  2. erat
    Feb 10, 2003
    7
    Vanity is beautiful.
  3. EnriqueR
    Dec 9, 2006
    10
    Lou Reed is a classic. Classics should be listened, not criticised...Is a great albuem, for Reed fans and for Poe fans...and if you have anything bad to say, first you should listen "The Velvet Underground and Nico" and remember who Lou Reed is...
  4. Jul 16, 2019
    10
    The gorgeous epitome of Lou's lifelong literary ambitions, perfectly culminating his career on such a fitting dark note. Truly beautiful work of art, a timeless classic for myself and the likes.
Metascore
54

Mixed or average reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 23
  2. Negative: 5 out of 23
  1. Of course it's pretentious, but the blend of reading-group rock, goth showtunes and gold standard hamming from Willem Dafoe and Steve Buscemi is surprisingly compelling after a while.
  2. Blender
    40
    The format is so rambling and fragmented that is serves neither Poe the storyteller noor Reed the songwriter. [#13, p.97]
  3. While that approach might have worked well on stage, on disc it's deeply unsatisfying.