Lou Reed recorded live on December 21, 1973, at Howard Stein’s Academy of Music in New York

One show, released in two albums…

LOU REED – ROCK’N’ROLL ANIMAL (REMASTERED)
«Intro/Sweet Jane» (Hunter, Reed) – 7:48
«Heroin» – 13:12
«How Do You Think It Feels» – 3:41
«Caroline Says I» – 4:06
«White Light/White Heat» – 4:55
«Lady Day» – 4:05
«Rock ‘n’ Roll» – 10:21

Lou Reed – vocals
Pentti «Whitey» Glan – drums, percussion
Steve Hunter – guitars
Prakash John – bass, vocals
Dick Wagner – guitar, vocal
Ray Colcord – keyboards

Recorded live on December 21, 1973, at Howard Stein’s Academy of Music in New York

Further excerpts from the same concert were released in 1975 as Lou Reed Live (between the remastered Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal and Lou Reed Live the entire show has been released, albeit in a different order than the original concert).

LOU REED LIVE (EXTENDED VERSIONS)
«Vicious» – 5:55
«Satellite of Love» – 6:03
«Walk on the Wild Side» – 4:51
«I’m Waiting for the Man» – 3:38
«Oh, Jim» – 10:40
«Sad Song» – 7:32

Lou Reed – vocals
Pentti «Whitey» Glan – drums, percussion
Steve Hunter – guitars
Prakash John – bass, vocals
Dick Wagner – guitar, vocal
Ray Colcord – keyboards
Rob Hegel — background vocals («Sad Song» only)

Recorded live on December 21, 1973, at Howard Stein’s Academy of Music in New York

This Lou Reed live album’s stereo mix differs from its counterpart in that guitarist Dick Wagner is heard on the left channel, and Steve Hunter is on the right; this arrangement is reversed on Rock ‘n’ Roll Animal.

ORIGINAL SETLIST

The show started with «Sweet Jane» as intro followed by «How Do You Think It Feels» and «Carolyn Says !» and «I’m Waiting For The Man» «Satellite Love» «Walk On The Wild Side» «Oh Jim» «Sad Song» «Heroin» «RocknRoll» «White Light/White Heat» and closed with «Vicious» …

That’s the way Lou Reed performed that show. It’s obvious that most of you are going to listen again to these albums in the correct order…

REVIEW BY Dorio Sept 12 2004 

A «two in one review» …  Had no choice but to review those 2 albums in the same article !

Those 2 albums are issued from the same concert during the same tour. «RocknRoll Animal» released in 1974, and «Lou Reed Live» released in 75; we are in 1973, and the Lou Reed  world tour had not been nicknamed «RocknRoll animal» yet, but it’s been Lou Reed’s way to present «Berlin (his Opus) to the public

For that 1973 world tour, Reed had put together a fantastic and very energic band they were all from Detroit and they all knew their business. The concept of the tour was to deliver «Berlin» to an eager public.

The rehearsals started in august 73 in Stockbridges  Massachussets.  As Reed had been musically brought up in the Warhol’s factory, he had become a master of manipulation and he knew how to bring the Hysteria element within his crew.

Very high on diverse drugs, Reed silently enjoyed it when all his staff, Manager, Musicians, Roadies and friends, fussed around his person. (megalomaniac ? well maybe) … Andy Warhol had found out the lights concept by himself: «What is needed» suggested the Pope of Pop» is to borrow the light effect conceived by Albert Speer» for what will later be known as the «Hitlerian ceremonies»: White light spots, (whiter than white) and with a tremendous intensity all focussed on Lou Reed on an immense black background.

And that’s what they did.  The Tour started on September 17 at the Paris Olympia, with eleven European dates to follow.  On stage, Lou Reed was wearing black leather. His face was a livid mask and he had an Afro. In Amsterdam, the bootlegers stroke, and realeased a Pirate album called «RocknRoll Animal» That made him laugh and «now here is a title for me» will he  declare.

Every nights, his big black Mercedes will take him to different venues, and every nights, he’ll arrive at the last moment. And his Roadies had to practically carry him up on stage where he had to stagger to reach the mike.

The tour was a colossal success thanks particularly to his guitarists who had found a way to «metallize» his repertoire…..

His band was driven by an tremendous rhythm section: the drummer Pentti Gian played ocasionally with Steppenwolf, and the bassist Prakash John, had just resigned from Funkadelic to be replaced by Bootsy Collins.

The Lead Guitarist Dick Wagner, had debuted with Frost, a band used to the «Grande Ballroom»…

Unable to play the Blues, Wagner, had played with the Detroit local elite: Ted Nugent, Wayne Kramer, Jim Mc Carty, Cub Coda: which whom he used to have regular «guitar-duels». And so that’s why Steve Hunter was the perfect counterpart: a veritable virtuose who loved to put danger in his technique.

Hunter, had once belonged to  Detroit (behind Mitch Ryder) and already in the old days he used to cover the Velvet Underground «RocknRoll» on a rather hard mode, and that’s been the option adopted from the beginning to the end of that mythic tour.  Every night the two guitarists will have guitar duels in front of eager crowds.

Lou Reed was taking all kind of drugs, and his roadies will confess: «he took everything coming his way: coke, speed, weed, valium and Johnny Walker Black Label. Especially speed and alcohlol, that was his thing» …

The Night of the Brussels concert, Lou Reed  miraculously escaped the overdose; after a 30 minutes concert they had to carry him backstage.

A mentor was despatched from New York in an effort to try to make him reduce his alcohol consommation: and the roadies had to hide bottles for him into the amps !  The English leg of the tour was on, and the Liverpool show had been a total triumph the rock critics will put it that way: «It’s been like a black mass into a Gothic Cathedral with Heroin as a God».

Comments of that kind will boost the «Berlin» album and found it’s place as number seven in the UK charts.

Back in the USA the «RocknRoll Animal» Tour will last untill the summer. Lou Reed had become a kind of hero …

On December 21 1973, Lou Reed recorded his New York concert at the Howard Stein Academy Of Music; an old building on 14th Avenue that’s been demolished by the promotors in 1992. The concert will be released in 2 albums and with a 12  months interval (RocknRoll Animal & Lou Reed Live) …

The recent CD reedition have added 2 missing tracks as bonus: ‘how Do You Think It Feels» and «Carolyn Says !»  Those among you who own in your discotheque «RocknRoll Animal» and «Lou Reed Live» can reconstitute the show. Anyway here is the order of the tracks as they have been played on that hot winter night:

It started with «Sweet Jane» as intro followed by «How Do You Think It Feels» and «Carolyn Says !» and «I’m Waiting For The Man» «Satellite Love» «Walk On The Wild Side» «Oh Jim» «Sad Song» «Heroin» «RocknRoll» «White Light/White Heat» and closed with «Vicious» …

During the tour the fact that Lou Reed absolutely refused to give any encores will give way to the inevitables riots …

Certain venues had been ransaked and destroyed.  And the fact that he pretended to inject himself a shoot of heroin while he sung «Heroin»  will be the occasion for the journalists to show the hatred the mainstream press had for him ……

As soon as it’s been released «RocknRoll Animal» will be a big success in the underground. That album has become one of the most loved live album in Rock history.  And as Lou Reed had fired the band after that tour they had been hired by Alice Cooper to record  «Welcome To My Nightmare» …

According to Setlist.fm the setlist was this, different from the one stated in this article… So, I don’t know which is the correct one.