Why Don't You Smile Now: Lou Reed at Pickwick Records 1964 - 1965

Light in the AHc, in coopera=on with Laurie Anderson and the Lou Reed Archive, is thrilled to announce the forthcoming release of Why Don’t You Smile Now: Lou Reed at Pickwick Records 1964-65. Due out September 27th, the latest installment in LITA’s cri=cally acclaimed Lou Reed Archive Series is a compila=on of pop songs penned by Reed during his mid-60s s=nt as a staff songwriter for the long-defunct label Pickwick Records. The compila=on follows on the heels of Lou Reed’s Hudson River Wind Medita=ons (2023) and Words & Music, May 1965 (2022).

One of the most original and innova=ve figures in music history, Reed (1942-2013) first gained recogni=on as co-founder and frontman of the massively influen=al Velvet Underground. Over the course of his five-decade career, the two-=me Rock & Roll Hall of Famer brought his singular vision to an eclec=c expanse of musical endeavors, including era-defining albums like 1972’s Transformer and wildly experimental works like the 1975 avant-garde noise classic Metal Machine Music. But before establishing himself as an enduringly iconic singer, songwriter, musician, and poet, Reed got his start as an in-house songwriter (and occasional session guitarist/vocalist) for Pickwick Records—a label specializing in sound-alike recordings that emulated the major pop hits of the day. Encompassing everything from garagerock and girl-group pop to blue-eyed soul and teen-idol balladry, Reed’s output for Pickwick ul=mately offers a fascina=ng early glimpse at his ever-evolving and truly limitless ar=stry.

The album has been restored and remastered by GRAMMY®-nominated mastering engineer John Baldwin. Both the 2xLP & CD edi=ons feature in-depth booklets with unseen photos, liner notes by Richie Unterberger (renowned music journalist and author of such acclaimed =tles as White Light/White Heat: The Velvet Underground day-by-day), and an essay by Lenny Kaye (the legendary guitarist, PaH Smith Group co-founder, writer, producer, and curator of seminal garage-rock anthology Nuggets). The double-LP package is designed by mul=-GRAMMY®-winning ar=st Masaki Koike and pressed at world-renowned plant Op=mal (Germany). A special color vinyl edi=on is pressed on “Oxblood” wax (A/B side) and “Gold” wax (C/D side). This release marks the first official anthology of Lou Reed’s work for Pickwick Records and features rari=es, cult classics (The Primi=ves’ “The Ostrich”), & previously unreleased material (The Beachnuts’ “Sad, Lonely Orphan Boy”). 

The Primi=ves - The Ostrich;

The Beachnuts - Cycle Annie;

The Hi-Lifes - I'm Gonna Fight;

The Hi-Lifes - Soul City;

Ronnie Dickerson - Oh No Don't Do It;

Ronnie Dickerson - Love Can Make You Cry;

The Hollywoods - Teardrop in the Sand;

The Roughnecks - You're Driving Me Insane;

The Primi=ves - Sneaky Pete;

Terry Philips - Wild One;

Spongy and the Dolls - Really - Really - Really - Really - Really - Really Love;

The Foxes - Soul City;

The J Brothers - Ya Running but I'll Getcha;

Beverley Ann - We Got Trouble;

The All Night Workers - Why Don't You Smile;

Jeannie Larimore - Johnny Won't Surf No More;

Robertha Williams - Tell Mamma Not to Cry;

Robertha Williams - Maybe Tomorrow;

Terry Philips - Flowers for the Lady;

Terry Philips - This Rose;

The Surfsiders - Surfin';

The Surfsiders - Lille Deuce Coupe;

The Beachnuts - Sad Lonely Orphan Boy;

The Beachnuts - I've Got a Tiger in My Tank;

Ronnie Dickerson - What About Me