Lou Reed died on the 27th of October 2013, at the age of 71, born in 1942

My brother had his birthday that day, he turned 42, born on the 27th of October 1971.

Lou Reed received electroshock treatment as a teenager, my brother is a diagnosed schizophrenic living in psychiatric hospital.

He claims they keep him there because he holds a secret no one is supposed to know.

I know what it is. It’s all in the dates and numbers.

Sometimes I wish he was more like the ‘hero’ of Swordfishtrombones:

“Well he packed up all his
expectations he lit out for California
with a flyswatter banjo on his knee
with a lucky tiger in his angel hair
and benzedrine for getting there
they found him in a eucalyptus tree…”

Did my brother give me ‘The Asylum Years’ (Tom Waits, 1986) for Christmas when we were still teenagers? I think he did.

He will never be released from psychiatric hospital. I wish I could whisper in his ear it’s not that bad, because:

‘…I’d rather stay here
With all the madmen
Than perish with the sad men roaming free
And I’d rather play here
With all the madmen
For I’m quite content they’re all as sane
As me’ (David Bowie, All the madmen)

Now I will listen to Distant Sky (Nick Cave, 2016) and think of him