Joseph Arthur came to prominence as a musician-- he's also a painter, when Peter Gabriel released his debut album, Big City Secrets in 1997. Today he released Lou, his own take on 12 Lou Reed tracks. The video above, Joseph's cover of Lou's classic "Pale Blue Eyes," is a C&L Late Night Music Club exclusive-- at least for tonight. I flipped out when I saw the clip today and immediately asked him if he'd let me debut it here-- and if he'd play an Alan Grayson fundraiser. We'll get back to you on that second request when he gets back to me.
Tomorrow Joseph is playing Theatre Petit Champlain in Quebec City and on the 22nd he's heading over to Spain, Brussels, Paris, Utrecht and London. He'll be back in the U.S., on the West Coast, starting in Seattle's Columbia City Theater on June 5.
Anyway, "Pale Blue Eyes" was a gorgeous Velvet Underground song Lou wrote in the late '60s. A lot of people have covered it before Joseph, including Patti Smith, Sheryl Crow, Hole and REM. This version, from Patti's amazing Swedish bootleg had always been my favorite.
