By Joe Swiacki, Horsham, PA

It was a summer in late ’80s (probably ‘87 or ‘88) when a good friend of fine and my girlfriend (she’s now my wife) had tickets to see Lou Reed at the Mann Music Center. We had all been suffering through a classic Philadelphia heat wave — a full week of 90 degree temperatures and 90 percent humidity. As we drove to the concert, a huge thunderstorm blew through the area. Once the storm passed, the sun came out and magically all the humidity was gone. It become a beautiful summer night. Lou took to the stage playing great and look fit. After the first couple of songs, he said “Its a great night for rock n’ roll….” and proceeded to give us a great show covering his entire career. I don’t think he said another word to audience that night, but he captured what we were all thinking. Many times on summer nights at a concert when the weather is perfect, your friends are with you and the music is right, I think of Lou and that night at the Mann.