History Highlight:

Today in 2013, Velvet Underground frontman Lou Reed died at the age of 71. An admitted hard drinker and drug user for many years, he underwent a liver transplant in Cleveland in April 2013.

The Velvet Underground was a commercial failure in the late 1960s, but the group gained a considerable cult following in the years since its demise and has gone on to become one of the most widely cited and influential bands of the era - hence Brian Eno's famous quote that while the Velvet Underground's debut album only sold 30,000 copies, "everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band."

After his departure from the group, Reed began a solo career in 1972. He had a hit the following year with "Walk on the Wild Side", but subsequently lacked the mainstream commercial success its chart status seemed to indicate. Reed was known for his distinctive deadpan voice, poetic lyrics and for pioneering and coining the term ostrich guitar tuning.

In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time included two albums by Reed as a solo artist, Transformer and Berlin

Also, Today In:

1960 - Ben E. King, one-time lead vocalist for The Drifters, recorded his first sides as a soloist, two of which turned out to be timeless classics and bestsellers: "Stand By Me" and "Spanish Harlem."

1963 - Peter Paul & Mary held down the two top spots on the pop album chart with In The Wind and Don't Think Twice, both of which featured Dylan songs.

1967 - "Come See About Me" by The Supremes was released.

1975 - Bruce Springsteen made the cover of both Time and Newsweek. The magazines were embarrassed, but the coverage further stoked the boss's career.

1979 - During a US tour Elton John collapsed on stage at Hollywood's Universal Amphitheatre suffering from exhaustion

Related

• Video: Lou Reed's final interview