Perfect Night Live in London

The first sign that the live acoustic set Perfect Night is going to be dodgy is the liner notes, where Reed enthuses over the"Feedbucker"--a device that wipes out feedback. This from the man who recorded"I Heard Her Call My Name." Reed walks-and-talks through 15 of his songs with the absolute confidence of a man convinced he's a great urban poet. The problem is that he's only that sometimes:"The Kids" and"Vicious" come out just fine, but later material sounds flatter and preachier than ever--reviving"The Original Wrapper" is a mistake any way you want to cut it. Reed isn't just a lyricist, he's a songwriter, and reducing his music to functional accompaniment doesn't do his songs justice.