Dinner is Served

A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a State Dinner

Lou Reed and band performing on stage (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

Musician Lou Reed performs at a state dinner in honor of Czech Republic President Vaclav Havel September 16, 1998. (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

Musician Lou Reed performs at a state dinner in honor of Czech Republic President Vaclav Havel September 16, 1998. (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

Lou Reed

Bill Clinton speaking to Lou Reed (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

U.S. President Bill Clinton thanks musician Lou Reed for performing at a state dinner September 16, 1998. (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

U.S. President Bill Clinton thanks musician Lou Reed for performing at a state dinner September 16, 1998. (© Richard Ellis/Alamy)

Inspired choice. The singer-songwriter and guitarist rocked a 1998 state dinner for Czech Republic President Vaclav Havel. Reed, a founding member of the Velvet Underground, had earlier inspired the Czech people’s Velvet Revolution, which ended years of communism, according to the Washington Post. Havel had requested Reed, and after the set, President Bill Clinton said to the audience, “If you had as much fun as I did just now … give President Havel all the credit.”

Lou Reed performs "Sweet Jane." (William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum)

Lou Reed performs "Sweet Jane." (William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum)

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