Mistrial (album)

Mistrial is the fourteenth solo studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed, released in April 1986 by RCA Records two years after his previous studio album, New Sensations (1984). Fernando Saunders and Reed produced the album.

Mistrial
Studio album by Lou Reed
Released	April 1986 (1986-04)[1]
Recorded	1986
Studio	Power Station, New York City
Genre	Pop rock new wave funk
Length	39:12
Label	RCA Victor
Producer	Lou Reed Fernando Saunders
Lou Reed chronology
City Lights (1985) Mistrial (1986) New York (1989)
Lou Reed studio album chronology
New Sensations (1984) Mistrial (1986) New York (1989)
Singles from Mistrial
"The Original Wrapper" Released: April 1986[2] "No Money Down" Released: June 1986

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Chicago Tribune	[4]
Robert Christgau	B[5]
Kerrang!	[6]
Rolling Stone	(favorable)[7]

Mistrial peaked at No. 47 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and at No. 69 on the UK Albums Chart. Two singles were released from the album: "The Original Wrapper" and "No Money Down" with the latter being the only single to chart, peaking at No. 75 on the ARIA Charts. A music video directed by rock duo Godley & Creme, was created for "No Money Down" that featured an animatronic Lou Reed, and a music video was also created for "The Original Wrapper" which features time-lapse photography of New Yorkers on the street.

Panamanian singer Rubén Blades provided backing vocals on two tracks, "I Remember You" and "Tell It to Your Heart", while punk rock musician Jim Carroll sang backing vocals on one, "Video Violence".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Lou Reed.

Side one

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Mistrial"	3:20
2.	"No Money Down"	3:09
3.	"Outside"	3:02
4.	"Don't Hurt a Woman"	3:59
5.	"Video Violence"	5:35

Side two

No.	Title	Length
6.	"Spit It Out"	3:39
7.	"The Original Wrapper"	3:37
8.	"Mama's Got a Lover"	4:12
9.	"I Remember You"	3:13
10.	"Tell It to Your Heart"	5:08
Total length:		39:12

Personnel

Adapted from the Mistrial liner notes.^[8]

Musicians

• Lou Reed – vocals; lead guitar; rhythm guitar
• Fernando Saunders – rhythm guitar on "Tell It to Your Heart" and "Don't Hurt a Woman", bass guitar, synthesizer, programming, piano on "I Remember You", percussion on "Outside", backing vocals
• Eddie Martinez – rhythm guitar on "No Money Down", "Don't Hurt a Woman" and "The Original Wrapper"
• Rick Bell – tenor saxophone on "No Money Down"
• J.T. Lewis – drums on "Mistrial", "Don't Hurt a Woman" and "Tell It to Your Heart", percussion on "No Money Down"
• Sammy Merendino – programming on "Don't Hurt a Woman" and "Tell It to Your Heart", percussion on "No Money Down", "Video Violence" and "The Original Wrapper"
• Jim Carroll – backing vocals on "Video Violence"
• Rubén Blades – backing vocals on "I Remember You" and "Tell It to Your Heart"

Production and artwork

• Lou Reed – producer
• Fernando Saunders – producer
• Bruce Lampcov – mixing
• Sylvia Reed – cover design

Charts

Chart(1986)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[9]	47
Dutch Album Chart	42
UK Albums Chart[10]	69
US Billboard 200[11]	47

See also

• List of albums released in 1986
• Lou Reed's discography