Barenaked Ladies singer-keyboardist Kevin Hearn sometimes can't believe he has Lou Reed playing on his fifth solo album, Havana Winter (named after Hearn's five-year-old daughter), which was released earlier this summer.
"I know it's weird -- we're friends," said a smiling Hearn.
To backtrack, Hearn and Reed met on the phone a decade ago through the head of their mutual record label. After Hearn went into the hospital in 1999 for a bone-marrow transplant, he got an e-mail from Reed.
"It said, 'Hi Kevin, it's Lou. I hope you get back to your music soon.'"
Reed was eventually handed a copy of one of Hearn's previous solo albums and he and his longtime band members -- bassist Fernando Saunders and guitarist Mike Rathke -- became fans.
And so Hearn eventually flew Rathke up to Toronto to play on Havana Winter.
"...Lou invited me down shortly after to audition for him," Hearn said.
All of which led to Reed playing on Hearn's album and a continuing friendship.
