---
title: Mike Rathke
description: Mike Rathke, Lou Reed’s principal guitarist from New York (1989), who played beside Sarth Calhoun in Reed’s band in 2008 and 2009, in a trio at the Whitney, and on “Solsbury Hill.”
url: https://www.sarth.net/conspirators/mike-rathke/
credit: Mike Rathke and Sarth Calhoun played together in Lou Reed’s band on the spring 2008 U.S. tour and at Lollapalooza 2009, as a trio with Reed at the Whitney Museum on June 23, 2009, and on Reed’s “Solsbury Hill” (Rathke, additional guitar; Calhoun, additional programming).
author: Sarth Calhoun
---
[Conspirators](/conspirators/) / Mike Rathke

Conspirator

# Mike Rathke

Lou Reed’s guitarist since *New York*. We played together in Lou’s band, as a trio at the Whitney, and on “Solsbury Hill.”

> Reed performed an amazing set including ‘Dirty Blvd.’ and ‘Who Am I’ with Mike Rathke on guitar and Sarth Calhoun on electronic processing.
> 
> [loureed.com, June 25, 2009](https://web.archive.org/web/20091014115819/http://www.loureed.com/00/archivexml.php), on the Whitney Museum opening

Mike Rathke is an American guitarist who was Lou Reed’s principal guitarist from the *New York* album (1989), on which he plays guitar and shares the mixing credit, and who co-wrote five songs on *Magic and Loss* (1992) with Reed; his credits run through *Perfect Night: Live in London* (1998) and *Animal Serenade* (2004). In a [PBS American Masters interview](https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/archive/interview/mike-rathke/) he recalls meeting Reed the day after his guitars were stolen, when Reed handed him a guitar, and about ten years of writing music to Reed’s lyrics.

## Lou Reed’s band, a trio, and a record

He was one of the two guitarists, with [Steve Hunter](/conspirators/steve-hunter/), in the band around Lou when I joined for the [spring 2008 U.S. tour](/conspiracies/lou-reed-spring-2008-tour/), and at [Lollapalooza 2009](/transmissions/lou-reed-live-at-lollapalooza-2009/). On June 23, 2009 the three of us played the opening of the Persol exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art as a trio: Lou, Mike on guitar, and me on electronic processing. We share a credit on Lou’s recording of Peter Gabriel’s “[Solsbury Hill](/transmissions/solsbury-hill/)”: additional guitar by him, additional programming by me.

The credit: Mike Rathke and Sarth Calhoun played together in Lou Reed’s band on the spring 2008 U.S. tour and at Lollapalooza 2009, as a trio with Reed at the Whitney Museum on June 23, 2009, and on Reed’s “Solsbury Hill” (Rathke, additional guitar; Calhoun, additional programming).

Left to right: Rob Wasserman, Mike Rathke, Lou Reed, Sarth Calhoun, Tony “Thunder” Smith, John Zorn, Steve Hunter, Kevin Hearn. Highline Ballroom, May 5, 2008. Named by Sarth Calhoun, September 23, 2026. Photo: Mark McGauley.

![Lou Reed’s band on a club stage under red curtains, left to right: Rob Wasserman, Mike Rathke, Lou Reed, Sarth Calhoun, Tony “Thunder” Smith, John Zorn, Steve Hunter, Kevin Hearn.](/images/mwm-5113.jpg)

Lou Reed’s band at the Highline Ballroom, New York, May 5, 2008, the last night of the spring tour, with John Zorn. Photo: Mark McGauley.

The profile is from public sources, linked where they appear. What we made is the record on this site and the sources cited above.