Yesterday we reported with great sadness that icon, innovator, inspiration Lou Reed passed away at the age of 71. Unsurprisingly, a number of Reed’s friends and fans have since shared their thoughts about the life and death of one of the industry’s all time greatest.

Longtime Reed friend and collaborator David Bowie posted last night on Facebook, “It is with great sadness that we report the death of Lou Reed who died today aged 71 … He was a master.” Reed and Bowie’s careers often intertwined, most notably with Reed’s landmark album Transformer which the Thin White Duke co-produced.

“The world has lost a fine songwriter and poet,” John Cale posted on his Facebook page. “I’ve lost my school-yard buddy.” Cale, along with Reed, Maureen “Moe” Tucker and Sterling Morrison (who passed away in 1995) helped changed the face of music as members of The Velvet Underground.

Cale co-founded the Velvets with Reed back in 1965 and although their collaboration was short lived (Cale left the band in 1968) their influence will be felt for decades to come.

Morrissey expressed how Reed has influenced in a heartfelt blog post, writing, “Thank God for those, like Lou, who move within their own laws, otherwise imagine how dull the world would be.”

I can go on and on and on about how much Lou Reed meant to his peers and people like me, but I’ll just leave you with this video and beg you to spend the rest of the day, year, eternity exploring Reed’s incredible contributions to art, music and life.

What are your thoughts on the passing of Lou Reed? Let us know in the comments below!