20. The Shine in Their Eyes (2000)
Not all the politics on Gung Ho landed right – Strange Messengers is unbearably awkward – but the sparkle in their eyes is a reason for the younger generation not to get caught up in materialism, is impressively perfect and powerful, and is abetted by the presence on the guitar of her old sparring partner, Television’s Tom Verlaine.
19. Don’t Say Anything (1997)
Like its predecessor, Gone Again, Peace and Noise was an album of loss and mourning. Don’t say that doesn’t sound like a note to self, a concerted effort to shake off the torpor of grief and start over: “I’m straightening up, I’m getting better, I’m doing something, I’m getting a chance to face the facts.”
18. Space Monkey (1978)
Streetwise Rock’n’roll Strut, married to lyrics that mix an alien invasion or perhaps a Simian revenge used in space exploration with French actor Pierre Clement. If Easter was Smith’s most commercial album to date, you never forgot you were in the presence of a singular figure.
17. Paths of the Cross (1988)
Written for Robert Mapplethorpe after the death of his partner Sam Wagstaff, Beautiful Roads That Cross offers a warm, optimistic view of eternity as “the glow we will all know.” Considering that Mapplethorpe was also ill—he died within a year of the song’s release—you suspect Smith was equally involved in preparing for his loss.
16. Frederick (1979)
The wave received a mixed reaction – its poppy smoothness was seen as proof that Smith’s heart was no longer in it – but it has grown in stature over the years. Frederick, the opener, is simply a fantastic, carefree declaration of love that sounds almost frenzied with excitement.
15. Privilege (Free Me) (1978)
In the same way that the opening track of Horses transformed Van Morrison’s Gloria, so Privilege took the title song from the 1967 film about a pop star turned false Messiah and interpolated it with Psalm 23. The result was a song that seemed to speak loudly about Smith’s increasingly complex and troubled attitude toward fame.
14. Redondo Beach (1975)
Upon release, Rolling Stone called Horses “as original as they come.” Of course, I’m trying to think of another song like Redondo Beach, the somber tale of a girl’s suicide on a beach patronized by gays and women, a bedrock of unbridled reggae-infused fun.
13. Dream of Life (1988)
For an album with a very mixed reputation among Patti Smith fans—not everyone likes her straightforward, distinctly ’80s-tinged rock approach—Dream of Life has a significant number of great songs. The title track is a case in point: think of it as an older, more sober relationship, because the night.
12. Mother Rose (2004)
A reflection on the death of Smith’s mother, written from the perspective of her daughter, who is now a mother herself, it’s the focus of Trampin’s song. “It’s not a mournful song… hopefully a really beautiful song,” she explained after its release. It’s actually quite lovely: gentle and atmospheric.
11. This is the Girl (2012)
Jau no paša sākuma Smits bija liels, rakstot par saviem mirušajiem varoņiem. Amy Winehouse aiziešana viņu pievienoja zaudētās iedvesmas panteonam. Šī ir meitenei, kurai ir mājiens par Winehouse retro dvēseles skaņu-vai varbūt Smita mīļoto Doo-Wop-par to; Lirika ietekmē, maiga un māte.
10. Gone Again (1996)
Šī bija pēdējā dziesma, ko Smits rakstīja kopā ar savu vīru Fredu “Sonic” Smitu, pirms viņa nāves-notikums, kas to pārveidoja no Paeanas uz pamatiedzīvotāju amerikāņu kultūru par euloģiju tā līdzautoram un meditācijai par dzīves pārejošu: “Pelnu lietus / nāves paša gultas / cilvēka radniecība / vējā.”
9. Bezmaksas nauda (1975)
Tik tuvu, cik zirgi nokļuva Punk Rock, kā pasaule to saprastu-apskatiet Penetration 1978. gada vāku, lai dzirdētu, cik viegli tā trīs akordu rifs pielāgojās nākamajai skaņas veidnei-ar izcili prozaiskiem dziesmu tekstiem par loterijas uzvarēšanu. Tā pakāpeniska tempa veidošanās ir saviļņojoša.
8. Piss Factory (1974)
Hey Joe dekonstruētais vāks par Smita debijas singla A pusi bija lielisks, taču B puse ir kaut kas cits: autobiogrāfiski provinces ennui, kas uzstādīta uz ģitāru un klavierēm, tās kulmināciju izpaužas izpausmei-“Es došos uz šo vilcienu un doties uz Ņujorkas pilsētu / es būšu kāds!” – uzmundrinošs un maisot.
7. Zeme: Zirgi/tūkstoš deju zeme/La Mer (de) (1975)
Deviņas ar pusi neticamas minūtes, kas apvieno ģērbtuvju izvarošanas sāgu, vecā R&B standarta garāžas joslas vāku-vislabāk pazīstama Vilsona Piketa 1966. gada versijā-atsauces uz kokaīnu, Smita iecienīto dzejnieku (“Go Rimbaud!”) Un “iespēju jūra”. Tas izklausās kā nekas cits, tomēr joprojām šūpojas laika stilā.
6. Cilvēkiem ir spēks (1988)
Smita lielajai pēdējās dienas himnai ir bijusi ilga pēcnāve: tā ir parādījusies kā U2 tiešraides mūzika un 2004. gada tēma Balsojiet par pārmaiņu kampaņu ASV. Tas ir acīmredzami, kāpēc: tā draņķība ir optimistiska un efektīva, tā vēstījums-“tautai ir spēks izpirkt muļķu darbu”-daudzgadīgi mierina.
5. Zem Dienvidu Krusta (1996)
Ārkārtas valsis-laika nosūtīšana no bēdu dziļuma, Smita balss kaut kur starp iedziļināšanos un kliedzienu, kas pakāpeniski veidojas no nožēlojamas līdz sava veida katarsei-“Crossover Boy!” – atbalsta spokains ģitāras troksnis un ēterisks vokāls (pēdējais, ko ierakstīja Džefs Buklijs).
4. Pissing in upē (1976)
Pēc zirgu eksplozijas, kas gamekanalizēja, tā nesadalīto turpinājumu, radio Etiopiju, dalītu viedokli. Neskatoties uz tās sajaukto stilistisko aizraušanos, vienīgā lieta, par kuru šķita vienisprātis, bija tas, ka mīzt upes grautā, kvēlojošajā un arvien izmisīgākajā mīlestības attēlā, kas ir skābs, bija lēni degošs šedevrs.
Smith has claimed that growing up, she thought the coolest thing was “to be an artist’s mistress.” The song’s catchy tune—later covered by U2, Pearl Jam, Shakespeare’s Sister, and The Mission—was inspired by Jeanne Hébuterne , Modigliani’s muse and mistress, who died by suicide two days after the artist’s death.
2. Because of the Night (1978)
An unfinished Bruce Springsteen song that Smith finished because producer Jimmy Iovine parachuted in for Easter in search of a big hit. It deservedly became a single, partly because it was the Smiths’ most straightforward rock anthem, but mostly because it’s an incredible, irresistible song.
1 Gloria: Excelsis Deo (1975)
Smith’s debut album opened with one of the most famous opening lyrics in pop history. But “Jesus Died for Someone’s Sins, But Not Mine” was far from the most radical thing about Smith’s rethinking of their garage-rock standard. It turned it inside out, transforming it from a song about male sexual desire to one about sexual desire from which men are excluded, sung in a voice unlike anything anyone had heard before: brilliantly cool and rugged, but distinctly female. It was as if Smith was creating a new space—“an atmosphere where anything is allowed,” as another lyric put it—before our ears.
The 50th Anniversary Edition of Horses is released on Legacy Records on October 10. The Horses tour of the US and Europe begins on October 6 at the 3Arena, Dublin
