Patti Smith

[Hugh Weldon]

I've just recalled from my foggy memory the fact that I saw her at Newcastle City Hall in 1978 and she was quite inspiring.

But then again nearly everyone I saw in 1978 was quite inspiring. Except Subway Sect.

[Chris P]

But "Peace and Noise" was awful almost beyond reckoning.

is it really that bad? are there not a few good tracks on it

[Chris P]

Edited

[Adam Blake]

The best thing about "Peace and Noise" is undoubtedly the cover. As I recall, it was put together from stuff that was left on the cutting room floor after "Gone Again". I may be wrong (it's entirely possible).

Interesting that Patti didn't play a single song that was less than 30 years old when I saw her the other week. For myself, I could have done with "Wing" or "Summer Cannibals" but, hey... She's an ardest, as Des used to say.

[Chris P]

hey... She's an ardest

but she do look back. (To misquote his Bobness)

[Chris P]

"After a prolonged retirement, Patti Smith returned to action in 1996 with Gone Again. It was recorded after she suffered the loss of both her brother and her husband, Fred "Sonic" Smith, two losses so great that it's not surprising she is still exploring that pain on Peace and Noise, which quickly followed Gone Again in 1997. Patti had been working on Peace and Noise with Fred before his death, and its issues are appropriately more domestic than those on Gone Again. Throughout most of the record, she explores aging and raising children, trying to find a place for her family in the modern world while coming to terms with her aging rebelliousness. The music on Peace and Noise trims away the sonic bluster and anthemic rocking of Gone Again, preferring a sparse, piano-based musical foundation."
Stephen Thomas Erlewine

so some of the songs and themes on Peace and Noise predate Gone Again, the details of the recording sessions for both albums are more elusive

[Chris P]

Peace and Noise, how could anyone not enjoy this!?