Patti Smith - Land (1975-2002)

In some ways, singer-songwriter Patti Smith seems an unlikely choice for a full-bore anthology. After all, she's had only one charting single with "Because the Night." Even at that time, most people probably were more familiar with Gilda Radner's spot-on parody of her on Saturday Night Live than with Smith herself. Yet her influence both on the fledgling NYC punk scene and as a protofeminist poet renders her something of an American counterculture icon. As such, Land (1975-2002) serves to frame an uncompromising career spanning four decades. Split over two discs and featuring 31 tracks and almost two-and-a-half hours of music, Land begins with a survey of Smith's studio albums, relying most heavily on 1978's Easter. All the greats are here--"Dancing Barefoot," "People Have the Power," "Gloria," "Rock 'n' Roll Nigger," "Frederick," and of course, "Because the Night," plus a newly recorded version of Prince's "When Doves Cry," one of two songs cut specifically for this collection. The second disc is where fans--who were solicited for track selection input via gigs and the Web--get the goods. Early demos, among them 1974's coveted "Piss Factory," plus two other pre-Horses recordings, "Redondo Beach" and "Distance Fingers," kick things off. What follows is a batch of previously unreleased live recordings--"Dead City," "Spell," "Boy Cried Wolf"--most captured during a 2001 tour through the U.S. and Europe, and studio outtakes. Smith herself helped remaster the recordings while stacking the accompanying booklet with fans' photos and the like. Land probably won't spark a Smith renaissance, but loyalists can marvel at an artist who's never turned a fast buck by easing up on the sweat, tears, hunger, and integrity that inform every one of these tracks. --Kim Hughes Amazon.com

P-A-T-T-I Glorious

Ragged yellowed pages of Rolling Stone magazine has Patti Smith reviewing LPS of the late '60's. Guess who she liked? She was erudite and passionate and had an eye/ear towards the East Coast/Mid West determination of harder/faster/and damn all else. While others smoked a pipe and thoughfully through the dribble that passed for poetry, Patti wrote and published. And loved Rock And Roll as romance heartfelt hatred and held fast.

A young woman poet spewing Piss Factory with a new look, not a '70's stylish swirl skirt, now a torn t-shirt, thin as a blink, and tearin' up the world like she meant it.

This two CD set jumps arounds like Patti does on stage, except there doesn't seem purpose on these CDs. There is no time line, the CDs leap from mid 70's late 70's early 80's and beyond with no true historical perspective. It misses beloved tracks like "So Ya Wanna Be a RnR Star". The enclosed booklet helps and has great photos, but Patti warrants a better retrospective.

Patti deserves a box set of her first four Lps "Horses" "Radio Ethiopia"
"Easter" and "Wave" LPs that set RnR on edge and paved the way for so-called Punk New Wave. Include the demos and lost tracks that are on this CD set + the fun flip 45 sides like "Frederic (Disco Version)"
and ya got yrself a Patti Smith land mine. September 17, 2008

Album review

Aside from the occasional song on the radio this was my first real exposure to Patti Smith and I have been impressed. Disk 1 is especially good, disk 2 is more out there but is worth a listen. July 13, 2007

Nice concept; good set of songs

Patti Smith burst onto the rock and roll scene in the mid-1970s. Her album "Horses" created a sensation, just as "Easter." The concept for this album is rather intriguing. CD # 1 is a standard set of "greatest hits." CD # 2 is replete with demos, live performances, and alternate versions of songs, adding an interesting dimension to the 2 CD set. Smith has a unique voice and style; if one's eyes were blindfolded and one of her cuts was played, you would know who was singing, without having to depend on looking at the CD being played. Some reflections on the collection:

"Gloria" is a great Van Morrison song, but Smith makes it her own. Among the earliest lines is the great set of words:

"Jesus died for someone's sins--
But not mine."

Her unique voice makes this a fascinating cover. When she spells out "G-L-O-R-I-A," the effect is compelling.

"Because the Night" (a Smith-Springsteen song) is one of her more accessible songs. The backing instrumentation is terrific. Some great lines:

"Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to us. . .
Love is an angel disguised as lust."

"Ain't It Strange" features nice guitar work. Her almost hypnotic voice holds the listener's attention well.

"When Doves Cry" features some interesting lines, such as:

"The sweat on your body";
"They feel the heat between you and me";
"Why must we scream at one another,
This is what it sounds like when doves cry."

The simple instrumentation makes this cut awfully effective in counterpoints to Smith's singing.

The demo version of "Redondo Beach" is kind of neat. The version isn't quite the same as the final recorded effort, but it is nonetheless interesting. Some poignant lines:

"A girl washed up on Redondo Beach.
Poor little girl, everyone cried,
She was a victim of sweet suicide."

Not uplifting, but an intriguing, dark song.

There is also a live version of "Birdland." The spare instrumentation works well; the song lasts over 9 minutes but the time moves by quickly.

Finally, there is a song that does not show up in the printed material. The Broadway song, "Tomorrow," is sung for Smith's mother. An interesting live version that is simply lots of fun.

So, all in all, a worthwhile 2 CD set. One gets to listen to some of the best of her standard works, as well as live versions and demo versions of others.
May 19, 2007

Patti Smith: Punk, Poet, and Pee Fetishist

No compilation could ever serve as a substitute for Horses (1975) and Easter (1978), Patti Smith's two masterpieces. But since her work has been spotty in the nearly three decades since the release of the latter, the 2-disc collection Land: 1975-2002 is very much welcome. Rock fans are right to revere Smith for the quality and influence of her early work, but just as right to be skeptical of most of her other records. Still, an artist such as her could never really make an entirely bad record, so her releases between 1979 and 2000 are sprinkled with quite a few worthy tracks.

Not surprisingly, Horses and Easter are the best represented discs on Land. In a few cases, however, the tracks are presented in demo or live form. The most effective use of a live version is that of "25th Floor", which was recorded in the same year that its parent album (Easter) was released. The many other live tracks on Land are from 2001 shows, and originally appeared - with the exception of "Birdland" (from Horses) and "Notes to the Future" - on her late-90s and 2000 albums. Among the highlights from her lesser studio albums are Radio Ethiopia's "Pissing In A River", Wave's "Dancing Barefoot" and "Frederick" (dedicated to her beloved Fred "Sonic" Smith), Dream of Life's "Paths That Cross", "Summer Cannibals" from Gone Again, and "Glitter in Their Eyes" from Gung Ho. Of particular interest is Smith's 1974 debut single "Piss Factory". This is a worthy inclusion for its historical value, but equally so for its musical quality. On the other end of the spectrum is a new studio recording, "Higher Learning", a lengthy but solid jam featuring fine clarinet work by Smith. Other noteworthy inclusions are a new cover of "When Doves Cry", the U.K. B-side "Come Back Little Sheba", and "Wander I Go", featuring Tom Verlaine and Jeff Buckley on electric and acoustic guitar, respectively.

Overall, Land ably covers Patti Smith's first 27 years as a recording artist. As with any collection, fans and critics can bicker over what is and is not included. My only complaint is in the latter category: "Walkin' Blind", from the excellent Dead Man Walking soundtrack, would have been a nice addition to the second disc. But even though the second disc lacks this song, and even though Disc 2 consists of lesser-known songs, the fact is that both discs are equally worthwhile. To forgo Easter in favor of Land would be a mistake, but to forgo Horses would be a crime. Once one has those, however, Land can pretty much bring the listener up to speed. (And just so you know, her 2004 release Trampin' was her best album since 1978.) April 24, 2007

Land my review

Patti Smith is a poet a mucisian a great songwiter she has a great band. Discone has songs like Pissing in a river intense song Summer Cannibals clever catchy song Ghost dance great Glitter in their eyes. disc two has piss factory Renaldo beach Distant fingers Wander i go Deadcity Boy cried wolf great song good spoken part all the live tracks are good Higher learning is great with agreat clarennet solo and steady drums Land is a great collection it blew me away. March 31, 2007

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