From TFA: The album became Smith's biggest seller.


I believe numbers-wise it falls between Slim Whitman's Greatest Hits and Boxcar Willie: Retrospective.


/hate punk

Great album.

Great Song.

It's amazing how a word is wrong if a white says it.

:P

Armpit hair?

I guess that ends her fandom at Fark.

Did Marilyn Manson cover that song on the "Smells Like Children" album?

... and that's why no one know her.

/it's true you know

Please get completely off my lawn.

People know her. Maybe not tons of people, but influential people. Michael Stipe has said he was greatly inspired by her album "Horses."

And "Horses" is only "punk" if you're still living in the 70's. Back then, compared to most of the stuff on the radio (think of Fleetwood Mac, and the Eagles and the like) it sounded so raw and angry.

Listening to it with today's ears, you'll wonder why they ever called her "punk." "Horses" is a gorgeous album with lots of energy, and is still worth a listen, especially if you like female rock artists.

I never got around to buying "Easter" before I fell into my great poverty, so I don't know much about it.

Easter is a great record. My favorite of hers is Radio Ethiopia which was after Horses but before Easter.

I kind of fell out of touch with her after Wave, but I did listen to Twelve (the covers album she put out last year), and it was pretty good. Her cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is particularly grand... even with its banjo.

I saw her a couple of years ago at Latitude. Very uninspiring performance - far too much obnoxiouis punk posing for an old lady - and too much ranting about Palestine, all of which I agreed with, but didn't fancy listening to.

Her guitarist is friggin awesome though. Can't remember his name, but he's been with her for years.

nickxero
My favorite of hers is Radio Ethiopia

that reminded me of
a quote from Lou Reed from his "take no prisoners" live album:

"F*** Radio Ethiopia, man. I'm radio Brooklyn !!"

Gavino: Her guitarist is friggin awesome though. Can't remember his name, but he's been with her for years.

Lenny Kaye. He's also the guy who produced the Nuggets compilations, which were very critical in the development of the NYC punk scene.

PhiloeBedoe: I believe numbers-wise it falls between Slim Whitman's Greatest Hits and Boxcar Willie: Retrospective.

I believe you don't know WTF you are talking about. The single reached #13 and the album reached #20.

Additionally, she was a huge global draw, especially in Italy where she drew 100,000 paying fans. After that show, she quit touring for many years.

For the record: while I like a few tunes, I always found her pretentious and artsy-fartsy. Doesn't mean she wasn't enormously influential AND successful.

so, fail.

Patti Smith is good,
but she's no Bernadette Peters.

Who?

Third_Uncle_Eno: nickxero
My favorite of hers is Radio Ethiopia

that reminded me of
a quote from Lou Reed from his "take no prisoners" live album:

"F*** Radio Ethiopia, man. I'm radio Brooklyn !!"

that's gotta be one of the best live albums ever.

Hotlinked for your aromatic pleasure:

I always loved Gilda Radner's impersonation of her.

Mega_Doof Quote 2008-08-27 12:29:36 PM
I always loved Gilda Radner's impersonation of her.


Me too, man...me too.

I forgot about Gilda's bit. Thanks for the memory. Damn, she was funny.

Patti Smith co-hosted the Mike Douglas show, too. Twice, I believe. For you youngsters Mike Douglas was a 5-a-week syndicated talk show from Philly that played in the afternoon in most cites in the 60s and 70s. Part of show's schtick was that one guest would co-host for a whole week with Mike. A week in Philidelphia. Argh!

Mike was lame. No other way to put it, but he had the oddest assortment of guests, many of them real cutting edge hip. It was like his bookers were sniffing coke and swilling Geritol at the same time. For some reason Mike loved Patti Smith. Well, she is smart. She did all her songs, loud, jumped around and generally scared the housewives in the audience.

John and Yoko co-hosted for a week once. That was pretty cool.

radioman_: I forgot about Gilda's bit. Thanks for the memory. Damn, she was funny.

Patti Smith co-hosted the Mike Douglas show, too. Twice, I believe. For you youngsters Mike Douglas was a 5-a-week syndicated talk show from Philly that played in the afternoon in most cites in the 60s and 70s. Part of show's schtick was that one guest would co-host for a whole week with Mike. A week in Philidelphia. Argh!

Mike was lame. No other way to put it, but he had the oddest assortment of guests, many of them real cutting edge hip. It was like his bookers were sniffing coke and swilling Geritol at the same time. For some reason Mike loved Patti Smith. Well, she is smart. She did all her songs, loud, jumped around and generally scared the housewives in the audience.

John and Yoko co-hosted for a week once. That was pretty cool.

The Mike Douglas Show was awesome. And yes, some of the guest-host and musical guest selections were genuinely surreal.

From Wiki: Among the musical performers featured on the show were Chuck Berry, Every Mother's Son, Gary Lewis and the Playboys, The Turtles, Frank Zappa, Donna Summer, KISS, Jefferson Airplane, Moby Grape, Cher, Ray Charles, Bo Diddley, Barbra Streisand, Aretha Franklin, Genesis, The Supremes, Linda Ronstadt, The Rolling Stones, The Bee Gees, Herman's Hermits, Sly & the Family Stone, Little Anthony & the Imperials, The Electric Prunes, and The Beach Boys. Notable among guest co-hosts were Bobby Darin, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Anne Baxter, and Billy Crystal. Many people have tried to take credit for producing the episodes with John Lennon and Yoko Ono, but the real producer at the time of the episodes was Michael A. Krauss, who also came up with the idea to book John and Yoko.

The show also featured the first television appearance of Tiger Woods who showed off his swing for Bob Hope and Jimmy Stewart at the age of 2. Others who appeared on the show include Malcolm X, Jerry Rubin, Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, Bette Davis, Gene Kelly, Lucille Ball, The Three Stooges, Ted Knight, Totie Fields, John Travolta, Louis Armstrong, Gloria Parker with her Musical Glasses, Jay Leno, Joan Crawford, Angela Davis, Mason Reese, Muhammad Ali and many others.

That puts Mike on a scale with Dick Cavett, if you ask me, in terms of eclecticism.

Came for the Gilda Radner thing, good job Crocodile.

Is it weird that I've never found armpit hair on women particularly repulsive? I mean it's not exactly a turn-on but I know people who are really, really bothered by it and I don't understand that. Is it an America thing?