Originally released in 1975, ‘Horses’ marked Smith’s arrival as one of rock’s most uncompromising and visionary voices. The record blended poetry with punk, channelling urgency and raw emotion into a sound that challenged the conventions of the era.

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Over the decades, the album has earned widespread critical acclaim and enduring recognition. It was awarded the prestigious Charles Cros Award, inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2021, and selected for preservation in the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.

Publications have consistently hailed its importance. NME placed ‘Horses’ at number 12 on its list of the greatest albums of all time, describing Smith as “a punk poet like no other” and praising the album as “screeching and visceral, raw with fury and full of desire […] rapturous rock n’ roll.”

The 50th anniversary edition of ‘Horses’ delves deeper into the making of the record. Alongside the remastered album, fans will gain access to alternate takes of tracks, Smith’s original 1975 audition tape for RCA, and four previously unreleased songs: ‘Distant Fingers’, ‘The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game’, ‘We Three’, and ‘Snowball’. ‘Snowball’ has been released early to give listeners a taste of the rare material unearthed for this reissue.

To further mark the milestone, Smith has announced a special European tour in October, performing ‘Horses’ in full alongside other career highlights. The tour will visit seven cities, including London, Dublin, Madrid, Bergamo, Brussels, Oslo, and Paris. London’s iconic Palladium will host Smith for two consecutive nights on October 12 and 13.

‘Horses’ is widely considered one of the most influential debut albums in modern music, noted for its combination of poetry and rock. The new edition aims to showcase not only the original recording but also previously unheard material that sheds further light on Smith’s early work.

Pre-orders for the 50th anniversary edition are now available via the link here.

In case you missed it, MXDWN’s earlier coverage of Patti Smith bringing her 50th anniversary tour to London can be read here.

Support acts have yet to be announced; however fans will be delighted to know that Smith will be joined by two of the musicians who played on the original recordings. Guitarist Lenny Kaye and keyboard player and bassist Jay Lee Daugherty have played with Smith throughout her live career. They will be joined by Tony Shanahan, who joined the group in 1996, and Jackson Smith, who joined in 2016.

The shows will see the album played in its entirety. The studio album comes in at a little over 43 minutes, with reissues including a cover of The Who’s ‘My Generation’, taking it beyond three-quarters of an hour. Smith’s shows tend to last around 80 minutes. When she toured ‘Horses’ in 2005, she performed additional tracks taking her shows closer to the typical runtime. Some of those that found their way onto the setlists included ‘Are You Experienced?’ by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and ‘Because The Night’, the Springsteen-penned ballad that was originally recorded by Smith in 1977. 

Produced by Welsh musician and Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale, ‘Horses’ was like nothing that had come before it. The album was a mélange of musical styles, all carried by Smith’s beat-esque prose, sometimes spoken, sometimes sung. UK critics were split on its releases, with Charles Shaar Murray of NME calling it “one in a thousand”, while its detractors called it “amateurish”.

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The album would influence some of the most iconic figures in and around music for the next 15 years. Among them, Morrissey and Johnny Marr, the two guiding hands in The Smiths. Morrissey would also record a live cover of ‘Redondo Beach’ in 2004, released the following year. Michael Stipe of R.E.M. cited the album as an influence, and John Cooper Clarke, who opened for acts like The Clash, The Sex Pistols and The Fall, said “Lyrics became important for a while in the late Seventies. Patti Smith was a poet and a rock star, as much one as the other, the distinctions were a bit blurred and then you get swept up in it.”  

Smith recently made headlines when she collapsed on stage. Performing alongside the Soundwalk Collective, Smith suffered a migraine and was taken backstage in a wheelchair. She later reemerged to perform more songs. The singer later posted on Instagram asking fans not to believe “a grossly exaggerated account being spread by the press and social media.”

 

 

 

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The tagline for the show is: “Please join us to help celebrate the final ride of our irreverent thoroughbred.” Fans lucky enough to snag a ticket to this show will be witnessing history as Smith appears to be winding down, whether that be celebrations of ‘Horses’, or touring as a whole. For those wanting to join in on the final ride, tickets can be purchased here.

According to the festival’s press release, this 18-day event will offer ‘a unique snapshot of these unprecedented times’ and plays ‘a key role in the safe reopening of the city’s economy’. The guest of honour, Patti Smith, will perform on July 7th and July 8th as a festival’s exclusive, and celebrating her first in-person performance since the COVID pandemic outbreak. Similarly, Arlo Parks will take the stage on July 9th for her biggest headline show ever, and will be accompanied by a string section.

The worldwide premiere of ‘All of This Unreal Time’, starring Cillian Murphy, with the soundtrack by Jon Hopkins and The National’s Bryce Dessner and Aaron Dessner, will take place between July 2nd and July 4th, along with an immersive installation. ‘I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to make this work during turmoil and sadness of 2020,’ the actor said. ‘It has been a great journey of collaboration working with these uniquely talented artists to bring [writer] Max Porter’s beautiful words to life.’

MIF’s artistic director John McGrath stated: ‘People have been through a lot and we’ve often had to move on from one knock to the next, pick ourselves up and keep moving forward. I think the festival provides a space to acknowledge that, and to share experiences.’

The venues are still to be confirmed. You can find the full programme on MIF’s official website.

This a special performance because Smith will be paying tribute to the UK’s NHS health-care workers that have fallen victim to Covid-19 in their fight to heal those suffering in the pandemic. When discussing her decision to honour health-care workers, Smith stated that it’s just so sad when we lose people who work so hard to rebuild our world.

Patti Smith has been focusing less on her music and more on activism since her last album release Banga in 2012. The majority of her activism has been centered around climate change, playing multiple shows, making speeches and raising money and awareness around the subject.

Smith has also taken up poetry in the last decade, performing poetry live often and releasing her own written poetry as well. To honour her love for poetry and combine it with her activism surrounding climate change, at the NYE showcase she will also be reading a poem dedicated to the climate change activist Greta Thunberg who will be celebrating her 18th birthday in the coming month. Smith wanted to honour Thunberg because she pretty much sacrificed her childhood for all of us.

When discussing the poem, Smith said that some of the work I did in my bedroom, some in a recording studio and some at my desk. I had to teach myself how to use Photo Booth on my computer and film myself reading a poem. She continued by joking about the creative process, saying I’m sure there are 14-year-olds who can do this in five minutes but it took me quite a while. But I got there and I’m so proud of myself.

When discussing her struggles during the covid-19 isolation, for which she needed to isolate because of lung issues, she said it was very difficult for her to overcome. She stated that she had so much responsibility and a true purpose. To be in limbo almost 10 months, for a person like me who doesn’t like sitting in the same place, it’s been very challenging. I feel like I’m part-wolf, roaming from room to room.

It is fitting that Smith will be honouring those who have sacrificed their lives considering she has spent the last decade sacrificing hers to make the world a little cleaner. YouTube’s Circa will showcase Patti Smith throughout January at 20:21 GMT at Piccadilly Lights, London, leading up to the special NYE tribute performance.