Patti Smith - Homestead, PA - 8/1/07

[Joe]

SET LIST
Redondo Beach
Everybody Wants to Rule the World
Are You Experienced?
Grateful *
Within You, Without You
We 3
Pushing Too Hard
White Rabbit
Gimme Shelter
Because the Night
Smells Like Teen Spirit
Soul Kitchen
Gloria

ENCORE
Helpless
Not Fade Away *

*Songs dedicated to Jerry Garcia for his birthday.

MUSICIANS
Patti Smith – lead vocal, acoustic guitar on a few songs, clarinet on "Are You Experienced?", electric guitar & harmonica on "Not Fade Away."
Lenny Kaye – electric & acoustic guitars, bass, & lead vocal on "Pushing Too Hard."
Jackson Smith - electric & acoustic guitars, bass, & keyboards.
Tony Shanahan - electric & acoustic guitars, bass, keyboards, & lead vocal on "Not Fade Away," 2nd verse.
Jay Dee Dougherty – drums & accordion on "Not Fade Away."

[Joe]

Excellent show at the Carnegie Library Music Hall in Homestead, just across the Homestead Grays Bridge from the city, past the site of the mills of the Carnegie Steel Co., where the famous Homestead Steel Strike of 1892 took place. It's an old theatre with wonderful acoustics, celebrating its 109th birthday as I write this (Aug. 2).

Patti Smith is, as you know, one of the original CBGB-1977 punk rockers & I was excited about seeing her in a small theatre that seats a few hundred. We had seats in the 4th row from the stage, off to the left. Musically, I wouldn't call this a punk concert, esp. being that it was dominated by selections from her new album of covers, but there was plenty of punk spirit in evidence, with the furiously-dancing throng in front of the stage (but not blocking our view, thankfully) to the total breakdown of all barriers between band & audience, whether Patti was dancing with fans (including the fan she invited on stage to dance with her to "Not Fade Away") or thrusting a microphone in their faces so they could sing a line from "Gimme Shelter" or "Gloria."

Patti took the stage in a black hat, a white T-shirt on which the word LOVE & a peace sign were drawn in black marker, faded jeans tucked into brown boots, & a black jacket. With the heat, she would eventually shed the hat & jacket. Patti's between-song banter was always engaging, most of it concentrating on Pres. Bush's recent multi-billion dollar deal to sell arms to the Saudis or the fact that it was Jerry Garcia's birthday (meaning that it was Ramblin' Jack Elliott's birthday, too).

Usually concerts that don't start on time annoy me, but as we were running late ourselves, I was pleased that this over-2-hour show started about 10 mins. late, or just as soon as we settled into our seats. The show began with my fave Patti Smith song, the reggae of "Redondo Beach," & I woulda been bummed had I missed that, esp. this outstanding performance. Next up was the bouncy "Everybody Wants to Change the World." A few fans tested the waters & approached the stage to dance, but soon security chased 'em away; before long, there were too many & security simply gave up.

"Are You Experienced?" began with a duel between Patti's clarinet & Jackson Smith's electric guitar, with Patti getting sounds that I'd never heard from a clarinet before. Soon she made the song uniquely her own, turning it into a long dirge that shook the theatre by the time it reached its crescendo. "Grateful" was an acoustic number dedicated to Jerry Garcia, & after an acoustic version of the Beatles' "Within You, Without You," the show rocked for most of the rest of the evening.

When she introduced "We 3" by talking about her days at CBGB's in 1974, a shout came from the balcony: "I wasn't even born yet!" Patti, smiling: "That's your problem." A better answer woulda been, "Who gives a shit?"

Patti took a break & let Lenny Kaye handle the vocals during a rockin' "Pushing Too Hard" & chose to take advantage of this "break" by exiting the stage right in front of us & joining the dancing throng, much to their delight. Then it was back on stage for a weird story involving hamburgers, giant robins, Andrew Carnegie, & a rabbit, then on to "White Rabbit" & a version of "Gimme Shelter" that was so raucous & furious that had Mick & Keith been present to see it, they woulda announced their retirement right there on the spot.

As "Gimme Shelter" was reaching its fever pitch, I thought, that's the finale, there's just no way to top this. I was wrong. Soon she was into the crowd-pleaser "Because the Night" & surpassed the wildness of "Gimme Shelter" by closing the regular set with a long version of "Gloria" that had even more spit & spunk than the recorded original. The fans were going crazy by the time she intoned the last "Jesus died for someone's sins but not mine."

Soaking in sweat, Patti & band left to wild cheering & returned for an encore of "Helpless," & I thought, she can't possibly top "Gloria," she's just gonna leave us with this quiet, acoustic Neil Young tune with some haunting accordion. Wrong again. She then dedicated "Not Fade Away" to Jerry Garcia, & convincingly growled "I'm gonna tell ya how it's gonna be!" to launch into a version with a loooooooooong, wild instrumental jam that I'm sure made Jerry smile, wherever he is.

During this one, my wife, a notorious people-watcher, pointed out one young woman dancing in the aisle to our right, arms & legs flailing in all directions as tho' she were boneless, then on her knees doing sit-ups, & then writhing on the floor. I was hoping she didn't get trampled, then decided I didn't care & put my eyes back on the stage. Soon Patti was dancing with a young audience member, & for the grand finish picked up an electric guitar, & soon all 3 guitarists were soloing at once, & Patti started breaking the strings on her guitar until all were broken, Ritchie Blackmore-like, & the show ended to thunderous appreciation, as I thought, she outdid herself yet again.

Not too bad for a 60-year-old. Hell, not too bad for a 20-year-old. I never saw such a concert where the singer had the audience eating out of her hand all night. Patti wants to return for the 110th anniversary of the theatre. If she does, I'm gonna tell ya how it's gonna be----I'll be there for sure.