Early Work, 1970-1979 [Hardcover]

Patti Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1994

The poet, songwriter, and performer evokes the experimentation and longing of the pre-punk days in a collection of poems and prose culled from her previously published works, Seventh Heaven, Ha! Ha! Houdini! Witt, and Babel.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The revival of interest in 1970s punk culture reaches an apotheosis with this strong selection of poems, prose and assorted rantings from Smith, who as a writer and musician embodied the New York downtown punk-rock ethos in its most romantic, naive and optimistic form. She first came to prominence with the publication of the slim but powerful Seventh Heaven and Witt , which blazed with post-Beat poetics, rock-and-roll rhythms and an aggressive sexuality that celebrated yet tried to transcend feminine stereotypes. "I'm cool as menthol," Smith bragged. "I keep trying to figure out what it means / to be american." In fact, she often descended into excess--"blushing monument: pink sphinx.sizzling / squirrel.fallen / pharaoh"--but kept her head: "we long for what we cannot love / to be freed from the boundaries / of our terrible skin." Though her first poems still burn, the collection is most revealing as an account of Smith's transition from poetry into the world of rock, showing her movement from verse to prose; from the influence of Ginsberg to Burroughs; from a sense of personal rebellion to public spectacle; and finally to a tone of resignation in her late-'70s poems. Smith's assessment of poet-rocker Jim Morrison might also apply to her own book: "Today the drama of his intensity seems dated. Dated in its passion and innocence." Still, her claim that she "reinvented frenzy" is correct--without Smith there would have been no Karen Finley, no Kathy Acker. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

"An artist wears his work in place of wounds. Here then is a glimpse of the sores of my generation," Smith says in a brief introduction. It is in the context of its decade that readers might best appreciate this volume. The writing from the four books gathered here, which seemed so daring in the 1970s, has lost some of its fury, especially when held up against recent performance artists. But this also works to the book's advantage: readers are not shocked as easily, and those who were caught up in their own turmoils during the 1970s can look more objectively at what Smith has to offer. Her stream-of-consciousness style permits superficial stabs at mystical vision, but beneath the sex, drugs, and four-letter words, she reveals a romantic sensibility. Sometimes, as in a magnificent three-page prose meditation on God and her father, everything calmly falls into place. With photos by Robert Mapplethorpe and Judy Linn. Recommended for larger, metropolitan collections.
- Rochelle Ratner, formerly Poetry Editor, "Soho Weekly News," New York
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 177 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1St Edition edition (April 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393036057
• ISBN-13: 978-0393036053
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 4.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #120,933 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Early Work: 1970-1979 By Patti Smith, March 13, 2001

By 

"awriterwithguts" (Kaneohe, Hawaii) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Early Work: 1970-1979 (Paperback)

Excellent compilation of the early stuff that would be hard to get now. I also have the "originals" small chap books containing most of the same works. It is great to have it all together on one book. Not for everyone, but for those who "know" her this is a "must" to add to your collection. Reading this work is highly inspirational to poets like myself. Those who are new to her works and those who are wanting to really "know" Patti should read this book of her early stuff. I have followed her since the ealy 1970's. A true Patti fan will not be disappointed. Buy this book !

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Patti, at her most mythic and provocative, June 1, 2004

By 

M. Bromberg "BellemeadeBooks" (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Early Work: 1970-1979 (Paperback)

Patti's fans (and foes) will find plenty of ammunition in this collection of lyrics and poetry from the 1970s. From the earliest, it is obvious that Patti's a romantic mythmaker at heart, with syntax and meaning almost losing out to the sheer power and rhythm of the word. It's difficult to read her lyrics without hearing the rock'n'roll that carried them aloft. Patti's subject matter on the earliest albums -- art, drugs, and mysticism in full romantic swoon -- she delivered with nearly Biblical passion. Her lyric styles and confessional soul-searching owe a debt to Jim Morrison, which Patti has always acknowledged, and the power of Patti's words (like Morrison's) is often in their performance and not on the printed page. Her fans will appreciate having a written record of Patti's earliest lyrics, but the simply curious may not be converted.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Patti!, April 4, 2000

By 

Patti forever (Fort Lauderdale) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Early Work, 1970-1979 (Hardcover)

Patti, you've got to love her. She's either wonderful and sublime, or she falls flat on her face. Think about Radio Ethiopia, gems like Pissin in a river, combined with the incredibly self indulgent title cut. This book is a bit like that, all over the lot. Her poetry, however, sounds a lot better coming from her mouth than on the printed page. What we need from Patti is a live album, taken from her glory days. It would be one of the greatest ever, better than the new Clash live album.