The concert “ People have the power: a celebration of patti smith »Took place at the Carnegie Hall on Wednesday.
The tribute concert ” People have the power: a celebration of patti smith Wednesday evening at Carnegie Hall on Wednesday evening. For two and a half hours, a slew of singers, musicians and actors (some associated with Patti Smith, others not necessarily sang and read the words of the singer, a strong testimony of the always hypnotic grip of her songs and poems.
There was a good chance that Patti Smith herself participated in the show: after all, she had participated in her development. She went on stage at the very end of the evening, but did not opt for an easy nostalgia. She read ” Peaceable Kingdom », An underestimated piece of Tramp', released in 2004. The choice first seemed strange, then Smith revealed the chorus: ” Maybe one day, we will be strong enough/to build it again/Build the peaceful kingdom again ». With his voice that is both resolved and bereaved, these words are even stronger today, in the era of Trump 2.0, than they were the day after September 11.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auuf_edxhoc
The concert ” People have the power Was rich in strong moments. He was part of a tradition of concerts tribute to renowned artists in this room. Each of these tribute concerts includes a group that plays with all the artists of the evening. This time, the group led by Tony Shanahan (Smith's long-standing bass player and long-standing keyboardist) was of incredible diversity, with Flea, bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Benmont Tench, former keyboardist of Heartbreakers, Steve Jordan, drummer and sometimes WECB, and Charlie Sexton, guitarist. The fact that the group understands such a range of musicians is in itself a message: Smith's music is not only “punk”, it is deeply rooted in the history of American music in general.
Sharon Van Etten (from Jersey, like Smith) sang a fascinating ” Pissing in the river »Taken from Ethiopia Radio. Replacing Chrissie Hynde, prevented by Heathrow airport fires, Maggie Rogers interpreted ” Frederick ». Karen o brought a punk cabaret zest to ” Gloria: in Excelsis deo ».
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuajlc-zdby
Others have reimagined Smith's work. Armed with an acoustic slide guitar, Ben Harper offered a transformed version of ” Ghost Dance ». “” My Blakean Year », Also drawn from Tramp', has always sounded like a song of Rem, and Michael Stipe made the resemblance even more explicit with a hypnotic version which actually sounded as an extract from one of the albums of Rem of the mid-eighty.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gggoyl8ypva
Brought on stage to her wheelchair after her stroke, Jesse Malin got up and, perfectly motionless, revived the streets of the Lower East Side on ” Free money », With Flea at the trumpet. Among the few actors who have attacked Smith's poems (a list that includes Sean Penn and Jim Jarmusch) is the reading by Scarlett Johansson to ” Dear Robert “, Smith's farewell to his friend Robert Mapplethorpe, who had the most impact.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-atk7jhengq
When we learned that Bruce Springsteen would participate in the event, no one doubted that he would interpret ” Because the night ». And this is what he did, presenting it as: ” If I had sang this song, it would not have been a success ». But what no one could have foreseen was the huge Springsteen guitar solo at the end of the song.
After having resurrected ” Peaceable Kingdom “, Patti Smith ended the evening with another song that everyone knew how to come:” People have the power ». Since its release over 35 years ago, this song has always been associated with a moment in history. But the song has never looked so much like a rallying cry. “” Remember to use your fucking voice! Implored Patti Smith at the end of the song. After all, people may have power.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q42Pyoy7a5m
