Careful With That Axe, Patti: Two Places At Once

Happy weekend and welcome to a double dose of poetic punk fury, courtesy of one of the art form's most passionate priestesses and performers. This post picks right up where the last one (5/4) left off, proceeding through today's anniversary special!

Back in the day when this kind of music was taking over the world, there wasn't anyone more at the forefront of it than Patti Smith. Her John Cale-produced debut, Horses, is as perfect a record as could be made IMO. My personal favorite album of hers just happens to be the one she's touring behind in today's share fare, Easter.

And what a share it is. I worked all day Friday on these shows, which took place at the same venue five days apart this week in 1978. They were both broadcast over the radio in Oregon live and I'm not sure they've ever even been rebroadcast. These were taped off the air from the absolutely classic 1970s radio station KZEL in Eugene, still on the air today.

Oh, these shows. These were the first performances where Patti was allowed on the airwaves uncut, unfiltered and uncensored. How the station wasn't taken off the air for good, given the steady stream of profanity-laced fun and ferocity she's unleashing throughout the three hours represented here, is a small miracle in its own right. What can you say? It was the 1970s.

The first set is from May 4th, just 8 years to the day after the horrors I detailed in last week's anniversary post. The second is from the 9th and was once issued in Europe as an illegitimate bootleg. Both performances are FM captures remastered by me, and the May 4th one has the infamous missing track patched back in from the compilation on which it was issued a few years back. Yes, I'm a geek. Like you didn't know that.

Patti Smith

In Two Places At Once

The Place

Eugene, Oregon

5.4+9.1978

 1.

5.4.1978
EN FM remaster

01 Land
02 Rock ‘n’ Roll Nigger
03 Privilege
04 No Jestering
05 Free Money
06 Pissing In a River
07 25th Floor
08 Pumping
09 You Really Got Me
10 Time Is On My Side
11 Ghost Dance
12 Because the Night
13 Easter
14 Radio Ethiopia
15 Gloria
16 Jailhouse Rock
17 My Generation

Total time: 1:22:07

disc break can go after Track 09

1st gen FM cassette, remastered by me

511 MB FLAC

2.

5.9.1978

EN FM remaster

01 The Salvation of Rock 
02 Babelogue/Rock ‘n’ Roll Nigger
03 Kimberly
04 Till Victory
05 Redondo Beach
06 The Kids Are Alright
07 Space Monkey
08 25th Floor
09 It’s So Hard
10 We Three
11 You Light Up My Life
12 Be My Baby
13 Because the Night
14 Easter
15 Radio Ethiopia
16 Gloria
17 My Generation

Total time: 1:29:07

disc break can go after Track 08

1st gen FM cassette, remastered by me

532 MB FLAC

Patti Smith - vocals
Lenny Kaye - guitar, vocals
Jay Dee Daugherty - drums
Ivan Kral - bass, guitar, vocals
Bruce Brody - piano, organ, vocals
Andi Ostrowe – percussion

if you get both sets, this fits on 3 CDs, with disc breaks after 5.4.1978 Track 12 and 5.9.1978 Track 06

1.1 GB total/May 2015 archive link

These are just incendiary shows, complete for you here like a sweet little Bootleg Box of Patti for your auditory pleasure. Pull 'em down, crank 'em up, and as Patti so presciently states, "Fuck the clock!!!". Unless of course you're taking the long view of time, and celebrating the 37th anniversary of these burning performances with us!--J.