Gone Again (Remastered) Patti Smith

• 1Gone Again03:16
• 2Beneath the Southern Cross04:35
• 3About a Boy08:15
• 4My Madrigal05:09
• 5Summer Cannibals04:10
• 6Dead To The World04:17
• 7Wing04:53
• 8Ravens03:56
• 9Wicked Messenger03:49
• 10Fireflies09:33
• 11Farewell Reel03:54
• Total Runtime55:47

Info for Gone Again (Remastered)

With her first release since the self-imposed exile that followed 1988's "Dream of Live", Patti Smith reclaims her title as the original punk poet. Though the songs on "Gone Again" bear little relationship to the punk movement that she helped spawn in the mid-'70s, the defiant, fiercely individualistic spirit of her early recordings remains intact. "Gone Again" has a moody, elegiac feel, as many of the songs are inspired by Smith's recent encounters with tragedy: the deaths of her husband and collaborator Fred "Sonic" Smith; her longtime friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; and her brother Todd.

Smith is that rarest of birds, a songwriter whose poetic reach does not exceed her grasp. Even during her eight-year recording hiatus, she never stopped writing poetry, and the raw, vivid imagery of songs like "Beneath The Southern Cross," "The Raven" and the downright Rimbaudesque "Summer Cannibals" are prime examples of her lyrical prowess. The passing of her loved ones has forced Smith to look more deeply into her own heart, and these compositions reveal a deepened, almost transcendent perspective that makes "Gone Again" sound like hard-won wisdom being whispered in your ear.

"After years of silence, Patti Smith returned to music with a series of concerts in late 1995. It had been years since she had performed live -- for most of the '80s and '90s, she concentrated on domestic life. Following the death of her husband, Fred "Sonic" Smith, in early 1995, Smith began playing music in public again and those concerts eventually led to the triumphant comeback Gone Again. Her husband wasn't the only loved one Smith lost between 1988's Dream of Life and 1996's Gone Again -- her brother and her close friend Robert Mapplethorpe both died. Appropriately, grief and loss hang over Gone Again, but the overall effect is not one of indulgent melancholy. Instead, it's a sober but strengthing listen -- this is healing optimistic music. Like most of Smith's best work, the songs on Gone Again aren't proper songs, they're song poems, with cascading music and dense, inspired lyrics. Smith sounds more mature than her earlier records -- there are only a handful of out-and-out rockers, and most of the album is subtle and folky -- which gives the album extra weight. Gone Again is more than a comeback, it's a revitalization -- Patti Smith simply hasn't sound so engaged and provocative since Easter." (Stephen Thomas Erlewine, AMG)

Patti Smith, vocals, guitar
Lenny Kaye, guitar
Luis Resto, keyboards
Jay Dee Daugherty, drums
Tony Shanahan, bass
Additional musicians:
Oliver Ray, guitar, whistle
Tom Verlaine, guitar
Brian Sperber, guitar
César Díaz, guitar
Whit Smith, guitar
Eileen Ivers, fiddle
Hearn Gadbois, percussion
Jane Scarpantoni, cello
John Cale, organ
Kimberly Smith, mandolin
Jeff Buckley, vocals

Recorded 1995 at Electric Lady Studios
Produced by Malcolm Burn, Lenny Kaye

Digitally remastered

Patti Smith
Part-Punk, Part-Folk, but 100% rockstar, Patti Smith has proven herself to be an enduring legend within Rock & Roll. For her work as an early pioneer of the punk movement, Patti Smith was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. Also an author and an activist, Patti Smith maintains a relatively low profile, but still performs and records. Patti Smith tour dates are currently scheduled nationally. Use Eventful as your Patti Smith concert calendar.

The Chicago native moved to New York City in 1967 with no money and survived through near impoverished conditions to become a rock icon. After cultivating her poetic craft on the streets of New York City and Paris, Smith began to perform rock music in 1974 and was signed by Clive Davis in 1975. She released her debut album, Horses, in 1975 and started a musical revolution. Smith was at the forefront of the punk movement and was a frequent performer at the legendary CBGB. Smith released her biggest commercial success, Easter, in 1978; the album included the massively successful single "Because of the Night", and Smith toured aggressively.

Smith remained largely out of the spotlight in the '80s, preferring to raise her kids outside of the limelight. She reemerged in the mid-90s with Peace in Noise (1997) and Gung Ho (2000), both of which earned her Grammy nominations for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. In 2006, Smith returned to where it all began and performed a near four-hour concert at CBGB the night that the iconic club closed down. Smith has returned her attention to writing and won a National Book Award for her memoir, Just Kids, in 2010. Patti Smith is a rock legend whose music spans punk, folk, and politics.

This album contains no booklet.