Quickies - "Horses" by Patti Smith

Welcome back, music lovers everywhere on this site, to my music blog, Quickies. Here, I review an album considered a classic by many in one hundred to four hundred words. Today, getting lobotomized, is the 1975 garage rock effort by Patti Smith known as Horses. (Get it?)

The style of the album has been compared to the American version of punk rock, but I don't really get that. This definitely is garage rock, sure, and there are some parallels to punk present in the recording. However, punk rock (even in America) is known for a loud and abrasive approach to guitar-driven music. There are quite a few memorable moments focused on either Patti Smith's voice or the piano sometimes playing in the background, which is quite the opposite of loud and abrasive. Although, I can get behind the idea of punk rock-influenced lyrics.

Some of the songs play with less than mainstream choices for themes, such as the nine minute near a cappella track, "Land," which discusses rape (although it does get disguised a bit under the nearly overstuffed amount of references to dancing). In a twist of fate, "Land" turns out to be one of two equally amazing tracks on this album. Its almost entirely muted instrumentation works wonders at playing off of the beat-style poetry. The lyrics on the album really shine here, what with the descriptive center event in the first movement (out of three, no less) and the return of this style in the third movement.

Meanwhile, there is the also nine minute long "Birdland." While both songs are very lengthy, "Land" deserves this for the amount of changes in the tone and genre that give it a near progressive rock feel to it. "Birdland," meanwhile, doesn't really do this much. Yes, it does have some more subtle changes and, in fact, some more noticeable changes. However, to the casual listener, it sounds and plays like a quiet poetic track. Now, don't get me wrong. The lyrics on this song are still phenomenal. The poetry still very much shines through. The problem is that the music seems to try and match the lyrics in tone, and yet, by doing this, the song turns into a more Van Morrison-like tune. I enjoy Morrison's music, but it just doesn't fit the rest of that side of the album so well.

I'd like to also mention the semi-cover of "Gloria" by Them which is the opening track to the album. The six minute original to the tune and chorus of one of Van Morrison's best songs starts with some of the most memorable opening lines in music. Right off the bat, Patti Smith goes on about how she doesn't give two shits about Jesus Christ and how he died for her sins. Blasphemous? Sure. However, it is still an excellent mood setter for not just the song, but the entire album, too. Smith's screams of "G-L-O-R-I-A" over the killer guitar work sets an almost too high expectation for the rest of the album.

Thankfully, the expectation is basically met. This album is a must-own to anybody who can enjoy a bit of proto-punk mixed with garage rock. In fact, if you have already listened to this, and you are looking for more proto-punk, I can recommend The Velvet Underground & Nico by the joined band and artist of the same names. It is an older album, though, so it is a bit rougher around the edges. Horses, on the other hand, gets a 5/5 and a Classic Rating from me. While no song is perfect, each one holds something special in it that makes the album a definite highlight of Patti Smith's career.