Fifty years since the release of Patti Smith’s signature single “Gloria,” the song’s opening line is as brash and arresting as ever.
“Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine,” sang the punk poet in her adaptation of “Gloria” by Van Morrison’s early rock group Them. The opening track from Smith’s 1975 debut album “Horses” launched Monday’s sold-out concert at the Chicago Theatre. The song reflected the thoughts of a young woman who insisted upon making, taking responsibility for and growing from her own errors and transgressions.
Now 78, Smith is respected for her wisdom and poetic soul in addition to her galvanizing abilities as an activist, performer and forerunner of the punk rock movement. On Monday, the first of Smith’s two-night Chicago stand, Smith prowled the stage and fused the passionate showmanship of rock icons like Mick Jagger with her indomitable spirit. “Gloria” built from a low rumble to hurricane force, and the crowd sang along fervently.
Considered among rock’s greatest albums, “Horses” has been hailed as a fundamental influence by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame acts including U2, R.E.M. and Madonna. Monday’s concert celebrating the album’s golden anniversary featured a performance of its eight songs.
Smith’s veteran band included guitarist and music journalist Lenny Kaye, 78, whose lengthy partnership with Smith includes work on Smith’s first single, “Hey Joe,” in 1974. Kaye and drummer Jay Dee Daugherty were both in the group that recorded “Horses.” Keyboardist Tony Shanahan has performed with Smith since 1995, when Smith returned from her 16-year self-imposed retirement from touring.
Rounding out the lineup was Smith’s son Jackson Smith on guitar and bass.
Smith’s vision for her earliest songs was to fuse her affinity for striking poetry with basic, three-chord rock music. “Birdland” spilled over with surrealist imagery in a tale about an orphaned son longing for transcendence and reunion with his father aboard the latter’s celestial spaceship. As the band played a stirring groove, Smith held a book and recited verses as if holding court at a beat poetry happening.
Smith wove current protest into her vintage material. During “Birdland,” Smith altered lyrics about a mother’s dreams for her son. Her voice rising, Smith said this mother didn’t want to raise “another lonely, crap-tweeting, non-empathetic [expletive deleted] president.” Instead, she hoped for a visionary filled with love.
Afterward, Smith explained that it was time to flip the record on the turntable to play side two.
The subdued yet disquieting memorial to fallen rock heroes “Elegie” was introduced with a story about meeting Jimi Hendrix at the opening of Electric Lady Studios in New York City. Smith said Hendrix told her he wanted to perfect a language of peace through music. The song flowed gracefully atop Shanahan’s elegant piano.
Smith called the crowd to dance while Kaye’s guitar ignited the cathartic “Horses/Land of 1,000 Dances.” Ad-libbed lyrics protesting the suffering of children in places including Somalia, Syria, the Congo and Gaza raised cheers of affirmation.
The song resisted self-inflicted worldly woes with the powers of joy, innocence and possibility. Mid-song, Smith spoke about a baby girl born during a snowstorm in 1946 after a treacherous drive to Grant Hospital in Lincoln Park. That child was Smith, who grew up for a short time in Logan Square.
Upon conclusion of the “Horses” set, Smith departed while Kaye presented a tribute to the group’s “sibling band.” In early 1975, Smith’s group performed a six-week residency with Television at New York City punk-rock hot spot CBGB. Those shows led to Smith’s signing to Arista Records. Daugherty’s deft drumming propelled the band through three intricate songs from Television’s influential “Marquee Moon” album.
Smith returned for the sultry groove of “Dancing Barefoot” and its portrait of desire. Jackson Smith played the song’s mesmerizing guitar solo.
At the audience’s ovation, Smith beamed. “I’m always so happy to be in Chicago, the city of my birth,” she said.
The main set ended with dedications. “Peaceable Kingdom” was offered to the Palestinian people. The hot-blooded “Because the Night” was dedicated to Smith’s late husband and “eternal boyfriend” Fred “Sonic” Smith of Detroit rockers the MC5.
Daughter Jesse Paris Smith joined the encore to play piano during “Ghost Dance,” written in honor of the Hopi Indian tribe.
The final song was dedicated to artist Jack Walls and the “resilient, tough” people of Chicago.
“You stood up to oppressive government,” said Smith, referring to the Trump administration’s campaign against immigration in the city. “We are with you. We are all Chicago.”
Populist anthem “People Have the Power” capped off the concert with the audience in unity, on its feet and singing.
Patti Smith set list for Nov. 17 show at the Chicago Theatre
Gloria
Redondo Beach
Free Money
Birdland
Kimberly
Break It Up
Elegie
Land: Horses / Land of a Thousand Dances / Gloria (reprise)
See No Evil
Friction
Marquee Moon
Dancing Barefoot
Pissing in a River
Peaceable Kingdom
Because the Night
Encore:
Ghost Dance
People Have the Power