Patti Smith Holds Court at Toronto Art Gallery

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Death was a common theme at Patti Smith's first of two back-to-back sold-out concerts on Thursday at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, where the exhibit Camera Solo, comprising 75 of her Polaroid photographs and personal objects, is on display until May. On the gallery wall, a quote from her reads in part: "I have a strong relationship with the dead, even a happy one." She reiterated that sentiment at a press conference earlier in the day, speaking of the beauty she sees in everyday life, right down to our final resting place, the gravesite.

For her concert, the 66-year-old chose songs and poems that were fond tributes to the various dearly departed – her one-time companion and close friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; her husband, guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith, who died in 1994; friend and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg; singer Amy Winehouse; and 19th century poet Arthur Rimbaud.

100 Greatest Artists: Patti Smith

The live performances were part of the AGO's Patti Smith programming this week, including a book signing, film screening and a separate ticketed event, An Evening of Words and Song with Patti Smith. She will also perform a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Saturday in honor of the anniversary of Mapplethorpe's death, something she has tried to do each year since he passed away in 1989.

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

The acoustic show had an air of sophistication, no doubt due to its exquisite setting. After grabbing a cocktail in the foyer, patrons were led into a roped-off atrium with high glass ceiling and wooden, serpentine staircase. Smith took the makeshift stage promptly at 7:30 with her daughter, Jesse Paris Smith, on piano and guitarist Tony Shanahan. Holding only 400 people (tickets for the two shows sold out in minutes last month, temporarily crashing the AGO website; others waited in line in the snow as early as 6 a.m.), the respectful crowd did not jostle in front of the stage, listening intently without holding up their cell phones cameras as Smith performed such songs as the rousing "Ghost Dance."

She followed with a reading from her 2010 memoir Just Kids about her early life with Mapplethorpe, choosing an amusing segment about how she met Ginsberg. "Are you a girl?" he asked after helping her purchase a sandwich when she was short a dime.

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"I took you for a very pretty boy."

"Does that mean I have to return the sandwich?" she replied. Smith then dedicated her next song, "My Blakean Year," about William Blake, to Ginsberg. Next, she told a story about poet and adventurer Rimbaud, leading into the hypnotic spiritual song "Beneath the Southern Cross." Her Mapplethorpe tributes also continued with the reading of a short memorial poem she wrote for him that segued into her song for Amy Winehouse, "This Is the Girl."

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Putting dead legends aside for a moment, Smith spoke of a man who is still living and rockin', the Canadian Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse, with whom she toured last year – "Number One in the world," she proclaimed before launching into a cover of Young's "It's a Dream."

What came after was perhaps the most moving of all her homages: she read a letter she had written to Mapplethorpe a couple of days before he died. "He didn't live to read it, so I'll read it to you," she said. No words except hers could do it justice, but it concluded with the line "of all your work, you are still the most beautiful – the most beautiful work of all."

The hour-long show concluded with the passionate "Pissing in a River" and "Because the Night," the song Bruce Springsteen c0-wrote with Smith, which she dedicated to her late husband. For this, the crowd broke loose a bit to sing along. There was one more reading, a piece about the end of 1969, wandering around snowy New York City with Mapplethorpe: "We felt ready for the Seventies – it's our decade." With that, Smith started clapping as the final song, "People Have the Power," began.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Electronics Review Center

Read more »

Patti Smith Holds Court at Toronto Art Gallery

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Death was a common theme at Patti Smith's first of two back-to-back sold-out concerts on Thursday at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, where the exhibit Camera Solo, comprising 75 of her Polaroid photographs and personal objects, is on display until May. On the gallery wall, a quote from her reads in part: "I have a strong relationship with the dead, even a happy one." She reiterated that sentiment at a press conference earlier in the day, speaking of the beauty she sees in everyday life, right down to our final resting place, the gravesite.

For her concert, the 66-year-old chose songs and poems that were fond tributes to the various dearly departed – her one-time companion and close friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; her husband, guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith, who died in 1994; friend and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg; singer Amy Winehouse; and 19th century poet Arthur Rimbaud.

100 Greatest Artists: Patti Smith

The live performances were part of the AGO's Patti Smith programming this week, including a book signing, film screening and a separate ticketed event, An Evening of Words and Song with Patti Smith. She will also perform a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Saturday in honor of the anniversary of Mapplethorpe's death, something she has tried to do each year since he passed away in 1989.

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

The acoustic show had an air of sophistication, no doubt due to its exquisite setting. After grabbing a cocktail in the foyer, patrons were led into a roped-off atrium with high glass ceiling and wooden, serpentine staircase. Smith took the makeshift stage promptly at 7:30 with her daughter, Jesse Paris Smith, on piano and guitarist Tony Shanahan. Holding only 400 people (tickets for the two shows sold out in minutes last month, temporarily crashing the AGO website; others waited in line in the snow as early as 6 a.m.), the respectful crowd did not jostle in front of the stage, listening intently without holding up their cell phones cameras as Smith performed such songs as the rousing "Ghost Dance."

She followed with a reading from her 2010 memoir Just Kids about her early life with Mapplethorpe, choosing an amusing segment about how she met Ginsberg. "Are you a girl?" he asked after helping her purchase a sandwich when she was short a dime.

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"I took you for a very pretty boy."

"Does that mean I have to return the sandwich?" she replied. Smith then dedicated her next song, "My Blakean Year," about William Blake, to Ginsberg. Next, she told a story about poet and adventurer Rimbaud, leading into the hypnotic spiritual song "Beneath the Southern Cross." Her Mapplethorpe tributes also continued with the reading of a short memorial poem she wrote for him that segued into her song for Amy Winehouse, "This Is the Girl."

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Putting dead legends aside for a moment, Smith spoke of a man who is still living and rockin', the Canadian Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse, with whom she toured last year – "Number One in the world," she proclaimed before launching into a cover of Young's "It's a Dream."

What came after was perhaps the most moving of all her homages: she read a letter she had written to Mapplethorpe a couple of days before he died. "He didn't live to read it, so I'll read it to you," she said. No words except hers could do it justice, but it concluded with the line "of all your work, you are still the most beautiful – the most beautiful work of all."

The hour-long show concluded with the passionate "Pissing in a River" and "Because the Night," the song Bruce Springsteen c0-wrote with Smith, which she dedicated to her late husband. For this, the crowd broke loose a bit to sing along. There was one more reading, a piece about the end of 1969, wandering around snowy New York City with Mapplethorpe: "We felt ready for the Seventies – it's our decade." With that, Smith started clapping as the final song, "People Have the Power," began.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Electronics Review Center

Read more »

Patti Smith Holds Court at Toronto Art Gallery

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Death was a common theme at Patti Smith's first of two back-to-back sold-out concerts on Thursday at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, where the exhibit Camera Solo, comprising 75 of her Polaroid photographs and personal objects, is on display until May. On the gallery wall, a quote from her reads in part: "I have a strong relationship with the dead, even a happy one." She reiterated that sentiment at a press conference earlier in the day, speaking of the beauty she sees in everyday life, right down to our final resting place, the gravesite.

For her concert, the 66-year-old chose songs and poems that were fond tributes to the various dearly departed – her one-time companion and close friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; her husband, guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith, who died in 1994; friend and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg; singer Amy Winehouse; and 19th century poet Arthur Rimbaud.

100 Greatest Artists: Patti Smith

The live performances were part of the AGO's Patti Smith programming this week, including a book signing, film screening and a separate ticketed event, An Evening of Words and Song with Patti Smith. She will also perform a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Saturday in honor of the anniversary of Mapplethorpe's death, something she has tried to do each year since he passed away in 1989.

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

The acoustic show had an air of sophistication, no doubt due to its exquisite setting. After grabbing a cocktail in the foyer, patrons were led into a roped-off atrium with high glass ceiling and wooden, serpentine staircase. Smith took the makeshift stage promptly at 7:30 with her daughter, Jesse Paris Smith, on piano and guitarist Tony Shanahan. Holding only 400 people (tickets for the two shows sold out in minutes last month, temporarily crashing the AGO website; others waited in line in the snow as early as 6 a.m.), the respectful crowd did not jostle in front of the stage, listening intently without holding up their cell phones cameras as Smith performed such songs as the rousing "Ghost Dance."

She followed with a reading from her 2010 memoir Just Kids about her early life with Mapplethorpe, choosing an amusing segment about how she met Ginsberg. "Are you a girl?" he asked after helping her purchase a sandwich when she was short a dime.

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"I took you for a very pretty boy."

"Does that mean I have to return the sandwich?" she replied. Smith then dedicated her next song, "My Blakean Year," about William Blake, to Ginsberg. Next, she told a story about poet and adventurer Rimbeau, leading into the hypnotic spiritual song "Beneath the Southern Cross." Her Mapplethorpe tributes also continued with the reading of a short memorial poem she wrote for him that segued into her song for Amy Winehouse, "This Is the Girl."

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Putting dead legends aside for a moment, Smith spoke of a man who is still living and rockin', the Canadian Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse, with whom she toured last year – "Number One in the world," she proclaimed before launching into a cover of Young's "It's a Dream."

What came after was perhaps the most moving of all her homages: she read a letter she had written to Mapplethorpe a couple of days before he died. "He didn't live to read it, so I'll read it to you," she said. No words except hers could do it justice, but it concluded with the line "of all your work, you are still the most beautiful – the most beautiful work of all."

The hour-long show concluded with the passionate "Pissing in a River" and "Because the Night," the song Bruce Springsteen c0-wrote with Smith, which she dedicated to her late husband. For this, the crowd broke loose a bit to sing along. There was one more reading, a piece about the end of 1969, wandering around snowy New York City with Mapplethorpe: "We felt ready for the Seventies – it's our decade." With that, Smith started clapping as the final song, "People Have the Power," began.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon MP3 Download Center

Read more »

Patti Smith Holds Court at Toronto Art Gallery

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Death was a common theme at Patti Smith's first of two back-to-back sold-out concerts on Thursday at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, where the exhibit Camera Solo, comprising 75 of her Polaroid photographs and personal objects, is on display until May. On the gallery wall, a quote from her reads in part: "I have a strong relationship with the dead, even a happy one." She reiterated that sentiment at a press conference earlier in the day, speaking of the beauty she sees in everyday life, right down to our final resting place, the gravesite.

For her concert, the 66-year-old chose songs and poems that were fond tributes to the various dearly departed – her one-time companion and close friend, photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; her husband, guitarist Fred "Sonic" Smith, who died in 1994; friend and Beat poet Allen Ginsberg; singer Amy Winehouse; and 19th century poet Arthur Rimbaud.

100 Greatest Artists: Patti Smith

The live performances were part of the AGO's Patti Smith programming this week, including a book signing, film screening and a separate ticketed event, An Evening of Words and Song with Patti Smith. She will also perform a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Saturday in honor of the anniversary of Mapplethorpe's death, something she has tried to do each year since he passed away in 1989.

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

The acoustic show had an air of sophistication, no doubt due to its exquisite setting. After grabbing a cocktail in the foyer, patrons were led into a roped-off atrium with high glass ceiling and wooden, serpentine staircase. Smith took the makeshift stage promptly at 7:30 with her daughter, Jesse Paris Smith, on piano and guitarist Tony Shanahan. Holding only 400 people (tickets for the two shows sold out in minutes last month, temporarily crashing the AGO website; others waited in line in the snow as early as 6 a.m.), the respectful crowd did not jostle in front of the stage, listening intently without holding up their cell phones cameras as Smith performed such songs as the rousing "Ghost Dance."

She followed with a reading from her 2010 memoir Just Kids about her early life with Mapplethorpe, choosing an amusing segment about how she met Ginsberg. "Are you a girl?" he asked after helping her purchase a sandwich when she was short a dime.

"Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"I took you for a very pretty boy."

"Does that mean I have to return the sandwich?" she replied. Smith then dedicated her next song, "My Blakean Year," about William Blake, to Ginsberg. Next, she told a story about poet and adventurer Rimbeau, leading into the hypnotic spiritual song "Beneath the Southern Cross." Her Mapplethorpe tributes also continued with the reading of a short memorial poem she wrote for him that segued into her song for Amy Winehouse, "This Is the Girl."

Patti Smith performs at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto, Canada.

Putting dead legends aside for a moment, Smith spoke of a man who is still living and rockin', the Canadian Neil Young and his band Crazy Horse, with whom she toured last year – "Number One in the world," she proclaimed before launching into a cover of Young's "It's a Dream."

What came after was perhaps the most moving of all her homages: she read a letter she had written to Mapplethorpe a couple of days before he died. "He didn't live to read it, so I'll read it to you," she said. No words except hers could do it justice, but it concluded with the line "of all your work, you are still the most beautiful – the most beautiful work of all."

The hour-long show concluded with the passionate "Pissing in a River" and "Because the Night," the song Bruce Springsteen c0-wrote with Smith, which she dedicated to her late husband. For this, the crowd broke loose a bit to sing along. There was one more reading, a piece about the end of 1969, wandering around snowy New York City with Mapplethorpe: "We felt ready for the Seventies – it's our decade." With that, Smith started clapping as the final song, "People Have the Power," began.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon Music and MP3 Center

Read more »

Rihanna's '777' Tour, Day 2: Psycho in Toronto

To promote her new album, Unapologetic, Rihanna has set off on an ambitious globetrotting tour that will hit seven countries in seven days. Rolling Stone contributor Jeff Rosenthal is on the plane with a small army of fans and assistants, and an extravagant amount of champagne. 

***

It's only the second day, and already exhaustion has set in. (Perhaps it's because we've taken the least used route of traveling through all three North American countries in less than 24 hours.) The mood around baggage claim is grim, but Rihanna has put on a brave face for the paparazzi, who have all attached themselves to her like tick birds to the rhinoceros.

There she is, hugging some women, her pink hat and sunglasses blocking much of her face. Then she pops up on the other side of the loop, helping to lift a girl's bag off the conveyer belt. The cameramen zoom in on this random act of kindness, making Rihanna out to be a hero. From what I can see, she doesn't retrieve any of her own luggage. It's a weird photo-op, but a photo-op nonetheless.

It's been two days and we still haven't felt the sun on our skin; Toronto looks bright in the distance, though. On our way to the Danforth, a small venue in a seemingly transitioning part of town, we drive through parts of the country that are completely nondescript – there are roadways that shoot in every direction, a multiplex of highways. The guy in front of me, Omar from Mexico, filmed the experience for an extended period of time. Maybe it was more interesting than I'd realized.

We pass a high-rise corporate office building for Canada Bread. That and the image of a queen's crown on certain road signs are the only things distinguishing this part of Canada from the United States. (A border agent laughed and said, "I don't think we have enough time for that, eh?" to me after I thought her asking "What's your purpose?" was an existential question.)

Rihanna Reteaming With Chris Brown, Eminem on 'Unapologetic' Album

Being awake for what feels like forever and following a schedule that is largely the same feels a lot like Groundhog Day. But with so many people from so many different countries all thrown together, we're constantly meeting new people, having new conversations. I mean, there's obviously opportunity for important cultural exchange when we're all just hanging out on the bus. To wit: while driving past downtown Toronto, some Canadians explain Tim Horton's to the Americans; the Americans explain Subway to the Brits. (A girl from Los Angeles says, "Subway is like a diet food here. You can lose weight eating that, if you eat it enough." Sure, why not.)

A bunch of writer-friends and I walk into the venue and head up to the balcony, where we have a perfect view of the diehard Rihanna fans below. They're all standing still, as if they just heard a noise. DJ Congorock's opening set – progressive EDM thrown into a washing machine – appears to have zero effect on them. Following them, DJ Reflex gets much the same reaction: Meek Mill? No. House remix of Florence and the Machine? Nope. Even "N---as in Paris," the undeniable chin-nodder, only sees movement in three pockets of the audience. I look away, confused. Finally, people are screaming, excited about something: it's a 20-year-old Fatman Scoop song, the one that goes "If my train goes off the track, pick it up, pick it up, pick it up." The same reaction comes up intermittently for Cee-Lo's "Forget You," Damian Marley's "Welcome to Jamrock" and DJ Scream's "Let Me Clear My Throat," from 1996. I have no idea what the psychological profile is of a serial killer, but I imagine it's something like that of a Torontonian.

The concert starts at 9:17, which is stunningly close to being on time for us. The lights come down; the crowd chants "Rih Rih! Rih Rih! Rih Rih!" – it's seemingly friendly and supportive, though it does conjure visions of Psycho. Rihanna, dressed in pants that bow and wave, high-steps her way out in nude heels. She seems so much more alive than last night; it's almost as if she's channeling Obama's second debate. (Was it the plane's altitude that caused her to be so tired? Or maybe it was the long hours waiting around? Did she drink too much of the champagne? Or maybe not enough?)

Her voice climbs the scales up and then down during "Talk That Talk;" she performs something resembling a rain dance for "Unfaithful." But then she gets tired as "S&M" comes on – one wonders how someone who claims to last all night can only go for 20 minutes. But, hark: she downs a shot onstage, and much like Popeye, she immediately gets her strength back, and puts on a fairly solid set.

THINGS I SAW:
Beefy Swedish guys modeling Rihanna tees for MTV Style while throwing up peace signs; a pizza that cost $33 in the hotel lobby; a sign for a store that said "FUTURE SHOP" which sort of blew my mind, because WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?

THINGS I DID NOT SEE:
A wink of sleep; the inside of the Canada Bread building.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon Music and MP3 Center

Read more »

Rihanna's '777' Tour, Day 2: Psycho in Toronto

To promote her new album, Unapologetic, Rihanna has set off on an ambitious globetrotting tour that will hit seven countries in seven days. Rolling Stone contributor Jeff Rosenthal is on the plane with a small army of fans and assistants, and an extravagant amount of champagne. 

***

It's only the second day, and already exhaustion has set in. (Perhaps it's because we've taken the least used route of traveling through all three North American countries in less than 24 hours.) The mood around baggage claim is grim, but Rihanna has put on a brave face for the paparazzi, who have all attached themselves to her like tick birds to the rhinoceros.

There she is, hugging some women, her pink hat and sunglasses blocking much of her face. Then she pops up on the other side of the loop, helping to lift a girl's bag off the conveyer belt. The cameramen zoom in on this random act of kindness, making Rihanna out to be a hero. From what I can see, she doesn't retrieve any of her own luggage. It's a weird photo-op, but a photo-op nonetheless.

It's been two days and we still haven't felt the sun on our skin; Toronto looks bright in the distance, though. On our way to the Danforth, a small venue in a seemingly transitioning part of town, we drive through parts of the country that are completely nondescript – there are roadways that shoot in every direction, a multiplex of highways. The guy in front of me, Omar from Mexico, filmed the experience for an extended period of time. Maybe it was more interesting than I'd realized.

We pass a high-rise corporate office building for Canada Bread. That and the image of a queen's crown on certain road signs are the only things distinguishing this part of Canada from the United States. (A border agent laughed and said, "I don't think we have enough time for that, eh?" to me after I thought her asking "What's your purpose?" was an existential question.)

Rihanna Reteaming With Chris Brown, Eminem on 'Unapologetic' Album

Being awake for what feels like forever and following a schedule that is largely the same feels a lot like Groundhog Day. But with so many people from so many different countries all thrown together, we're constantly meeting new people, having new conversations. I mean, there's obviously opportunity for important cultural exchange when we're all just hanging out on the bus. To wit: while driving past downtown Toronto, some Canadians explain Tim Horton's to the Americans; the Americans explain Subway to the Brits. (A girl from Los Angeles says, "Subway is like a diet food here. You can lose weight eating that, if you eat it enough." Sure, why not.)

A bunch of writer-friends and I walk into the venue and head up to the balcony, where we have a perfect view of the diehard Rihanna fans below. They're all standing still, as if they just heard a noise. DJ Congorock's opening set – progressive EDM thrown into a washing machine – appears to have zero effect on them. Following them, DJ Reflex gets much the same reaction: Meek Mill? No. House remix of Florence and the Machine? Nope. Even "N---as in Paris," the undeniable chin-nodder, only sees movement in three pockets of the audience. I look away, confused. Finally, people are screaming, excited about something: it's a 20-year-old Fatman Scoop song, the one that goes "If my train goes off the track, pick it up, pick it up, pick it up." The same reaction comes up intermittently for Cee-Lo's "Forget You," Damian Marley's "Welcome to Jamrock" and DJ Scream's "Let Me Clear My Throat," from 1996. I have no idea what the psychological profile is of a serial killer, but I imagine it's something like that of a Torontonian.

The concert starts at 9:17, which is stunningly close to being on time for us. The lights come down; the crowd chants "Rih Rih! Rih Rih! Rih Rih!" – it's seemingly friendly and supportive, though it does conjure visions of Psycho. Rihanna, dressed in pants that bow and wave, high-steps her way out in nude heels. She seems so much more alive than last night; it's almost as if she's channeling Obama's second debate. (Was it the plane's altitude that caused her to be so tired? Or maybe it was the long hours waiting around? Did she drink too much of the champagne? Or maybe not enough?)

Her voice climbs the scales up and then down during "Talk That Talk;" she performs something resembling a rain dance for "Unfaithful." But then she gets tired as "S&M" comes on – one wonders how someone who claims to last all night can only go for 20 minutes. But, hark: she downs a shot onstage, and much like Popeye, she immediately gets her strength back, and puts on a fairly solid set.

THINGS I SAW:
Beefy Swedish guys modeling Rihanna tees for MTV Style while throwing up peace signs; a pizza that cost $33 in the hotel lobby; a sign for a store that said "FUTURE SHOP" which sort of blew my mind, because WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?

THINGS I DID NOT SEE:
A wink of sleep; the inside of the Canada Bread building.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon MP3 Download Center

Read more »