Best of the 70's: Horses by Patti Smith

You could easily argue that Patti Smith wasn't doing anything that The Doors or The Velvet Underground hadn't done before her, but the key was that Smith was a woman.  With this album she would set a template for Joan Jett, Ani Difranco, Liz Phair, PJ Harvey, you can go on and on. 

If you know nothing about Patti Smith the best way to get introduced is with the song "Gloria."  She essentially steals parts of Van Morrison's "Gloria" and builds a new song around it.  It's like sampling in a way and shows best what Smith was trying to accomplish with her stripped down, raw sound.   

This album sits at number 50 on the Best of the 70's list and I have to admit I thought it would be down in the 30's or even 20's. 

You can never go wrong by throwing on "Gloria" when you want to get rowdy.  I find I have to be in the right mood for the rest of the album, but if you don't know this album and have interest in rock from a historical perspective it's worth hearing.  I should say too that when you are in the right frame of mind it can be a great album as she's doing things musically that are really good.  If you like "Candy's Room" for instance it's hard not to like "Free Money."

Following the Rhapsody rating method I give it 3 out of 5 stars for Pretty Good.