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M Train Patti Smith 9781101875100 Books

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M Train Patti Smith 9781101875100 Books

I almost stopped halfway through. A good friend encouraged me to continue. "It gets better," she said. I continued because of that and because I have loved and respected Patti Smith's music and poetry since I was in my mid-teens. I was a charter member of her fan club in the mid-'70s. I also feel it's my responsibility as a committed reader to finish a book that's been written with grit and authenticity.

It got a little better, but I continued to feel like I didn't really know where she was or who she was talking about a lot of the time. There were a number of paragraphs I had to read over and over again to track where we were: the equivalent of talking to someone who's speaking almost inaudibly or with a thick, unusual accent. I felt like I was squinting my eyes and craning my neck to track her conversation.

There's no doubt of her being a brilliant wordsmith and poet, and that she has shared her grief in a poetic and deep way.

At the end of the story, I was disappointed that after all the poignant mentions about her husband Fred and after I, the reader, proving my interest and investment by hanging in there till the end of the book she doesn't share with us what happened. I felt let down.

To assuage my disappointment, I googled Fred Smith and learned this (which helped me to have completion):

"In 1976, firebrand rock poetess Patti Smith visited Detroit while touring behind her album Radio Ethiopia, and was introduced to Fred Sonic Smith at a party held at Lafayette Coney Island, one of the city's most celebrated hot dog stands. While Fred Smith was married at the time, he and Patti immediately hit it off, and before long a low-key romance blossomed between them. By 1978, Fredwas once again single, and he and Patti were free to go public with their relationship. In 1980, Fredand Patti were married; Sonic's Rendezvous Band had recently broken up, and after a calamitous European tour following the release of her album, Wave, Patti opted to retire from touring. The couple moved to St. Clair Shores, a suburb of Detroit, and quietly settled down to raise a son and a daughter away from the media spotlight and the rigors of a musician's life. Both Patti and Fred continued to write music together, and in 1986, Patti came out of retirement to record the album Dream of Life. Fred wrote much of the material in collaboration with Patti, played guitar on the album, and helped to produce the sessions. In a 1996 interview, Patti said, "Dream of Life was really more Fred's record -- it was all Fred's music, Fred's philosophy." Though it featured the anthemic "People Have the Power," a song that would become a highlight of Patti's live shows, Dream of Life failed to find an audience, despite strong reviews. Sadly, it would prove to be one of Fred's last major projects. In the late '80s, his health went into decline, and on November 9, 1994, Fred Sonic Smith died of heart failure in a Detroit hospital -- ironically, the same malady that took the life of MC5 vocalist Rob Tyner two years earlier." [http://www.allmusic.com/artist/fred-sonic-smith-mn0000176087]

Ultimately, I felt that while Patti has shared deep, intrapsychic treasure with us, she isn't intimate or relational with us, her readers.

There was depth, and there was great, though vague, beauty. A lot of literary name-dropping, and her deepest relationships in the story appear to be with the dead or with inanimate objects (a coat, stones, coffee). I'll be pondering this one for a while.

All of that said, Patti Smith is a deep, unique artist in a soul-less age. For that, I am deeply grateful.


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M Train Patti Smith 9781101875100 Books Reviews

I enjoyed Patti Smith's memoir "Just Kids" so much that when I saw she had another book published this year I just had to read it, and I'm glad I did. This book is very different from her earlier memoir, not nearly as linear, for one thing, and not covering a particular period of time. M Train is written in a loose, free-flowing style like a meandering voice of poetry. She dips in and out of time, talking about her parents, her husband Fred whose death she still mourns, her children, and her various travels. Her photographs illustrate the book and they are mostly photos of objects that she loves because each one reminds her of someone--her father's chair, Frieda Kahlo's bed, the boardwalk at Rockaway. One of the narrative threads in her book is her purchase of a small cottage in Rockaway, which she bought just before hurricane Sandy struck and destroyed the boardwalk as well as many of the houses. The book is plotless, but gives a good sense of Smith and of the things that are important to her. People who share her interest in the natural world around us and the artists and writers she knew, will enjoy spending this time with Smith.
What sort of book is this? Nothing like "Just Kids." It’s not exactly a memoir and certainly not an autobiography. I’d say more than anything it’s a journal—some entries deal with recent events, some with events in the author’s earlier life, and some describe her fantasies and dream life. So, what’s it about? Certain themes occur and recur here—coffee, fascination with television police procedurals, foreign travel, and grief. The entries describe the life of an aging widow who lives alone with cats. The distinguishing traits of this person’s journal and why it’s eminently worth reading are her renown as a godmother of punk rock and, even more importantly, her tremendous facility with the written word. Furthermore, what kept me immersed in this journal were her descriptions of the books she’s read and re-read, many of which I feel we’ve shared.
I've been a fan of Patti's music,and poetry since her first album "Horses". I loved her book "Just Kids",and I own most of her poetry books. Seeing Patti perform is exciting,and she exudes a strange, exotic, sensuality on stage. So...I was so looking forward to" M Train." I felt that it took us on an uncomfortable excursion around the world visiting dead "Icons" she admired,including photos. Coffee,and detective shows were also a strong theme,and if you didn't watch these shows you wouldn't understand some of her passages. I wanted to know more about her life now,aside from visiting coffee shops.This book was not terrible, however, not her best. Sorry Patti.This books title should have been titled "Eulogies".
This is the only Patti Smith book I have read so I cannot compare it to her past memoir JUST KIDS or anything else she has written. It appears many reviewers have been put off by the book due to its "arcane" references. I found it a compelling read and as one commentator suggested already, anyone with a bit of intellectual curiosity can explore the books and artists she references quite easily. I make it a habit of writing down every reference I don't know or fully understand for every book I read. I believe I had five note cards filled at end of M Train with things to look up and learn. This is not a straightforward story type of memoir and those seeking that and who have little intellectual curiosity will be disappointed. If you are the type of person who enjoys listening to a very intelligent, well-read and thoughtful person describe moments of their life, past and present, with plenty of references sprinkled in about books and places and observations and experiences then you will enjoy this book. I liked the fact that Smith shows no self-pity and seems to be aging gracefully and clearly has a curious mind.
I almost stopped halfway through. A good friend encouraged me to continue. "It gets better," she said. I continued because of that and because I have loved and respected Patti Smith's music and poetry since I was in my mid-teens. I was a charter member of her fan club in the mid-'70s. I also feel it's my responsibility as a committed reader to finish a book that's been written with grit and authenticity.

It got a little better, but I continued to feel like I didn't really know where she was or who she was talking about a lot of the time. There were a number of paragraphs I had to read over and over again to track where we were the equivalent of talking to someone who's speaking almost inaudibly or with a thick, unusual accent. I felt like I was squinting my eyes and craning my neck to track her conversation.

There's no doubt of her being a brilliant wordsmith and poet, and that she has shared her grief in a poetic and deep way.

At the end of the story, I was disappointed that after all the poignant mentions about her husband Fred and after I, the reader, proving my interest and investment by hanging in there till the end of the book she doesn't share with us what happened. I felt let down.

To assuage my disappointment, I googled Fred Smith and learned this (which helped me to have completion)

"In 1976, firebrand rock poetess Patti Smith visited Detroit while touring behind her album Radio Ethiopia, and was introduced to Fred Sonic Smith at a party held at Lafayette Coney Island, one of the city's most celebrated hot dog stands. While Fred Smith was married at the time, he and Patti immediately hit it off, and before long a low-key romance blossomed between them. By 1978, Fredwas once again single, and he and Patti were free to go public with their relationship. In 1980, Fredand Patti were married; Sonic's Rendezvous Band had recently broken up, and after a calamitous European tour following the release of her album, Wave, Patti opted to retire from touring. The couple moved to St. Clair Shores, a suburb of Detroit, and quietly settled down to raise a son and a daughter away from the media spotlight and the rigors of a musician's life. Both Patti and Fred continued to write music together, and in 1986, Patti came out of retirement to record the album Dream of Life. Fred wrote much of the material in collaboration with Patti, played guitar on the album, and helped to produce the sessions. In a 1996 interview, Patti said, "Dream of Life was really more Fred's record -- it was all Fred's music, Fred's philosophy." Though it featured the anthemic "People Have the Power," a song that would become a highlight of Patti's live shows, Dream of Life failed to find an audience, despite strong reviews. Sadly, it would prove to be one of Fred's last major projects. In the late '80s, his health went into decline, and on November 9, 1994, Fred Sonic Smith died of heart failure in a Detroit hospital -- ironically, the same malady that took the life of MC5 vocalist Rob Tyner two years earlier." [http//www.allmusic.com/artist/fred-sonic-smith-mn0000176087]

Ultimately, I felt that while Patti has shared deep, intrapsychic treasure with us, she isn't intimate or relational with us, her readers.

There was depth, and there was great, though vague, beauty. A lot of literary name-dropping, and her deepest relationships in the story appear to be with the dead or with inanimate objects (a coat, stones, coffee). I'll be pondering this one for a while.

All of that said, Patti Smith is a deep, unique artist in a soul-less age. For that, I am deeply grateful.