Patti Smith‘s “We Love NYC” set might’ve been rained out last weekend, but the queen of punk and poetry never slows down. Today, Smith has shared a new EP, Live At Electric Lady, in partnership with Spotify. The seven-song LP, her first solo recording since her 2012 studio album Banga, features live renditions of her classics (“Ghost Dance,” “Broken Flag,” and “Birdland”), plus covers of Bob Dylan‘s “One Too Many Mornings” and Stevie Wonder‘s “Blame it on the Sun.”
“We are very proud to be part of Spotify’s Live at Electric Lady series, our favorite recording studio,” Smith said in a press release. “It was a unique challenge and offered us an exciting and innovative platform. We are grateful to Spotify for their generous support and willingness to present a live performance with all its possibilities of risk and revelation.”
Electric Lady’s GM/Partner, Lee Foster, added:
“Prior to recording, I had been discussing cover song options to present to Patti with Tony Shanahan, Patti’s MD and longtime bassist/pianist. We’d yet to mention to Patti that we’d hoped to record a cover during the session, so she was unaware at the time. Days went by and Tony and I couldn’t find the right song together. Then, as we’d just begun to agonize over it, he called me excitedly and asked “is ‘Blame It On the Sun’ from Talking Book [Stevie Wonder’s 1972 album recorded at Electric Lady]?’ I looked quickly to confirm and told him yes. For no reason at all that morning Patti had texted him to say that the song was stuck in her head and that she wanted the band to learn it. Kismet.”
Spotify and Electric Lady Studios previously released an EP from Jon Batiste, which dropped in July. Additional recordings will feature Japanese Breakfast, Dominic Fike, Faye Webster, Bleachers, Remi Wolf, and Natalie Bergman, “with more surprises to come,” according to a press release.
Live At Electric Lady EP tracklist:
1. “April Fool”
2. “Ghost Dance”
3. “Blame it on the Sun” (Stevie Wonder)
4. “Broken Flag”
5. “Birdland”
6. “One Too Many Mornings” (Bob Dylan)
7. “Peaceable Kingdom”
