On July 31, 1997, Patti Smith shared her thoughts on the 70s rock and roll scene and how Lou Reed of the Velvet Underground inspired her as a young girl in South Jersey. Interview conducted by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, director of American Masters—Lou Reed: Rock And Roll Heart (1998).
Chapters:
00:00 – How jazz gave rock and roll new structure
01:35 – Shaking up the music scene in the 1970s
05:07 – Patti Smith’s introduction to the Velvet Underground
07:58 – How Smith related to Lou Reed’s “cerebrally sensual music”
09:22 – Smith breaks down the song “Heroin”
12:19 – Smith’s rejection of labeling artists
The American Masters Digital Archive includes over 1,000 hours of never-before-seen, raw interviews: a treasure trove of the movers and shakers of American culture, including Maya Angelou, Patti Smith, Mel Brooks, Carol Burnett, Matthew Broderick, Carl Reiner, Joan Rivers, Dionne Warwick, Lee Grant, Sidney Lumet, Betty White and many others.