Patti Smith had always been in the peripheries. She is the definition of anti-establishment, to do things obstinately your own way, never compromising for your art. Her albums feature in some of the greatest albums of all time — her Horses has the prestigious label of being #26 in The Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. She has also rubbed shoulders with some of the biggest names in the industry: Jimmy Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Andy Warhol and of course, her archetype Bob Dylan.
One name may be passed through if you’re a casual fan (of which I am guilty of being), but a name deeply essential to Patti Smith as an artist — that of the photographer and her former lover Robert Mapplethorpe. It is impossible to decouple Smith’s career with Mapplethorpe’s as the two supported each other since they were young, struggling aspiring artists in their early twenties. Just Kids is a lovesong to this unique and ultimately bittersweet relationship.
The humble origins of a professional bohemian
Smith was born to a lower middle-income family, her mother a waitress and assumed that her daughter would follow suit, even gifting her a waitress uniform when she decided to move to New York. Her early life in New York was harsh, even after meeting Mapplethorpe who was in the same financial strife as her. Robert would resort to prostitution, substance abuse and eventually falling ill.
Things will look up when Smith move to the now famous Chelsea Hotel, after putting her and Mapplethorpe’s portfolio as collateral and she returned to work to Scribner, a bookshop. There, she would rub shoulders with bohemians and artists who would also influence her work. She would start to be a regular in Max’s where Warhol and other influential artists at the time would hang out, even nursing a coke just to be present with the more successful company. This would be a good move as she would carve a space for herself in poetry readings before eventually trying her hand on music.
The core of the book is not how Smith found success but on her complicated relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe. At different times they will find success and failure. Smith would describe their routines, their relationships and conflicts in great detail. Mapplethorpe for a while was a closeted homosexual though he maintained relations with Smith. They loved each other and propel each other to great successes though their bond was not all sunshine and rainbows. Very far from it.
Naturally, the two will drift as they find their own voices. Smith would become a successful musician manning her own band and publishing poetry in her own right; Mapplethorpe would put his days of selling necklaces and cutting out magazines to become one of America’s edgiest photographers, though for many, including Smith herself, that his work was far too edgy. But in between, they will still be drawn to each other but never quite connecting quite the same way again.
A treat for musicologists and an ode to a lost time in music
Just Kids is a chronicle of a unique time in music history. The who’s who of 1960s and 1970s in the music industry, a seminal time in music, would find home in New York. Patti Smith would be within an arm’s reach from them. It is akin to reading Bret Easton Ellis’s Glamorama where he would namedrop every living celebrity. But at least we get an insight of Smith’s relationships with them, as these anecdotes with other musicians and artists are the vein of her memoir.
Funnily enough, Smith’s story of success reminded me of a recent NPR Planet Money episode that I listened to last week. The episode analysed the research on how children from poorer families were able to escape the shackles of poverty. At a closer look, their social network was a key factor in this avenue. Poorer children who had friends from more successful families were able to leverage this network and propel themselves to higher income. I think that Smith, despite her underdog status was in the right place at the right time with the right people, which consequently helped launch her career as an artist.
Why you should pick this book
Should you be picking up this book if you’re not a Patti Smith fan? Well, that depends. How much of a Patti Smith fan are you? I’m a fan of Patti Smith to the extent of her album Horses, but unfortunately I like little else. Thus, I feel lukewarm towards her.
But if you are a bigger fan than I am, then it is an absolute treasure trove for you. Smith was very open about her life and thoughts, she did not hide much. We also get to see her influences not just in music but also literature: Rimbaud, Genet, Cocteau — authors whose works added flavour to her art.
You should also read the book if you are a fan of music or any kind of art from that era. In the 1970s, New York was a smouldering melting pot and the heavyweights are all there, not just having polite chat with each other, but influencing each other’s ideas and innovating new forms of art: Allan Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgwick, Hendrix, Joplin, Brian Jones. There are too many names to mention. We don’t just get to see an insight to Patti Smith, but these other luminaries.