Elegie

Album: Horses (1975)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This is a straightforward requiem for Jimi Hendrix. Released on Patti Smith's debut album, Horses, she recorded the song on September 18, 1975, the anniversary of the rock guitarist's death. She told The Observer: "'The last lines - 'I think it's sad, just too bad, that all our friends can't be with us today' - are borrowed from '1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be).' I didn't think Jimi would mind!'"
  • Patti Smith told Mojo in 2015 that this Horses track is increasingly harder for her to sing. She said: "It was originally for Hendrix, also Brian Jones, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, these people we felt a loss for. It was written with (one time boyfriend and Blue Oyster Cult member) Allen Lanier, who was a beautiful person - he passed away recently."
  • Patti Smith wanted jazz trumpeter Chet Baker to improvise for a few minutes at the end of the track, but she couldn't afford the fee.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Guy Clark

Guy ClarkSongwriter Interviews

Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris and Lyle Lovett are just a few of the artists who have looked to Clark for insightful, intelligent songs.

Rupert Hine

Rupert HineSongwriter Interviews

Producer Rupert Hine talks about crafting hits for Tina Turner, Howard Jones and The Fixx.

Sending Out An SOS - Distress Signals In Songs

Sending Out An SOS - Distress Signals In SongsSong Writing

Songs where something goes horribly wrong (literally or metaphorically), and help is needed right away.

Jethro Tull

Jethro TullFact or Fiction

Stage urinals, flute devices, and the real Aqualung in this Fact or Fiction.

Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles

Timothy B. Schmit of the EaglesSongwriter Interviews

Did this Eagle come up with the term "Parrothead"? And what is it like playing "Hotel California" for the gazillionth time?

Stan Ridgway

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.