Punk’s poet laureate returns to Athens in June
Rock legend Patti Smith returns to Athens for a single performance at Piraeus 117 Academy, south of central Athens, on Saturday, June 25.
Three years since her concert at the Herod Atticus Theater, as part of the country's flagship cultural event previously known as the Greek Festival, the American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist will perform her debut album, “Horses,” which turned 40 last year.
Born in Chicago in 1946, the eldest of four siblings, Smith was raised in Philadelphia and New Jersey. After working at a baby buggy factory, she moved to New York City in 1967, where she met several artists, including the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, and became a fixture of the downtown cultural Manhattan scene. In 1974, she formed the Patti Smith Group.
“Horses,” a fusion of Beat poetry-influenced lyrics and proto-punk rock that positioned Smith as “punk’s poet laureate,” was released a year later. Featuring the now iconic black-and-white portrait by Mapplethorpe on the cover, the album became a huge critical and commercial success.
“I’m going to be happy to celebrate it, to perform the album with happiness, not with any kind of cynicism or a cashing-in thing,” Smith told Rolling Stone magazine after announcing a world tour to celebrate the 40th anniversary of her landmark LP last year. “It will be a true, proud celebration.”
Piraeus Academy, 117 Pireos, Athens.
Tickets, which range from 28 to 60 euros, can be purchased at
Ticket House, 42 Panepistimiou (tel. 210.360.8366), as well as online at www.ticketpro.gr and www.tickethouse.gr.
