In 1976, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith were both stars on the ascent, each riding high on their recent breakthrough albums (Born to Run and Horses, respectively).
Bruce and Patti had become fast friends and traded appearances on each other’s stages that autumn, but on the night of November 26th at The Palladium in New York City, Bruce made much more than a cameo.
That night, he essentially joined The Patti Smith Group, playing guitar or piano for seven songs at the early show and six at the late show–ten unique songs in all, none of which were Bruce’s.
One of those songs was Patti’s “Free Money,” a poem born on a late-night walk, set to music by Lenny Kaye, and released on Horses.
While we know that Bruce played both piano and guitar that November night, we don’t know which instrument he played during “Free Money” — that information has been lost to time.
But if I had to hazard a guess based on the recording below (and other performances from that night where Bruce’s role is known), I’d wager Bruce was on the piano. At risk of offending John Cale, who was also guest-starring that night on piano, I detect just a bit of the hesitancy I often hear when Bruce plays the piano, although that may simply be an artifact of the old and somewhat distant recording.
Regardless of which instrument Bruce helmed that night, he contributed to a fierce performance and his only known one of that particular song.
Bruce played three more Patti Smith originals during that late show (“Land,” “Ain’t It Strange” and “You Can Dig It“), and six at the early one. We’ve covered almost all of them now, except for the most curious one.
That one’s coming soon.
Free Money
First performed: November 26, 1976 (New York City, NY)
Last performed: November 26, 1976 (New York City, NY)
