Two Times Intro: On the Road with Patti Smith

A couple of things I've learned being an REM fan are that 1) things don't have to be logical to make sense and 2) that beauty is in the eye of ME, not the beholder sitting over there somewhere (of COURSE, everyone is their own "me" but that's just common sense). And I think this book is beautiful. If you love logic, or perfection for perfection's sake, don't bother, but if you want to look at something that's a bit different, see some images that it takes a mind like Michael Stipe's to think up, then I heartily reccomend it to you. The writings are fascinating as well. I almost felt like it gave me a bit of a peep hole into this group of people, to read some of their thoughts, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Michael Stipe should be commended on this great book of photography being on the road with Patti Smith. What I find truly wonderful is his love and admiration of his dear friend Patti Smith. I am truly moved by this work. I am a fan of both Smith and Stipe. I too like Stipe have been blessed and inspired by Smith's poetry and music. The words included in the book are worth reading. The photos are terrific and presented in an artistic way. It allows the reader (or viewer) to see what is special about Patti Smith, her band, and friends in ways not seen before. It is a great addition for fans of both Patti Smith and REM.

I don't understand all the fuss being made about Michael Stipe's photography in this compelling book. How else would one go about capturing the dervish that is Patti Smith than by being a little out of focus? The images compliment perfectly her body of work, and her DIY aesthetic. As an artist who has picked up Smith's torch, Stipe has created a lovely valentine to her, and he has documented forever her "very big deal" tour with Bob Dylan. Thank Heaven we still have artists still humble enough to give credit where credit is due. This is a very nice addition to any Smith or Stipe collection......

As you can see I came to this book as one who appeciates Stipe's gift with words and wanted to see how his photography shaped up. I was not disappointed. Emotive, non-linear, these are words Michael Stipe is used to seeing in his reviews, and this one is no different just because it is visual rather than musical. Who needs focus? Any fool can point an automatic, take a snapshot. What is wonderful about this book is that Stipe's love of his subjects, the reverance and passion shows through. He has a natural eye for the beautiful and for the grotesque and the pictures are almost organic in composition. We are too linear in our thinking. Stipe makes us look in directions we forgot were there. He frames those things we take forgranted and fail to notice in what was, for him, everyday life. I didn't come looking for the clinical, artfully-lit style of Mapplethorpe. I wanted a piece of unadorned reality through someone else's lens, and that's what I got. Stipe and Ray (Smith's guitarist). The poetry's rather beautiful, also.

I have read the reviews posted about this book, they unfortunately do not do it justice. The introductions give the reader tremendous insight into the life and career of Patti Smith, as well as the importance that her work has for so many people. I personally found the photographs to be excellent. Being in black and white has allowed the pictures to be stripped down to their most basic and primative state, which is emotion. These photographs by Stipe are much like the lyrics to REM's songs. They are simple yet unspecific in nature, it is left up to the reader (or listener) to interpret them in his or her own way. So ultimately the majority of the photo's in the book are left for you to ponder into the life of Patti Smith on tour. After all this is not a "where's Waldo" children's book, it is a book of art done by an exceptionally talented artist, covering a very complicated and influential female artist in her tour element.