Wow. When she appeared on Kids Are People, Too! [!!] in 1980, punk powerhouse Patti Smith namechecked Maria Callas and Mick Jagger as her favorite singers, and then she took a run at Debbie Boone's "You Light Up My Life."
For a dad who's ended an exhausted, mid-night set of "songs I might know 51% of the lyrics to" with this song, Smith's soulful pleading and choppy delivery is now the definitive version. Sorry, Debbie.
All that said, my favorite part of this clip has to be the last line. I'd mock the people who stayed tuned after hearing, "When we come back: Count Dracula and Adam Rich!" except they're all around us.
Patti Smith "You Light Up My Life" on "Kids Are People Too" [youtube via murketing]
[un?]related: Captain & Tenille singing "Muskrat Love" on Kids Are People, Too!. Just looking at how tight that dude's pants are makes me wince.
This is one of the most bizarre yet endearing things I have ever seen. I was a little old for "Kids Are People Too" by 1980, having graduated from high school already and all, and I wouldn't have believed if one of my younger sisters had seen it and told me.
I'll be spamming the link to all my fellow Patti fans.
I don't know about Mick Jagger, he is kind of average but Maria Callas was/is the best singer to ever exist on the planet. She had a voice that sold itself. She has developed vocal techniques that artists today cannot master. She is definitely a legend, so Patti got that right.
I don't know about Mick Jagger, he is kind of average but Maria Callas was/is the best singer to ever exist on the planet. She had a voice that sold itself. She has developed vocal techniques that artists today cannot master. She is definitely a legend, so Patti got that right.
I recall Billy Joel sang "still rock n'roll to me" on the show one morning. I'm sure it will be posted on youtube one day. I remember waking up Saturday morning and watching Kids are People Too, then going to bed just after watching THAT'S INCREDIBLE! at night.