Patti Smith goes legit

I have never really got the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame; it's just filled with too much mediocrity. But Patti Smith comes to terms with it. Congratulations (I guess), Patti.

I have wrestled with these questions and my conscience leads me back to Fred and those like him — the maverick souls who may never be afforded such honors. Thus in his name I will accept with gratitude. Fred Sonic Smith was of the people, and I am none but him: one who has loved rock ’n’ roll and crawled from the ranks to the stage, to salute history and plant seeds for the erratic magic landscape of the new guard.

Because its members will be the guardians of our cultural voice. The Internet is their CBGB. Their territory is global. They will dictate how they want to create and disseminate their work. They will, in time, make breathless changes in our political process. They have the technology to unite and create a new party, to be vigilant in their choice of candidates, unfettered by corporate pressure. Their potential power to form and reform is unprecedented.

Human history abounds with idealistic movements that rise, then fall in disarray. The children of light. The journey to the East. The summer of love. The season of grunge. But just as we seem to repeat our follies, we also abide.

She sounds like The Dude.

Speaking of conflicted, Wolfgang's Vault certainly has that effect on me. I love the concert recordings and the connection to ol' Bill Graham, but I'm also cognizant of and sympathetic to copyright issues, especially those of former members of The Grateful Dead, a band that has been really good about releasing the contents of their own archives.