David Bianculli

And now they've all brought to TV a dated history lesson that seems not at all dated today.

Death by Lightning is full of recognizable arrogance—political, social, medical—and also contains recognizable strains of both optimism and hopelessness.

Those, by the way, all were central themes in the musical Assassins, which included the actual song Charles Gouteau composed to sing on the gallows just before his execution.

The song is performed in part in Death by Lightning, but I'll close with the Broadway version, sung by Dennis O'Hare as Gouteau.

Assassins is an outstanding musical, just as Death by Lightning is outstanding television.

This is Fresh Air.

I'm David Bianculli.

Patti Smith is now considered one of the wise women of rock and roll, an eloquent chronicler of her life in music and in a series of acclaimed memoirs.

But 50 years ago, she was a scrounging poet who wanted to be a rock star on her own very literary terms, and her debut album, Horses, announced a unique artist.

Today, we're going to listen back to portions of two of Terry's interviews with Patti Smith about her early days as a poet and performer.

But first, rock critic Ken Tucker takes a look back and tells us about the new anniversary edition of Horses, which is supplemented with previously unreleased music.

Ken Tucker reviewed the new 50th anniversary edition of Horses.

It was released last month by Legacy Recordings.

After a break, we'll listen to a portion of Terry's 1996 interview with Patti Smith.

This is Fresh Air.

November 10th marks 50 years since Patti Smith released her debut album, Horses.

One of the biggest influences on Smith was her friendship with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe.

They both were 20-year-old aspiring artists when they met in 1967 in New York City.

They soon moved in together and helped nurture each other's artistic development.

Mapplethorpe became one of the most controversial artists of his time.