Haworth’s Bronte Schoolroom was packed for a unique concert by New York punk legend Patti Smith last night.

All 125 tickets for the tiny gig sold out in just two days, and the lucky few who got tickets weren’t disappointed, as Smith played an acoustic set that included shout outs to Wuthering Heights’ Heathcliff and Cathy, who she dedicated Dancing Barefoot to, and the Bronte sisters tragic brother Branwell.

Hitting it big in the 1970s with her debut album Horses, Smith helped define the New York punk scene, and has since been inducted in the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame.

She is also a published poet, and the concert mixed music with poetry readings. She is also a huge fan of the Bronte sisters, and after visiting Haworth last year offered to play a fundraising gig for the Bronte Parsonage and schoolhouse. The money will go towards the upkeep of the building where Charlotte Bronte taught.

Backed by guitarist Tony Shanahan, Smith enthralled the crowd with a mix of classics and newer songs, and spoke of her love for the sisters in between tracks.

She dedicated first song, Wing, to her sister Linda who first introduced her to the books. She said: “She gave me the great gift of appreciation of Charlotte Bronte.”

At one point she brought a young musician Kizzy Brown to the stage to play flute while she read one of her poems, Night Wind. She had only met the young musician the day before on a visit to Ponden Hall.

She referred to the often overlooked Bronte sibling, Branwell, who died young after bouts of alcoholism and drug abuse. Smith said: “When you come here you think of Charlotte, Emily and Anne, but Branwell gifted the sisters with the gift of the dark romance, it was a world they created together.”

Before the gig the crowd were buzzing in anticipation of seeing the music legend in such an intimate venue. Catherine Shaw, 41, of Hebden Bridge, is a lifelong Smith fan, and saw her when she played a concert in her home town last year. She said: “When we heard she was playing here we thought it would be too good to miss. It is huge that she is playing here.

 

REVIEW

As concerts go, you would go a long way to get more unique than seeing the 66-year-old godmother of New York punk playing the former classroom of Charlotte Bronte.

But that is exactly what the lucky few who nabbed tickets to Patti Smith’s gig last night got to see.

Before she started with opening song Wing it was obvious the night would be peppered with talk of the Bronte sisters, and Smith engaged with the crowd about how they inspired her.

Although the acoustic set up and historic setting meant it was never going to be a wild rock concert similar to those from Smith’s heyday, she gave an enthralling performance, the stripped back set only serving to highlight her still brilliant voice. Walking Barefoot was a particular highlight, and when Smith took a break from playing to read her poetry, the literary setting made it feel all the more significant.

CHRIS YOUNG