"Three-chord rock merged with the power of the word" is how the Chicago-born New York singer and poet described the 1975 debut album that hit the music scene with such impact, combining poetry with early punk and krautrock. Highly influential and powerful, the magic really happens when this song, also shown in its full three-parter below (Land: Horses / Land, of a Thousand Dances / La Mer(de), changes pace as "Johnny begins to imagine the four-legged animals all around him. Produced by John Cale, the influence of Lou Reed, Van Morrison with a cover of Gloria), and The Doors' Jim Morrison is evident, but Smith's influence on this from this astonishing debut is just as enduring. A live version from the British TV show The Old Grey Whistle Test below, followed by the studio version:
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