Patti Smith 5-18-96 late night TV performance

Patti Smith sings a song and recites a poem in a late night TV performance broadcast 5-18-96. The BetaGems channel also has "Patti Smith & Fred Sonic Smith (MC5) 4-17-90 Radio City Music Hall," as well as an entire playlist of uploads called "Live Music On TV 1990s." BetaGems are culled from an archive of over 1000 beta video tapes recorded from 1983 into the 1990s. Most feature live music performances broadcast on television in San Diego CA, though there are also rarely seen commercials, comedy clips, and other material that doesn't seem to be anywhere else on Youtube or online. Most of the tapes were recorded on a Sony SL-HFT7 Super Beta Theater Hi-Fi Stereo - the same model was refurbished and is being used for these digital transfers and uploads. In rare occasions where a BetaGems clip does appear elsewhere, we're only uploading if our own beta master is better quality or contains material not seen previously. Much footage comes from public television and public access broadcasts that the taper, who worked for a local cable TV production company in the 1980s, monitored nightly for several years. Some of the programming is strictly regional, mostly from the San Diego area.

Added 9 Apr 2026