Patti Smith, Easter (1976)

Patti Smith cowrote her first big hit, "Because the Night," with Bruce Springsteen, and that track was the force behind this album's ascent of the U.S. Top 40. Never fully departing from her punk-poetess roots, Easter was nonetheless produced by hit maker Jimmy Iovine, resulting in a more accessible overall sound than her earlier work. Her vocal gymnastics and dramatic rock & roll sensibilities threw sparks in every direction, with the vitriolic "Rock N Roll Nigger" and the anthemic "Till Victory" further paving the way for punks and women rockers everywhere. Churchly keyboards and huge drums drive Smith's quest for "a reason to live" on the religiously inquisitive "Privilege" and she's unabashedly sexy on the raunchy "25th Floor." A great work all around. --Lorry Fleming