In 1977 Bruce Springsteen Gave This Unfinished Song To Patti Smith — And It Became Her Signature Hit

In the late 70s, Bruce Springsteen handed off a song that he'd struggled to write and then abandoned to Patti Smith, who added lyrics, got it into shape, and made it into not just a major hit, but the one song she's most associated with, and for which she's been the most celebrated. "Because the Night," a Springsteen song that sounds even cooler today, was a collaborative effort by two musicians working completely independently. Springsteen allowed a tape of a rough instrumental with only the chorus lyrics —including the eventual title — to be passed along to Smith via a recording industry associate in common in 1977. Inspired by a real-life relationship, Smith penned deeply felt and urgent lyrics about a magical connection between defiant lovers that were as enchanting as Springsteen's spooky, repeating piano line.

An important punk figure, modern poet, and inductee into the controversial Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Smith only ever scored one Top 40 hit, and it was "Because the Night." Here's the story of how a fragment of a song that one rock legend couldn't crack became a triumphant artistic and commercial achievement in 1978 for another icon, Patti Smith.

Bruce Springsteen stopped working on a song at first titled "The Night Belongs to Lovers" and then "Because the Night (Belongs to Lovers)" because he didn't feel like he wrote very good love songs at the time. But his associate and studio engineer Jimmy Iovine had gotten hold of the demo for "Because the Night," and believed it had potential. He'd tried to get Springsteen to write material for Smith, but after the results weren't gelling, Iovine gave Smith — who'd requested he produce the "Easter" album for the Patti Smith Group — the tape of the incomplete "Because the Night." 

Smith was so taken with Springsteen's melody and chorus that, as she listened to the music for hours, she thought about her partner and future husband, MC5 member Fred "Sonic" Smith, who owed her a phone call from the road. As she waited for the call that came five hours after the agreed-upon time that night, she'd composed the verses for "Because the Night," included on "Easter" and issued as its first single.

In the summer of 1978, Smith's "Because the Night" peaked at No. 13 on the Hot 100. It's since been covered dozens of times, notably by 10,000 Maniacs, a '90s band we completely forgot. They included "Because the Night" in their 1993 "MTV Unplugged" set, and that version charted higher than the original, making it up to No. 11.