When we got to the part where we had to improvise an argument in a poetic language, I got cold feet. "I can't do this," I said. "I don't know what to say." "Say anything," he said. "You can't make a mistake when you improvise." "What if I mess it up? What if I screw up the rhythm?" "You can't," he said. "It's like drumming. If you miss a beat, you create another." In this simple exchange, Sam taught me the secret of improvisation, one that I have accessed my whole life.

Smith has recorded a cover of Buddy Holly's classic "Words of Love" for the CD Rave On Buddy Holly a tribute album tied to Holly's seventy-fifth birthday year which was released June 28 2011. A box set of her work up to that time The Patti Smith Masters came out in 1996 and 2002 saw the release of Land (1975–2002) a two-CD compilation that includes a memorable cover of Prince's "When Doves Cry". In the winter of 2004/2005 Smith toured again with Nader in a series of rallies against the Iraq War and called for the impeachment of George W.

On November 17 2010 Patti Smith won the National Book Award for her memoir Just Kids. Called the "Godmother of Punk" her work was a fusion of rock and poetry.