Which punk icon wrote the song 'Because the Night'?

Patti Smith wrote 'Because the Night' with Bruce Springsteen.

Smith supplied the song's released identity and lyrics, making Patti Smith the canonical answer to the question, though Springsteen was an essential co-writer. Springsteen first recorded an unfinished version in 1977 during sessions for Darkness on the Edge of Town. At that stage, the song had a melody, title, and rough vocal ideas but lacked finished lyrics.

Producer and engineer Jimmy Iovine was working with both Springsteen and the Patti Smith Group. He gave Smith Springsteen's recording, and she wrote new lyrics that transformed the unfinished track into a passionate song about desire and intimacy. Smith recorded it with her band for the album Easter, and the Patti Smith Group released it as a single in March 1978.

The song became Smith's best-known hit, reaching No. 13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 in the United Kingdom. A common mix-up is naming Springsteen alone, because he originated the music and early draft. Another is treating Smith as merely the performer: the official writing credit belongs to both artists.