a case of you
Nov. 7th, 2006 10:51 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jawnbcHappy birthday Joni Mitchell!
Painter, singer and one of the truly original and brilliant songwriters of all time. Someone who never compromised artistic integrity for profit or self-aggrandizement. Detached from the cult of celebrity, yet willing to use her voice to highlight issues. And, first and foremost, a Saskatchewan girl whose work is infused with the landscapes of the Prairies--even when writing about Los Angeles, Paris or New York. Many credited Joni as "the voice of her generation", a moniker she never seemed to take seriously, not treat flippantly. She just did her thing--and never forgot how priviledged she was to earn her living from expressing her voice.
I came to the Mitchell camp late in the game; in Australia, paradoxically. After years of hearing others blather on about Blue, I came across it in a bargain bin. On the first listen I found it disjointed, even difficult to listen to...because Blue is decidedly not background music--I was being drawn in. Pop, folk, blues, a bit of jazz--it's all there. Complex, textured, but wholly listenable songs. And above it all, her crystal clear voice.
Which sadly she's destroyed through years of heavy smoking.
I had hoped to find a video her singing "A Case of You" live, but the only version on YouTube is from when the ravages of smoking were already taking its toll. But I did find this one. Here she is singing "Chelsea Morning" on the Beeb in the early 70s:
And here's another. In the era of Band Aid and We Are the World, Canadian artists also did a record for famine relief in Africa. "Tears are Not Enough" was co-penned by Bryan Adams and David Foster, and pretty much every popular (mostly anglo, but a handful of franco) Canadian musician participated. As you can see, Joni didn't think she was too cool for this sort of thing (nor did Neil Young, or Robert Charlebois or Gordon Lightfoot):
Joni Mitchell no longer considers herself an (active) musician. She spends much of her time painting, either at her house on BC's Sunshine Coast, or in her LA digs. I hope she's having a great day. Because she's certainly enhanced so many of ours'.
Painter, singer and one of the truly original and brilliant songwriters of all time. Someone who never compromised artistic integrity for profit or self-aggrandizement. Detached from the cult of celebrity, yet willing to use her voice to highlight issues. And, first and foremost, a Saskatchewan girl whose work is infused with the landscapes of the Prairies--even when writing about Los Angeles, Paris or New York. Many credited Joni as "the voice of her generation", a moniker she never seemed to take seriously, not treat flippantly. She just did her thing--and never forgot how priviledged she was to earn her living from expressing her voice.
I came to the Mitchell camp late in the game; in Australia, paradoxically. After years of hearing others blather on about Blue, I came across it in a bargain bin. On the first listen I found it disjointed, even difficult to listen to...because Blue is decidedly not background music--I was being drawn in. Pop, folk, blues, a bit of jazz--it's all there. Complex, textured, but wholly listenable songs. And above it all, her crystal clear voice.
Which sadly she's destroyed through years of heavy smoking.
I had hoped to find a video her singing "A Case of You" live, but the only version on YouTube is from when the ravages of smoking were already taking its toll. But I did find this one. Here she is singing "Chelsea Morning" on the Beeb in the early 70s:
And here's another. In the era of Band Aid and We Are the World, Canadian artists also did a record for famine relief in Africa. "Tears are Not Enough" was co-penned by Bryan Adams and David Foster, and pretty much every popular (mostly anglo, but a handful of franco) Canadian musician participated. As you can see, Joni didn't think she was too cool for this sort of thing (nor did Neil Young, or Robert Charlebois or Gordon Lightfoot):
Joni Mitchell no longer considers herself an (active) musician. She spends much of her time painting, either at her house on BC's Sunshine Coast, or in her LA digs. I hope she's having a great day. Because she's certainly enhanced so many of ours'.
