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Post by petea on Mar 9, 2020 14:37:16 GMT
 My all-time favourite album by Joni Mitchell is "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter", but this is probably my second favourite. I chose this instead though as it is a single album rather than a double and has a more 'standard' structure (ie, without a long instrumental etc). Apparently written during three long car journeys and following a break-up with a relatively long-term lover, it also starts the period in which she collaborated with jazz musicians rather than rock session players and is also the first time she worked with Jaco Pastorius: his fretless bass and her distinctive guitar sound dominates the album (and those that followed, until his untimely death). The album is part autobiography, part travelogue and contains songs such as "Amelia" in which she uses a 'discussion' with Amelia Earhart and her recollections of time spent driving through the desert to exorcise her break-up with John Guerin. Another song is about the time she met bluesman 'Furry' Lewis, and so on through the album. So, although not strictly a 'concept album' there is a theme linking the collection of songs and the style is quite consistent. A more in-depth analysis can found on Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hejira_%28album%29If you are unfamiliar with the albums by Joni Mitchell I think a good follow-on is "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" and, the prior album, "The Hissing of Summer Lawns", which, although different is style, is the beginning in some ways of her more complex, story-based writing I often think. Live performances such as "Shadows and Light" are certainly worth exploring too as are some of her rarer, solo performances. tidal.com/browse/album/68699895open.qobuz.com/album/0603497907120 |
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Post by Tim on Mar 9, 2020 15:23:26 GMT
I play Joni fairly often and can never fully decide on a favourite album out of the 15 I have, but mostly probably 'The Hissing of Summer Lawns', other days it's 'Blue' or 'For the Roses' and sometimes this one - so hard, as they are all so good. I'd rate both 'Blue' and 'THoSL' 5/5 I'd give this 4.5/5 if it were possible, so gave it a 4.
Probably a bit more accessible for a newcomer than the others I mentioned, so a darned good album to pick for Album Club I'd say  |
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Post by petea on Mar 9, 2020 15:40:10 GMT
Me too, and it was a difficult choice. I have been playing "For the Roses" and "Blue' a lot recently as well as "THoSL". Both have also long been at the top of the list and the recent purchase of the 'high res." remasters has prompted be playing them more. The album of her that I probably play the least, despite it being the first of hers that I heard, is "Court and Spark".
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Post by Tim on Mar 9, 2020 16:17:10 GMT
You've' started something now . . . after playing Hejira I now have THoSL on and it's going to be Blue next followed by more . . . . looks like it's Joni night |
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Post by MartinT on Mar 9, 2020 20:23:01 GMT
Oh goody, it's on Qobuz in hi-res. I know quite a lot of it from listening to Shadows and Light quite a lot. I don't need much excuse to play Joni so I'll be back later.
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Post by MartinT on Mar 9, 2020 20:32:29 GMT
I'd forgotten how good the interplay between guitars is on Amelia.
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Post by Slinger on Mar 10, 2020 22:36:19 GMT
I never really "got" Joni. OK, not strictly true, what I never got was why she was as hugely popular as she was... or is, I suppose. I bought Blue because it was obligatory for anyone in my age-group to own it, rather like Carole King's "Tapestry," on which Joni sung background vocals, coincidentally. James Taylor also appeared on both.
I liked her better the jazzier she got, but then everything started sounding the same to me.
I think my favourite Joni album is Shadows and Light, the 1980 live album she put out with Pat Metheny and Jaco Pastorius (and Michael Brecker). In fact, the high point of Hejira for me was Jaco's fretless playing on the title track. It's a good album, not a great album, as far as I'm concerned. So... Good, but I prefer others.
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Post by ChrisB on Mar 10, 2020 22:55:33 GMT
I love all of her albums up to and including this one. From here, although I love jazz, her output takes a rapid slide for me. But i guess the word 'jazz' captures together an awful lot of stuff that shouldn't really be in a single pigeon-hole (...pigeon-holes...grrrr!).
I haven't played this one is quite some time though, so I'll need to give it a revisit before I comment too much.
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Post by MartinT on Mar 11, 2020 7:28:25 GMT
I'd forgotten how good the interplay between guitars is on Amelia. ...and also on Furry Sings the Blues. A great album but I can't quite give it full marks so 4/5 from me. |
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Post by Barrington on Mar 23, 2020 19:07:15 GMT
I struggle with Joni , I've got Blue which I like but it took me a long time , all the others I've heard including this one don't grab me .
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Post by ChrisB on Mar 23, 2020 21:20:55 GMT
Had a couple of re-listens to this. I agree with Martin on the guitar interplay and I had forgotten just how densely it packs the lyrics in!
I went for 4/5.
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