Fifty two years ago, I saw Joni Mitchell in concert at The Isle of Wight Festival. There she was. Young and vulnerable, alone upon the stage in the middle of the afternoon when some sort of crazy anarchist guy ran on to the stage and grabbed Joni's microphone in the middle of a song. The watching audience were appalled and Joni was visibly upset. It was all that she could do to carry on.
Over half a century later and just four days ago, she came back from the dead to appear on stage at The Newport Folk Festival in the US state of Rhode Island. Sitting upon a kind of throne and surrounded by acolytes, she seemed happy to revisit some of her old songs. She was no longer alone and it was clear that those up on stage with her revered her like a living goddess. After all, only a goddess could write songs like "Both Sides Now", "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock", "A Case of You", "The Last Time I Saw Richard", "California" and "The Circle Game".
After her shocking brain aneurysm in 2015 and tales of her imminent demise, it was almost miraculous to see moving imagery of her resurrection. Joni Mitchell is not dead. She is still with us. Her broad smiles seemed to indicate that she thoroughly enjoyed being back at Newport basking in all the acclaim and the light from so many happy faces.
Folk Goddess. Amazing.
ReplyDeleteI would have also paid homage to her if I had been in Newport last weekend.
DeleteHi, nice to meet you! I can't imagine a more lovely thing than this right now. They do love and admire Joni. She was a staple of my youth.
ReplyDeleteThanks for calling by Sandra. You had good musical tastes.
DeleteI'd knew of JM previously of course, but it was when I first heard Court and Spark I realised how original she was. And the band too - both bass guitarists are incredible.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was obsessed with music, it was in fact the lyrics that meant the most to me and Joni Mitchell was a true wordsmith. I first encountered her in 1968.
DeleteLuckily, for her audiences, whenever her time comes, her music will last several more lifetimes.
ReplyDeleteI hope you are right Bob.
Delete'Big Yellow Taxi' I still play it....'They paved paradise and put up a parking lot' Is the word prescient to be used here I wonder as we face another challenge? Voices from the past.
ReplyDeleteWe have known about climate change and the wanton destruction of our natural environment for decades and yet we did next to nothing. "Whose Garden Was This?" - Tom Paxton.
DeleteI'm not a fan, but I am pleased that she is still up there and singing.
ReplyDeleteI listened to her album "Blue" until it was almost worn out. I knew every word by heart.
DeleteStill one of my favorite albums ever!
Delete'Both Sides Now' was the first of her songs that I remember and is still a favourite. 'Big Yellow Taxi' must have been one of the first popular environmental songs.
ReplyDeleteI first heard "Both Sides Now" on The Simon Dee Show (Dee Time) - sung by Judy Collins - not Joni. That was in 1967. It was a memorable moment in my love affair with music.
DeleteIt's amazing that she has kept going but rather sad to see the state she is in now. We played the Circle Game at Greg's funeral as he was a great Joni Mitchell fan.
ReplyDeleteGreg had good taste...
DeleteAnd the seasons, they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We're captive on the carousel of time
We can't return, we can only look
Behind, from where we came
And go round and round and round, in the circle game
She has obviously worked so hard and she has come so far in recovery from a brain aneurysm. She is a testament to the human spirit and the power of friendship and of music.
ReplyDeleteI let your words stand without extra comment.
DeleteIt was heartening to see her perform again and so touching to hear her sing "Both Sides Now," with its theme of the changing aspects of life and love and loss over time.
ReplyDeleteHow could such a young woman write such a song? I estimate she was 22 or 23 when she wrote it.
DeleteA very emotional moment.
ReplyDeleteIn all the depressing news, Joni's candle glowed brightly again.
DeleteShe's been recording since before I was born, so I've always known her thoughtful music; and as someone who also grew up in Saskatchewan, she's always inspired me. Seeing her in concert again was moving.
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