Gavin James - River

It's coming on Christmas, they're cutting down trees, and covering River again.

Kathryn Williams on Joni Mitchell

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/nov/05/bob-dylan-nobel-favourite-songwriter

Drowned In Sound on Blue

http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4150366-the-friday-fangasm--blue-by-joni-mitchell

Ashley Monroe covers River

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/see-ashley-monroes-delicate-cover-of-joni-mitchells-river-20151215

Goldie Hawn - Carey

I just learnt from Rolling Stone that Goldie Hawn released an album in 1972 and it included a cover of Carey:

James Taylor reminisces about working on Blue

http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/james-taylor-it-was-wonderful-working-with-joni-mitchell-69137

Robert Downey Jr - River

via Bob Lefsetz, I've just discovered that Robert Downey Jr did a heartfelt cover of River when he was on Ally McBeal:

Linda Ronstadt's cover of River

from her 2000 album A Merry Little Christmas

some "get well soon Joni" pieces that discuss Blue

This is why Joni Mitchell is your favourite musician's favourite musician - this article points out that Taylor Swift named her album Red in tribute to Blue

The Express (?) do a list of essential Joni tunes including the best of Blue

Stay With Us, Joni. We're Not Done Yet - includes a nice explanation of what Blue means to the author

Seven essential Joni Mitchell songs, including River and A Case Of You

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-32143868

Vanity Fair's oral history of Laurel Canyon

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/02/laurel-canyon-music-scene?curator=MusicREDEF#13

Story songs: The Last Time I Saw Richard

This AV Club list of 26 songs that are just as good as short stories includes a moving explanation of The Last Time I Saw Richard.

Carole King was recording “Tapestry” this week in 1971. Joni Mitchell was doing “Blue” in the room next door...

...according the Tumblr of David Hepworth's forthcoming book http://1971neveradullmoment.tumblr.com/

Here's a photo from the day Mitchell and James Taylor did the backing vocals for “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” at A&M Studios in Hollywood:

Idina Menzel covers River on Jimmy Fallon; abandons all subtlety

It's coming on Christmas, that time of year when people cover River

This one is by Jillette Johnson:

this Joni interview ends with a list of her best tracks

which includes four tracks from Blue, although not A Case Of You: http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/both-sides-now-joni-mitchell-looks-back-1.2016070?page=1

music industry commentator Bob Lefsetz wrote about Carey/Cary last night

http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2014/11/18/carey/

Marie Claire: "Mitchell didn’t just bare her soul for Blue, she mined it, digging deeper than any songwriter had ever dared."

and Blue is Taylor Swif't's favourite album of all-time.

http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/blogs/547779/the-story-of-joni-mitchell-s-life.html#QPgJ6VZ4kRLoSAij.99

the story behind Carey by Joni Mitchell

I loved reading this almost as much as I love listening to Carey by Joni Mitchell.

And here's Cary's perspective.

More on Cary Raditz is here.

here's more on Matala, plus what Joni was saying about Cary in 1972.

and finally:


Joni Mitchell's Matala, Crete from Matala Crete on Vimeo.

Beth Orton covers River

Is is that time of year already when people cover River? Anyway, the wonderful Beth Orton does a good job of it.

Listen here: http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2014/11/05/beth-orton-covers-joni-mitchells-river-for-holiday-playlist-exclusive-premiere/

Sean O'Hagan article in the Observer

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/oct/26/joni-mitchell-blue-hissing-summer-lawns-court-spark-hejira-dylan

Sean's argument is that Joni's five albums from Blue to Hejira surpass the work of her contemporaries, but the best thing about the article was this comment which, like the comments on the Matala blog, make me wish, and feel like, I was there.

Pauline Black from the Selecter is playing some of her favourite records on BBC 6 Music right now

including Blue (the track) by Joni

this very long article contains a nice mention for Joni and Blue in the fourth-to-last paragraph

http://reprints.longform.org/justin-timberlake-has-a-cold

Passenger, The Once and Stu Larsen cover A Case Of You in Vancouver

Lovely

The Ten Joni Mitchell Songs Everyone Should Know by CBC

http://www.cbc.ca/books/2014/09/the-10-joni-mitchell-songs-everyone-should-know.html - not including A Case Of You - hmm.

Mine would be:

1. A Case Of You
2. River
3. Carey
4. Blue
5. The Last Time I Saw Richard
6. California
7. All I Want
8. My Old Man
9. Big Yellow Taxi
10. Both Sides Now

Tourist

The electronic musician Tourist included Carey in his Bedroom Mix on Annie Mac's Radio 1 show last night.

He raved about Joni at some length and said "I've always loved Joni Mitchell. I don't know why she speaks to me so much but she really does." [me too]

"She is the yardstick by which all musicians should be judged."

"This is a song about being reunited with a friend who's been away from some time" [it's not, but still]

"I just love the way she sings, the way she intonates between the two notes, is beautiful."

Annie confessed that she needed an education in Joni (get on it Annie), and Tourist told her that "Blue is the perfect introduction".

Jamie Scott the songwriter on Blue, quoted in Music Week

Talking about the music his parents listened to, Music Week say:

'One album that still stands out to him from that time is Joni Mitchell’s Blue, the first he can remember his mum playing. “That’s kind of my Holy Grail as a songwriter,” he says. “I just really love writing music and it’s all about lyric and melody to me and truth and
honesty and that is why [One Direction hit] Story Of My Life has done so well because it’s an honest song. It’s not trying to be anything other than it’s a really honest song about life and everything can connect to it and that is really why I hold Blue up as the Holy Grail of albums because you couldn’t get anything more honest.

“That album got me into Carole King, got me into Tapestry. It really opened the door to a load of music for me. When I think of music I think of  Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, James Taylor. I think of these singer songwriters who sit down and write really honest music.”'

a moving piece about what Blue meant and means to one person

http://themusic.com.au/blog/music/2013/11/12/good-or-shit-joni-mitchell-songs-are-like-tattoos/

HAze - River

nice new cover

The Arts Desk on the best of Joni Mitchell

featuring several songs from Blue (including This Flight Tonight, surprisingly), and Elvis Costello's biographer discussing what an influence Blue was on him:

http://www.theartsdesk.com/new-music/listed-best-joni-mitchell

here's a video of images from Matala, set to a live version of Carey

Joni Mitchell's Matala, Crete from Matala Crete on Vimeo.

The Joni Mitchell generation: James Blake, Corinne Bailey Rae and others pay tribute

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/the-joni-mitchell-generation-james-blake-corinne-bailey-rae-and-others-pay-tribute-8915548.html

Blue is no. 1 on the Huffington Post's list of 10 albums every woman should own

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/10/17/10-albums-every-woman-should-own_n_4113759.html

Rita Wilson talks about why she loves Blue (the song) so much

http://www.npr.org/2013/09/30/226908392/music-that-moves-rita-wilson

Henson Recording Studios is the current incarnation of A&M Studios, where Blue was recorded

http://www.hensonrecording.com/

slick cover of River by Paul Diello

Clare Maguire covers The Last Time I Saw Richard

When I first heard Clare's demos they were heavily influenced by Joni Mitchell, but by the time she made her debut album, that influence was not so evident

Rufus Wainwright's two covers of songs from Blue at the Luminato tribute

All I Want:



A moving rendition of A Case Of You (audio only):

four people listen to Blue, three of them get it

http://afyccim.com/joni_mitchell/

Joni Mitchell and Brian Blade interviewed at Luminato Festival

more about the interview below and the effect Blue had on people

Joni says: "If you listen to that music and you see me, you're not getting anything out of it. If you listen to that music and you see yourself, it'll probably make you cry and you'll learn something about yourself, and now you're getting something out of it.

"When I realised how popular I was becoming it was right before Blue and I thought 'Oh my god, a lot of people are listening to me. Well then they'd better find out who they're worshipping. Let's see if they can take it. Let's get real.' So I wrote Blue which horrified a lot of people and then it created a lot of attention that was really weird and so then I bought a property in British Columbia and dropped out. Because what had happened is they're looking at me, and all I've done is reveal human traits but they haven't seen themselves in it. At the point that they see themselves in it, the communication is complete. At the point where they're looking at me it's like taste of blood, it's like Marilyn Monroe on a tightrope or something.

"Blue is considered a classic now, but at the time? No, they were horrified. Kris Kristofferson went 'Joni, keep something of yourself'. Johnny Cash said 'The world is on your shoulders'. The game was to make yourself larger than life; don't reveal anything human, and my thing was why? It has been done in film. But the trouble is, I'm the playwright, I'm the actress, and I want them to look at the play and see past it, but it's such an intimate art form and I'm revealing so much of it that all the attention is going to me, which is insane from my point of view, because you're not going to get anything out of it if you look at me. You've got to see yourself in it, otherwise it has no value."

The New Yorker article she refers to about a "black woman" (Zadie Smith) learning to love Blue is here.

a new interview with Joni Mitchell on Canadian TV

CBC say "This week we were excited to present Jian's broadcast exclusive interview with Joni Mitchell in advance of her tribute concert, "Joni: A Portrait in Song" at Toronto's Luminato Festival.

We've just posted video of the revealing interview inside Mitchell's Los Angeles home. Watch Mitchell open up about how she dealt with fame, her fight to remain original, and how painting shaped her approach to songwriting.

The interview will be airing on CBC on Sunday at 1pm and interview segments can be found below

Visit the Q Blog for behind-the-scenes photos and more:

http://www.cbc.ca/q/blog/2013/06/11/joni-mitchell-portrait-of-an-artist/"

part 1:



part 2:



part 3:

just listening to A Case Of You because it features on James Lavelle's playlist on Spotify

No other music affects me in the way that Blue does. See below for the playlist - A Case Of You is track 83.

Listening again to Blue gives writer a case of Joni Mitchell

http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/music/2013/03/06/listening_again_to_blue_gives_writer_a_case_of_joni_mitchell.html

and here's Zadie Smith, as mentioned in the above piece, who also has a case of Joni Mitchell:

http://jonimitchell.com/library/view.cfm?id=2543

Why Joni Mitchell's 'Blue' Is the Greatest Relationship Album Ever

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/02/why-joni-mitchells-blue-is-the-greatest-relationship-album-ever/273147/

great article about A Case Of You from American Songwriter

Behind the Song: Joni Mitchell, “A Case of You”

here's an article about Leonard Cohen and A Case Of You

and here are two of the covers  mentioned in the first article

Diana Krall's:



Graham Nash's, live in Milan in 1992:

Joni Mitchell and Morrissey - a conversation with music

music + words, 1996

including:
you turn me on, i'm a radio
the circle game
river
the wolf that lives in lindsey
sex kills
come in from the cold
hejira
the reoccuring dream
both sides now
the magdalene laundries

an MTV article about the best covers of River

http://www.mtvhive.com/2012/12/11/best-joni-mitchell-river-covers/

a new cover of River by Blue Roses

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/14684-river-joni-mitchell-cover/

Top Ten Joni Mitchell Songs from Ultimate Classic Rock

http://ultimateclassicrock.com/joni-mitchell-songs/