![[smiling w/hat]](joni2.jpg)
Jon Ragel 1994 [source][Up: Favorite music] [Robot Wisdom home page]
Jon Ragel 1994 [source]
New: long art w/pix, art show, tour dates ditto, plus cable tribute
New: Salon profile
News: tribute special and next albums
NEWS: Wally Breese has died at age 47, creator of http://www.jonimitchell.com/
NEW: Official site for new CD, w/RealAudio samples
1943: 7 Nov, born Roberta Joan Anderson in Ft. McLeod, Alberta, Canada (only child of grocer Bill and schoolteacher Myrtle)
raised in the city of Saskatoon [memories]
1951: piano lessons inspired by Frankie McKitrick
1953: hospitalized with polio; starts to smoke
1956: English teacher Mr. Kratzman teaches her to write poetry
learned guitar from Pete Seeger book (invented different tunings to compensate for polio-weakened left hand
c1961: "Lambert, Hendricks and Ross were my Beatles"
1963-64: one year at Alberta College of Art in Calgary; ukulele
1964: playing Judy Collins covers in Calgary coffeehouses
1964: Toronto; worked at dept stores
1965: February daughter born; March married Chuck Mitchell; April gave up daughter for adoption
1965: summer, moved to Detroit
1965: August first song "Day by Day"
1966: plays Newport Folk Festival; divorced
1966: [review]
1967: moves to NYC; managed by Elliot Roberts; signed by Reprise [pix]
An anonymouse offers:
"I saw Chuck & Joni Mitchell at their first performance at the famous Club 47 in Harvard Square, Cambridge, sometime around 1968 (guessing). I was a fan of Tom Rush, and had heard his versions of her songs, in particular I loved Urge For Goin'. At that show Chuck & Joni played separate sets and did not perform together at all. Her set was just her singing and playing acoustic guitar, the songs were all her own compositions. His set was divided about equally into 2 genres - folky ragtime traditional songs, which he sang while playing a 12-string, and Brecht/ Weill songs, on which he used a classical guitar. Musically the 2 styles were quite different, but lyrically there were interesting connections. I thought he was a prety good performer and enjoyed his set as much as Joni's."
1967: moves to LA, lives with David Crosby [DC interview]
1968: self-titled debut album, produced by David Crosby [article], [pix]
1968: Judy Collins hit cover of "Both Sides Now"
1969: "The Johnny Cash Show" (ABC)
1969: lives with Graham Nash; skips Woodstock [art]; [pix?], [pic]; article, ditto
1969: Clouds reaches Top 40, Grammy
1970: Isle of Wight Festival
1970: Ladies of the Canyon radio hit "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock" article
1970: takes year off, travels in Europe
1970? relationship with James Taylor
1971: Blue [alternate version] [handwriting]
1971: moved to British Columbia
1972: tours with Jackson Browne [art], ditto; article, ditto, ditto; [pix]
1974: tours with Tom Scott and LA Express [pix]; review, ditto
1974: cover of Time
1975: living in Bel Air with John Guerin (LA Express drummer) [art]
1975: tours with Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review
1976: breaks up with Guerin; road trip; connects with Jaco
Pastorius [JP discography], ditto; [Bel Air pix]
1976: The Last Waltz (the Band's farewell concert/film) [info]
1977: [pix]
1978: contacted by Charlie Mingus [slideshow]
1978: visits Georgia O'Keefe; Bread & Roses Fest [info]
1979: January death of Mingus; May No Nukes concert [info], UC Jazz Fest [info]
1979: art featured in book [art]
1980: Bread & Roses Fest [info]
1980: writes and stars in 15min segment of film, "Love" (unreleased)
1981: Juno awards [pix]; Caribbean interlude; approaches The Police to collaborate
1982: slideshow; [pix]
1982: switches to Geffen records; marries bassist Larry Klein [pix]
1983: pix; world tour slideshow
1984: exhibits at Kamikaze Gallery in NYC [art]
"The '80s were particularly difficult for me, between illness and greed. Everybody close up on me betrayed me for money. Everybody. There was not an exception. From the government of California to my bank, everyone robbed me. My business manager. My personal manager. My housekeeper!" [cite]
1985: writes "Ethiopia" for relief album [info]
1985: changes to Peter Asher management; auto accident; Farm Aid [info]
1985: Dog Eat Dog release party with show at James Corcoran Gallery [slideshow]
1985: 'Rock Master Class' in London
1986: records "My Secret Place" at Peter Gabriel's UK studio
1986: Amnesty International benefit [pix]
1987: death of Jaco Pastorius [interview w/wife]
1988: [pix]; [art show], [art]; [in Italy]
1989: wins Grammy [slideshow]; [pix]
1986 acoustic set at Amnesty International (she was a last-minute substitute for Pete Townshend) was cut short when the crowd, obviously unfamiliar with her work, booed her.
1990: Berlin The Wall concert [pix]
1990: tribute revue at L.A. Theater Center [pix]; Gap ad; [slideshow]
1991: VH-1 Night Ride Home special; Sting's birthday [pix]
1991: video collection: Come In From The Cold [info]
1992: Liz taylor's birthday [pix]; tribute album [info]
1993: Troubadours of Folk concert [pix]
1993: separated from Larry
1993: Milton Berle's birthday [pix] ; [art] ; [art]; [pix]
1994: concert in Japan [info]; Edmonton [info], [press conference]; Toronto; London
1994: disclosed postpolio syndrome
1995: AIDS benefit [slideshow]; Gene Autry museum; Jay Leno; Letterman; New Orleans
1995: synth-guitar saves her from quitting music [interview]
1996: Chrissie Hynde and Carly Simon fistfight at Fez concert [info], ditto, ditto
1996: Billboard tribute [article], award, ditto; CBS [pic]; Leno
1996: Canadian TV; two Grammies; [slideshow]
1996: Canadian radio; unauthorized bio; Letterman; birthday; Rosie O; interview, ditto; Swedish prize
1997: interview; interview; reunion w/daughter; Hall of Fame; [pix]
1998: joins Dylan tour [news], ditto, review, ditto
1998: Chicago folk school [pic]
1998: fan fest; birthday
1998: TV special [report]
(If you grew up with Joni's music, these album titles are also a map of your own memories.)
Big Yellow Taxi: Dylan anecdotes
Woodstock: study questions
Alternate version included still-unreleased song
Mojo magazine's "100 Greatest Albums Ever Mad" put Blue at #18.
James Taylor (purportedly the subject of "Blue" and, from For the Roses, "See You Sometime")
Background on 'Carey'
accompanied by the jazz-fusion band L.A. Express (including Tom Scott)
Mojo magazine's "100 Greatest Albums Ever Mad" put The Hissing of Summer Lawns at #78
Furry Sings the Blues: Furry's own anger
"This record followed on the tail of persecution, it's experimental, and it didn't really matter what I did, I just had to fulfill my contract"
Larry Carlton and Wayne Shorter, augmented by a group of Latin percussionists (including Airto)
rejected title: Chair in the Sky
info; lyrics; later interview; cover
dying of Lou Gehrig's disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Mingus invited Mitchell to collaborate with him. She set lyrics to some of the last melodies Mingus wrote.
"It was a terrible career move. I was warned that it was a terrible career move, too. My management was able to foresee that. I could not believe that, so I proceeded anyway. I just couldn't believe that I was going to be excommunicated, which is what happened. I was basically viewed as a traitor." [cite]
Mingus website; review of new biog
featured a band including Jaco Pastorius
of Weather Report and jazz-rock
guitarist Pat Metheny and the a cappella
vocal group the Persuasions, also met
mixed reviews.
Coproduced by Thomas
Dolby, the album featured appearances
by Michael McDonald ("Good Friends")
and actor Rod Steiger
Peter Gabriel ("My Secret Place"),Willie Nelson, and Tom Petty and Billy Idol ("Dancing Clown")
Todd Rundgren RealAudio interview
Yvette in English backgrounder
40min Morrissey RealAudio interview
interview w/drummer; MTV RealVideo
review; reviews; review,review, review, review, review
Joni sings 'Summertime' and 'The Man I Love'
Amazon incl RealAudio clip of 'Man'
Official site w/RealAudio
Tracks: "You're My Thrill" "At Last" "Comes Love" "You've Changed" "Answer Me, My Love" "A Case Of You" "Don't Go To Strangers" "It All Depends On You" "I'll Get By" "Stormy Weather" "I Wish I Were In Love Again" "Both Sides Now"
Cool anecdote: see 8Feb entry
unreleased; rarities; discography; movies; jazz tribute
articles; reviews; MTVnews articles
Technique: guitar interview
guitar tunings; ditto, ditto; MIDIs; book
unauthorized bio, review; blurb, Amazon page
reunion w/daughter: articles; fansite, news report
guest appearances; others' covers; Dylan connections; Hendrix connections; Seal connection
short bios: Jam; RoughGuide; birthday; fan
fanpages: classy, ditto; thorough; Dutch; jazz; smoker fetish; fan; ASCAP; fan; fan
Big Yellow Taxi single:
Amazon page
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