Both Sides Now
Joni Mitchell
Through most of my life I have struggled with Joni Mitchel. I have loved her music, struggled with her music, cried at her lyrics, disagreed with her lyrics, saw beauty in the melody and her voice, been bothered by the way she sang a song, dismissed her just to later wonder how I could not be listening to her all the time. I’ve instantly loved some of her work, and hated others, but then grown to love it all. I have changed my opinions on some songs and albums over time, and others have stayed at the heart of my tastes.
Throughout all of that time and struggle, one thing I can tell you is that she is one of the most important pop, folk, and even rock artists of the last century. Her influence and steadfastness in her art have changed the world. What else could an artist want?
She has 10 Grammy Awards, she has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Rolling stone called “one of the greatest songwriters ever.” Allmusic stated, “When the dust settles, Joni Mitchell may stand as the most important and influential female recording artists of the late 20th Century.” In the 2021 Rolling Stone list of greatest albums ever record, her album “Blue” from 1971 is listed at #3.
She began singing in nightclubs and coffeehouses in the mid-sixties and began recording a few years later. I will not go into her biography here; you can find that in countless places. Her life and her relationships are recorded in her art and music. The song “Little Green” off her Album “Blue” is both one of the saddest songs ever recorded, and the most loving. The story behind that song was keep personal to Joni and she didn’t share the story for decades until an old roommate of Joni’s from her art school days sold the story to a tabloid and she was forced to talk about it. You can look up that story is you don’t know it. But listen to the song first.
Both Sides Now
I tell you all this just to share these two videos. One from 1970 at Isle of Wight Festival, and the other from just a few days ago when Joni Mitchel performed a surprise 13-song set at the Newport Folk Festival with the support of many well-wishers and performers. If you know of her at all, I’m soon you have seen the videos of her set at Newport, they are everywhere right now. She has not performed in years and had to relearn the guitar after a brain aneurysm in 2015. She now spends her time at her L.A. home working on her painting (she has said that this is her real love and art), and archival projects.
Listen to this song sung on stage at both sides of her life and career.
