From: les@jmdl.com (JMDL Digest) To: joni-digest@smoe.org Subject: JMDL Digest V2004 #330 Reply-To: joni@smoe.org Sender: les@jmdl.com Errors-To: les@jmdl.com Precedence: bulk Unsubscribe: mailto:joni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe Archives: http://www.smoe.org/lists/joni Websites: http://www.jmdl.com http://www.jonimitchell.com JMDL Digest Monday, August 2 2004 Volume 2004 : Number 330 ========== TOPICS and authors in this Digest: -------- The Beginning of Survival ["Mark or Travis" ] Re: The Beginning of Survival [Catherine McKay ] Kerry, I'll put on some silver. NJC [LCStanley7@aol.com] Offer: Perpetual Joni Covers Train: Volumes 31-40 of JM Covers [Doug ] Re: The Beginning of Survival [Randy Remote ] Re: something happening here . . . njc PC ["Kate Bennett" ] Re: Songs that mention Joni [FredNow@aol.com] Today's Library Links: August 2 [ljirvin@jmdl.com] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 1 Aug 2004 00:35:36 -0700 From: "Mark or Travis" Subject: The Beginning of Survival First of all, forget about the painting that's on the cover for the moment. The stuff that's inside is gorgeous. Some of the most beautiful of Joni's paintings that I have seen reproductions of. Lush and ravishing, colorful scenes of woodlands, water, trees, foliage, rocks. Wonderfully detailed and masterfully rendered. I'm no art critic but I think her painting is marvelous, distinctively her own and she continues to hone her skills and grow as an artist. This is no mere marketing ploy to make a buck or suck people in. It is a carefully thought out and constructed collage. Thematically, the songs flow nicely from one into the next. True, it is all previously released material that most of us already have on other cds. You can reproduce this on your computer's cd burner and not have to pay to own the music. But, for what it's worth, and I realize many of you will think it isn't worth much, would you have thought of choosing this particular group of songs and sequencing them in this particular way? Ok, so it's not like composing a whole cd's worth of new songs but it isn't tossing off a 'greatest hits' collection to make a quick buck or fulfill a contractual obligation either. Overall, it is beautifully packaged and I think this is something that has always been important to Joni. The last few releases have been very generous with the artwork and the quality of the packaging (with the exception of the 'Both Sides Now' candy box - nice idea but badly executed). But if that isn't particularly important to you and you already have all of the songs on the other cds, I guess there's really no reason for you to buy this one. I didn't find an essay from Joni in this cd anywhere aside from the music itself. Am I missing something? I was very moved by Chief Seattle's letter. As I read it I found myself picturing all of the many natural wonders that he was writing about and reflecting that I have been lucky enough to live amongst them for the last 26 years. Seattle wondered what will happen to the earth when it becomes overcrowded with humans and the bounty of nature has been depleted. He concludes that this will be the end of living and the beginning of survival. I read this as meaning the beginning of mere survival, not really living, not finding any joy in life. The spirit of this world cannot heal and rise. All that is left is the day to day struggle to survive. Thematically the songs on this record are perfect illustrations of how the human race is headed in this unfortunate direction. Maybe the cover isn't supposed to be attractive or pretty. This is not a collection of pretty songs. The landscape behind Joni is colorless and featureless especially compared to the paintings on the inside. The perspective is odd, Joni doesn't look particularly happy and she's boxed in, confined by the frame. I wonder if she is showing us what the beginning of (mere) survival might look like on the cover and on the inside she is showing us what is at stake, what we have to lose. I was very impressed with the quality of the sound. I heard percussive sounds in the song 'Dog Eat Dog' that I don't remember hearing before and the tracks from 'Dog Eat Dog' and 'Chalk Mark In A Rain Storm' really do benefit from the remastering. I am now seriously thinking that I do need to get the Geffen box set. For me, anyway, hearing 'The Beginning of Survival' gives the lie to any contention that Joni's 80s work is somehow inferior or not up to snuff. This music is skillfully produced and has as much depth to it as anything Joni has done, in my opinion. She stepped out of many people's comfort level of where they want her to be with those records. I do think it's odd that some people don't seem to want Joni to express anger or a political opinion. Why? Why is it ok for other artists like Dylan, for instance, to do this but not for Joni? I also wonder if she chose the image from the Gap ad as a bit of an ironic comment on her own occasional lapses and imperfections. The first two songs on the cd are very pointed indictments of consumerism and greed. Maybe she's saying, 'I'm human. I can be just as bad as anybody else.' Maybe not. Only Joni knows for sure. Before I found the cd at Circuit City, I had been to Best Buy first. They were sold out and when they checked to see if their other store in the Seattle area had any in stock, they were sold out too. I think I got the last one at Circuit City. Maybe this release really will generate some sales for Joni and keep her Geffen catalogue in circulation. I do hope that people who haven't kept up with Joni pick this cd up if for no other reason than just to hear 'Magdalene Laundries'. Some of the uninitiated might be surprised by the power, insight and beauty of this music. And some who think they already know it might be surprised as well if they try listening to it with an open mind. Mark E. in Seattle ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Aug 2004 10:02:47 -0400 (EDT) From: Catherine McKay Subject: Re: The Beginning of Survival --- Mark or Travis wrote: > First of all, forget about the painting that's on > the cover for the moment. The stuff that's inside > is gorgeous. Some of the most beautiful of Joni's > paintings that I have seen reproductions of. [...] > This is no mere marketing ploy to make a buck or > suck people in. It is a carefully thought out and > constructed collage. [...] I do think it's odd > that some people don't seem to want Joni to express > anger or a political opinion. Why? Why is it > ok for other artists like Dylan, for instance, to do > this but not for Joni? > Thanks, Mark, for your well-thought-out review of this CD. You almost make me want to change my mind, both about this and the Geffen box (I'm waiting for a price break on that one!) You make some great points about both the music and the artwork. The squareness and boxiness and cut-offed-ness of the cover art bothered me, but you make a good argument for its being a deliberate choice on Joni's part. Personally, I like angry and political Joni. Life isn't all about moons and Junes and ferris wheels in any case, and whatever mood she's in, Joni makes you think. ===== Catherine Toronto - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We all live so close to that line, and so far from satisfaction ______________________________________________________________________ Post your free ad now! http://personals.yahoo.ca ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Aug 2004 11:08:44 EDT From: LCStanley7@aol.com Subject: Kerry, I'll put on some silver. NJC Deb wrote: I'm hoping that some of those independents who dislike Bush but "didn't know enough" about Kerry might have had a similar reaction. Hi Deb! Your hope is a reality with me, but I have been finding out about Kerry through reading interviews of him because I didn't hear his speech at the convention. Eventually, I'll read the speech I suppose. So far, I'm more excited about Kerry than about any other presidential candidate I can remember. Love, Laura ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Aug 2004 12:34:01 -0400 From: Doug Subject: Offer: Perpetual Joni Covers Train: Volumes 31-40 of JM Covers I still have this set for anyone needing it. Doug Eric's original post: In order to enable latecomers to the list or new traders have a chance of listening to Bob Muller's incredible compilation of covers of Joni's songs - some 1500 in all - this begins the launch of the Perpetual Joni Covers Trains. For those not familiar with trading trains, here is how they work. When the disks come to you, you make copies of as much of the contents as you want, and then you post back to this list offering to pass the disks along to the next person. You do not keep the originals -- you keep the copies you made for yourself. On most trains, the convention is that you make the copies and send the masters along within two days. For these trains, you must agree to turn them around within one week. Sometimes the offer goes unclaimed. Bob and I expect that to happen from time to time. So, by participating, you agree to just hang on to the disks and then make another offer a month or so later (or to respond if somebody posts a grovel looking for them). In theory, if everybody takes good care of the disks, wrapping them well, not letting them get scratched, etc. and passes them along, these covers will run on the tracks for years. Bob copied 50+ disks for me to launch this and I have copied them so there is a LOT of time sunk into offering these up. Nobody is going to monitor the progress of these trains so if you participate and then lose the disks or fail to reoffer them, you will have kept others from enjoying them. When you post an offer, please include these "rules". One final note, I know a few folks like to compress these into MP3s. If you want to, go ahead but please do not send MP3s to the next person - MP3s permanently delete some of the "data" and sound quality degrades so please pass the masters along. So, anybody who would like to receive volumes 41-50, please send me: 1. Your mailing address and 2. Your promise to reoffer, etc. If you want to know what is on the disks, please see this link: http://www.jmdl.com/covers/byvolume.cfm . ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Aug 2004 20:18:55 -0400 From: "Lama, Jim L'Hommedieu" Subject: Re: From The Buffalo News I had forgotten that Joni told Kakki that she wanted to write but found herself blocked. Her wind is certainly diminished too. Now when I add in her presence in reissues it all makes sense. As Jim Leonard said, "Joni still wants to be a part of the marketplace - of the music industry - no matter what she says about the evil record companies." She's a reluctant retiree. All the best, Lama ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 01 Aug 2004 17:54:32 -0700 From: Randy Remote Subject: Re: The Beginning of Survival Mark, I appreciate your detailed assessment of BOS, the first one on jmdl, I think (?). Just one thing. We have to stop referring to it as "Chief Seattle's letter". He never wrote such a letter, and this was written by a screenwriter for a 70's environmental movie. True, it was drawn in part from a speech Seattle gave (the accuracy of which is also in question), but much of it was made up much more recently. Not to say the words are any less meaningful. You may have missed the discussion on this when the initial BOS press release came out. It's an urban myth Joni apparently was not aware of. Again, thanks for your eloquent review. RR Mark or Travis wrote: > First of all, forget about the painting that's on the cover for the moment. The stuff that's inside > is gorgeous. Some of the most beautiful of Joni's paintings that I have seen reproductions of. > I was very moved by Chief Seattle's letter. As I read it I found myself picturing all > of the many natural wonders that he was writing about and reflecting that I have been lucky enough > to live amongst them for the last 26 years. Seattle wondered what will happen to the earth when it ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 1 Aug 2004 19:45:48 -0700 From: "Kate Bennett" Subject: Re: something happening here . . . njc PC Debra>It was good to see James Taylor and Stephen Stills being interviewed last night after the convention and hearing them talk about their support of the Dems. Stills was saying that CSN (and maybe even Canadian) Y, are planning to do something, maybe a concert in October, in support of the Democrats.< I hear young is going out on this tour (for change) with bruuuuce, rem, dave m & pearl jam... amazing as young has for a long time been a republican as far as I know... ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 2 Aug 2004 06:40:24 +0200 From: "Ron" Subject: refuge of the roads dvd review hi this from the latest village records newsletter: JONI MITCHELL REFUGE OF THE ROADS Despite what some reviewers would have you believe not everything Mitchell does is the greatest thing you'll ever hear. However, let this reviewer say that when she gets it right she has no equal. This tour souvenir is one of those times. From her 1983 tour this concert film showcases what she does best. This era captures her fusions of jazz and rock with her singer songwriter style in a captivating way. Beautiful 5.1 sound and PCM stereo make this one sound better than it did then. Several extras make this one a complete package for a bargain price. Shout Factory $14.99 Ships August 24 ron ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 Aug 2004 01:08:37 -0400 From: FredNow@aol.com Subject: Re: Songs that mention Joni Hi Bob, Musaic was never released on CD. I do have one copy on CD-R that a fan made for me, but the quality is not the best; it was copied from an LP on a turntable that ran fast. All best, Fred In an email dated 16/7/2004 11:30:29 am GMT Daylight time, SCJoniGuy writes: >**Simon and Bard- Musaic- from 1980 > >Hi Stephen - is that available on CD, do you know? > >Bob ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 02 Aug 2004 02:05:37 -0400 From: ljirvin@jmdl.com Subject: Today's Library Links: August 2 On August 2 the following article was published: 1991: "Guitar fest set for Seville" - BPI Entertainment News Wire (News Item) http://www.jmdl.com/articles/view.cfm?id=1115 ------------------------------ End of JMDL Digest V2004 #330 ***************************** ------- Post messages to the list by clicking here: mailto:joni@smoe.org Unsubscribe by clicking here: mailto:joni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe ------- Siquomb, isn't she? (http://www.siquomb.com/siquomb.cfm)