From: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org (onlyJMDL Digest) To: onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Subject: onlyJMDL Digest V2009 #148 Reply-To: joni@smoe.org Sender: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk Archives: http://www.smoe.org/lists/onlyjoni Websites: http://www.jmdl.com http://www.jonimitchell.com Unsubscribe: mailto:onlyjoni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe onlyJMDL Digest Tuesday, June 2 2009 Volume 2009 : Number 148 ========== TOPICS and authors in this Digest: -------- SJC Dave & Robin [missblux@googlemail.com] Joni Covers, Volume 113 - Covers Is Bustin' Out All Over [Bob Muller ] Re: Local San Diego interview with Dave & Robin [Michael Paz ] Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? [Gerald Notaro ] Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? [Bob Muller ] Joni Mitchell on BBC Radio 3 This Saturday [Jamie Zubairi Home Subject: Joni Covers, Volume 113 - Covers Is Bustin' Out All Over OK, keeping my promise to do better this month - and I'm happy to do so for another fine edition of Joni covers, Volume 113 in the never-ending series. I've passed 2,800 and am still counting - not sure when I'll break the 3,000 mark but I'm sure that I will before too long, especially at the rate that I've been discovering them of late. Thanks to the folks who helped bring this to you - Mark-Leon, Owen, Paul and I hope I'm not forgetting anyone, thanks a bunch. As is always the case, this CD's worth of Joni tunes comes from all over the place, old stuff and new, and features a variety of sonic stylings. Here's the stinky linky: http://tinyurl.com/m8u4so And here's what's on the menu this month: 1. Ken Husbands - Blue: All you JMDLer's looking for Husbands, look no further...nyuk nyuk nyuk. All kidding aside, this is yet another beautiful cover of one of Joni's prettiest melodies. Ken plays jazz-style electric guitar and his vocalist is top-notch as well. 2. Woodstock - Coyote: 3. Woodstock - Chelsea Morning: Woodstock is an English band, covering Joni's music as well as that of CSNY. They stick pretty close to the originals but do a good job of them. They've also offered up "Blue" and "Night Ride Home" which are featured on another volume. 4. Contrast - Both Sides Now: Having been recorded 40 years ago, this one's older than many of you! Don't know much about the band but they do a good, peppy job with the franchise and throw in a nifty psychedelic guitar solo to boot. The vocals to me sound inspired by the Davy Graham cover which is possible since Graham's cover came out in 1968. In any event, this one's a keeper. 5. Laura Lamun - Woodstock: Besides being a singer, Laura is also a "rainbow-headed spreader of light" and will sell you virtually any new-age product you want. When she sings that she is stardust, she really means it, and she'll sell you a jar to help whatever ails you. And her recording is a good one, she nails some high notes and her band helps her drive it home. 6. Owen Duff - My Secret Place: JMDL'er Owen Duff shared this one and I'm glad he did as it's the only cover we have of this one to date. An original arrangement and Owen's voice is pleasant, reminding me of Glenn Tillbrook (Squeeze) at times. 7. Lua Hadar With Twist - All I Want: NYC area Cabaret singer and performer Lua Hadar gives us a dramatic cabaret-style version of All I Want, her band The Twist swings it pretty nicely as well. 8. Tutu Puoane - A Case Of You: From South Africa, Tutu Puone turns in a hushed and pretty take on ACOY, making an interesting (and appropriate) lyric change from "a map of Canada" to "a map of Africa". 9. Pete Murray Orchestra - Chelsea Morning: While this one sounds dated & cheesy, it's from 2008. It comes from a CD of background musical instrumentals, so it's literally elevator music. 10. Nick Charles - Both Sides Now: Hailing from the UK, Nick treats us to a very pretty guitar instrumental, I'm sure all of guitarists will enjoy this one. 11. Graham Blvd - Woodstock 12. Graham Blvd - Free Man In Paris 13. Graham Blvd - Help Me (I Think I'm Falling): Graham Blvd isn't a REAL group but rather are some kind of studio incarnation that exists solely to re-create hits and sell them in various compilations (Best of the 60's, Best of the Girl Groups, etc). Having said that, their interpretaions are not very creative but stay very close to the originals and they are OK, nothing too exciting or surprising in any of these. 14. The College Of St. Scholastica Madrigal Singers - Both Sides Now: Well now, what would a Covers Volume be without an old cheesy BSN cover? This one's actually not as bad as some...The College Of St Scholastica is located in Duluth, MN, and this one is also 40 this year. 15. Julie Mairs & Chris Stowell - For Free: This one dates to the mid-70's and comes from a very rare British folk LP. Julie sings (and her voice is quite lovely) and Chris (a former member of Westwind if anyone remembers them) handles all instruments, mostly soprano sax (in place of a clarinet) on this track. 16. Carl Dixon - Big Yellow Taxi: Well now, THIS is certainly an energetic version of BYT! Hailing from Canada, Carl really takes this over the top vocally, straining a bit for my tastes - maybe trying to emulate Brian Adams or something... 17. Dave Short - Twisted: Taken from his 2007 album "Sax Therapy" and featuring a 10-piece swing band take as well as some fine vocals by Noel Otten-Ross. 18. Kevin Tyler - Woodstock: This JMDL exclusive comes from a concert last year in Almont, Michigan, held to benefit The Literacy Centre in Imlay City, MI. Kevin's voice and guitar are both very nice and a welcome addition to Joni's 3rd most-recorded song, soon to break the 200 mark. 19. Jen Chapin & Rosetta Trio - Sunny Sunday: What a treat to discover another cover from TI! And it's a nice, simple presentation with an electric guitar as opposed to an acoustic. 20. Iselin - Both Sides Now: Last but not least is a pretty cover of BSN by this Norwegian singer and writer. Her voice is nice and she just sings the song without any embellishments emotionally or vocally which is just fine as it presents a kind of innocence to it I think. So that's it - hope you enjoy these, check out Joni Undercover if you want more info of any of these performers - I try to link to their websites when I can find them and Les has made the site very searchable and user-friendly. And feel free to drop a few coins in Les' tip jar while you're there, I'm sure he'd appreciate that. And remember folks - I don't record 'em, I just collect 'em. Back in 2 weeks with a Flashback edition! Bob NP: The Reivers, "Breathin' Easy" ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 07:41:57 -0700 From: Dave Blackburn Subject: Will You Take Me As I Am? I thought Michelle did well with trying to get beyond the typical rock bio in the book. Such books are frequently either gossipy or gushy, making extravagant claims of original invention for the artist the author admires. She avoids this clichi. I think she does some good literary context analysis of the songs and conveys a pretty well rounded image of Joni the person as she currently is, having interviewed her on several occasions recently; not always flattering either.... While the lyric analysis had its strengths I felt her musical analysis was much weaker. I don't know if Mercer is a schooled musician or gathered remarks from schooled musicians to put into her book, but she wanders into territory she's not really qualified in. She, and Lloyd Whitesell for that matter, get caught up in music theory from the 18th century, which was suited to music that was harmonically simple and followed certain strict forms. In a post jazz world, that music theory is inadequate to analyze contemporary music, as I discovered myself in Jazz School. Certainly Joni uses tunings unfamiliar to pop/rock players and ends up with voicing clusters that are fresh and innovative, but most of her harmonic movement is diatonic or employs simple chromaticism that is logical. Exceptions which are truly inventive harmonically would be The Jungle Line and the long instrumental interlude of Paprika Plains, but neither gets much mention in Mercer's book. Speaking of omission, the whole Hissing album gets surfed over in the rush to get to Hejira. The transition Joni made between C&S and Hissing is radical on many levels and deserves to be the central study of any discussion of the "Blue period". And yet it is basically missing. Yes, Hejira was a return to autobiographical writing, and as such bookends the period Mercer chooses to study, but HOSL is the big exception in the Blue to Hejira series and deserves special treatment. DJRD was in many ways the follow up to Hissing, and even more ambitious. I think Hissing didn't fit with Mercer's neat package of autobiographical albums that allowed her to sum them up as the "Blue period" so she simply gave it a wide berth. For me that was a big disappointment. Dave Subject: Will You Take Me As I Am? I was going to wait until I finished the book to post, but I have to say I think it is an incisive and captivating book. Her interest in Wayne Shorter and writing a book about him first probably elevates the level of writing beyond the biographical details of what she did with whom and when, but more into the why. Her failure is limiting Joni to the feminist vision, a mistake Joni herself often point to of her analysers. Joni's genius of both lyric and music is certainly more universal than that. Feminists have much to thank Joni for, but she was never so limited or limiting. Despite that, I still think it is an excellent read. - - -- Jerry> ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 10:39:23 -0500 From: Michael Paz Subject: Re: Local San Diego interview with Dave & Robin This was really fun to listen to. I can't wait to play with Dave again. Paz On May 29, 2009, at 9:01 PM, Lindsay Moon wrote: Dave, I just finished listening to your interview with George Varga of the San Diego Union-Tribune. It was just wonderful and you both sounded great!! Congratulations and I hope it brings in many audience members! I've put the link below. I recommend it highly!! Lindsay http://media.signonsandiego.com/general/media/audio/fib-20090529.mp3 Michael Paz michael@thepazgroup.com Tour Manager Preservation Hall Jazz Band http://www.preservationhall.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 14:59:38 -0700 (PDT) From: Monika Bogdanowicz Subject: Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? Yes, that it did. Just as Hissing got skipped in Woman of Heart & Mind--something I was very disappointed about. It is an important album and in my opinion, Joni's best. Now that is subjective but it was a great change during Joni's immense popularity... - -Mon - --- On Mon, 6/1/09, Dave Blackburn wrote:\ Speaking of omission, the whole Hissing album gets surfed over in the rush to get to Hejira. The transition Joni made between C&S and Hissing is radical on many levels and deserves to be the central study of any discussion of the "Blue period". And yet it is basically missing. Yes, Hejira was a return to autobiographical writing, and as such bookends the period Mercer chooses to study, but HOSL is the big exception in the Blue to Hejira series and deserves special treatment. DJRD was in many ways the follow up to Hissing, and even more ambitious. I think Hissing didn't fit with Mercer's neat package of autobiographical albums that allowed her to sum them up as the "Blue period" so she simply gave it a wide berth. For me that was a big disappointment. Dave Subject: Will You Take Me As I Am? I was going to wait until I finished the book to post, but I have to say I think it is an incisive and captivating book. Her interest in Wayne Shorter and writing a book about him first probably elevates the level of writing beyond the biographical details of what she did with whom and when, but more into the why. Her failure is limiting Joni to the feminist vision, a mistake Joni herself often point to of her analysers. Joni's genius of both lyric and music is certainly more universal than that. Feminists have much to thank Joni for, but she was never so limited or limiting. Despite that, I still think it is an excellent read. - - -- Jerry> ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 18:28:08 -0400 From: Gerald Notaro Subject: Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? I think Hissing confuses them all, just as it did her fans at the time. It just didn't neatly fit into any pattern or trend, unlike Blue, which according to Michele, was a theological, cultural and historical emergence (AKA The Age of Aquarius!) Jerry On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 5:59 PM, Monika Bogdanowicz wrote: > Yes, that it did. Just as Hissing got skipped in Woman of Heart & > Mind--something I was very disappointed about. It is an important album > and > in my opinion, Joni's best. Now that is subjective but it was a great > change > during Joni's immense popularity... > -Mon > > --- On Mon, 6/1/09, Dave Blackburn wrote:\ > > > > Speaking of omission, the whole Hissing album gets surfed over in the rush > to > get to Hejira. The transition Joni made between C&S and Hissing is radical > on > many levels and deserves to be the central study of any discussion of the > "Blue period". And yet it is basically missing. Yes, Hejira was a return to > autobiographical writing, and as such bookends the period Mercer chooses to > study, but HOSL is the big exception in the Blue to Hejira series and > deserves > special treatment. DJRD was in many ways the follow up to Hissing, and even > more ambitious. I think Hissing didn't fit with Mercer's neat package of > autobiographical albums that allowed her to sum them up as the "Blue > period" > so she simply gave it a wide berth. For me that was a big disappointment. > > Dave > > > > From: Gerald Notaro > Subject: Will You Take Me As I Am? > > I was going to wait until I finished the book to post, but I have to say I > think it is an incisive and captivating book. Her interest in Wayne Shorter > and writing a book about him first probably elevates the level of writing > beyond the biographical details of what she did with whom and when, but > more > into the why. Her failure is limiting Joni to the feminist vision, a > mistake Joni herself often point to of her analysers. Joni's genius of both > lyric and music is certainly more universal than that. Feminists have much > to thank Joni for, but she was never so limited or limiting. Despite that, > I > still think it is an excellent read. > - -- > Jerry> > - -- Jerry ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 15:34:39 -0700 (PDT) From: Bob Muller Subject: Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? And FWIW, I enjoy Hissing much more and it's even more cohesive thematically. Bob NP: Dave & Robin, "Night Ride Home" (from the radio thingy - y'all sound great of course!) - ----- Original Message ---- From: Gerald Notaro To: Monika Bogdanowicz Cc: Dave Blackburn ; Joni people! Sent: Monday, June 1, 2009 6:28:08 PM Subject: Re: Will You Take Me As I Am? I think Hissing confuses them all, just as it did her fans at the time. It just didn't neatly fit into any pattern or trend, unlike Blue, which according to Michele, was a theological, cultural and historical emergence (AKA The Age of Aquarius!) Jerry On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 5:59 PM, Monika Bogdanowicz wrote: > Yes, that it did. Just as Hissing got skipped in Woman of Heart & > Mind--something I was very disappointed about. It is an important album > and > in my opinion, Joni's best. Now that is subjective but it was a great > change > during Joni's immense popularity... > -Mon > > --- On Mon, 6/1/09, Dave Blackburn wrote:\ > > > > Speaking of omission, the whole Hissing album gets surfed over in the rush > to > get to Hejira. The transition Joni made between C&S and Hissing is radical > on > many levels and deserves to be the central study of any discussion of the > "Blue period". And yet it is basically missing. Yes, Hejira was a return to > autobiographical writing, and as such bookends the period Mercer chooses to > study, but HOSL is the big exception in the Blue to Hejira series and > deserves > special treatment. DJRD was in many ways the follow up to Hissing, and even > more ambitious. I think Hissing didn't fit with Mercer's neat package of > autobiographical albums that allowed her to sum them up as the "Blue > period" > so she simply gave it a wide berth. For me that was a big disappointment. > > Dave > > > > From: Gerald Notaro > Subject: Will You Take Me As I Am? > > I was going to wait until I finished the book to post, but I have to say I > think it is an incisive and captivating book. Her interest in Wayne Shorter > and writing a book about him first probably elevates the level of writing > beyond the biographical details of what she did with whom and when, but > more > into the why. Her failure is limiting Joni to the feminist vision, a > mistake Joni herself often point to of her analysers. Joni's genius of both > lyric and music is certainly more universal than that. Feminists have much > to thank Joni for, but she was never so limited or limiting. Despite that, > I > still think it is an excellent read. > - -- > Jerry> > - -- Jerry ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 2 Jun 2009 01:05:29 +0100 From: Jamie Zubairi Home Subject: Joni Mitchell on BBC Radio 3 This Saturday http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00kss3c This programme will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Saturday June 6th at 1600 British Summertime. I suspect it'll be available to listen to in their iPlayer for a week afterwards: Singer Christine Tobin guides Alyn Shipton through the jazz-oriented repertoire of Joni Mitchell, including her work with Wayne Shorter, Jaco Pastorius, and Herbie Hancock. Mitchell often employed jazz musicians on her recordings, but she was also fascinated by Charles Mingus, making an album of his music shortly before his death. - -- Jamie Zubairi Actor, Painter, Photographer. Feel like supporting a World Record Attempt while giving to charity? go to: http://www.justgiving.com/zooby Jamie Zubairi can be found for voice-overs at http://uk.voicespro.com/jamie.zubairi1 acting CV and showreel at http://uk.castingcallpro.com/u/81749 agent: http://www.pelhamassociates.co.uk 01273 323 010 Website: http://www.jamiezubairi.co.uk Randomly Related Blog: http://jamiezubairi.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 17:51:43 -0700 (PDT) From: Bob Muller Subject: Re: Joni Mitchell on BBC Radio 3 This Saturday That should be a good listen...Christine has turned in a couple of fab Joni covers with her own band...."The Priest" & "A Chair In The Sky" - whoa, talk about going for the deep tracks... Bob NP: Dave & Robin, "A Case Of You" (and hey, thanks for the shout-out there Dave. Can't believe you muffed the Colloseum 2 question, I was hanging my head in shame. :oD) ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 1 Jun 2009 20:43:26 -0500 From: Mark Domyancich Subject: Looking for people on DAT tape trees Hey everyone, If there's anyone out there who was apart of the DAT tape trees years ago and still has their copies, would you please get in touch? Looking to replace all this analog I acquired like 11 years ago. Thanks a bunch, Mark Domyancich ------------------------------ End of onlyJMDL Digest V2009 #148 ********************************* ------- Post messages to the list by clicking here: mailto:joni@smoe.org Unsubscribe by clicking here: mailto:onlyjoni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe