From: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org (onlyJMDL Digest) To: onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Subject: onlyJMDL Digest V2014 #72 Reply-To: joni@smoe.org Sender: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-onlyjoni-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk Website:http://www.jonimitchell.com Unsubscribe:mailto:onlyjoni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe onlyJMDL Digest Saturday, March 1 2014 Volume 2014 : Number 072 ========== TOPICS and authors in this Digest: -------- Re: Recent Joni photos [Gerald Kent ] RE: tunings ["Susan E. McNamara" ] Re: tunings [Michael Paz ] Re: For the Roses tunings [Dave Blackburn ] RE: Tunings ["Susan E. McNamara" ] Re: ["johnnybgoode@lineone.net" ] Re: Recent Joni photos [Catherine McKay ] Joni's guitars [Steve Dulson ] re: Tunings [c Karma ] re: Recent Joni photos (2) [c Karma ] RE: Gigs ["Susan E. McNamara" ] re: Recent Joni photos [c Karma ] Re: [Gerald Kent ] Re: Recent Joni photos [Catherine McKay ] Re: JMDL Digest V2014 #329 ["Marian" ] RE: tunings ["Susan E. McNamara" ] Fwd: Spot the Typos [jlhommedieu@insight.rr.com] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 10:01:38 -0500 From: Gerald Kent Subject: Re: Recent Joni photos I don't know about that one. It looks as though she is suffering severe clinical depression! Sent from my iPad > On Feb 28, 2014, at 9:56 AM, Catherine McKay wrote: > > Happiness is the best facelift. Not sure which photo people are referring to here but, in searching for recent photos, I came across this illustration. I kind of like Joni as a redhead: > http://eplet.se/2013/08/joni-mitchell-2/ > > From: Gerald Kent > To: "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" > Cc: Jeff Clark ; Mark ; joni > Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 8:33:26 AM > Subject: Re: > > Exactly my thoughts John! G > > Sent from my iPad > > > On Feb 28, 2014, at 4:22 AM, "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" wrote: > > > > G, > > > > Well the obvious answer is recovering from the surgery following > > the facelift:-) > > > > John > > > >> ----Original Message---- > >> From: > > gpkm6208@comcast.net > >> Date: 27/02/2014 22:24 > >> To: "Jeff Clark" > > > >> Cc: "Mark", "joni" > > > >> Subj: Re: > >> > >> RE: the recent photo of joni at the Clive > > Davis party. Does anyone think she looked suspiciously good? I > > thought she looked particularly bad lately, then suddenly, she looks > > great?? Well, I guess that's our Joni. Any comments? ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 17:16:19 +0000 From: "Susan E. McNamara" Subject: RE: tunings Of course, I completely agree that you can play these songs in the same way in different tunings as long as you are getting the same sound (I used argue with my ex about that all the time). For me it's always been "how is Joni playing it" more from a desire to really get into her creative spirit ... plus the tunings are such a great puzzle ... So I would say playing it how you want to play it as long as it sounds true to the song, or playing it just as Joni plays it in her tunings and her picking/strumming style are both completely valid ... plus I've been to Mutts concerts and there is everything right in the way Dave and Robin perform these songs!! I wish I had a recording of Friday night at Pazfest III in New Orleans (Dawntreader ... ahhh). I did get my book and turned immediately to Sweet Bird, which is one of the songs I'll be playing at the Joni tribute here in Ithaca on March 8. I think Joel's version is a bit simplified and has a number of differences from Marian's tab (which I'm using). He doesn't use the 10th and 8th fret fingerings at the end of the verses, which I think sounds better (and I agree with Marian that Joni plays it that way). Otherwise, it's the correct tuning and the chord shapes he uses are true to Joni's style. I just want to describe an experience I had the other day driving in my car, to illustrate why I love the way Joni Mitchell plays guitar. For me, one of the greatest periods of her mature performances was pre- VG8 when she was doing small venues to promote Turbulent Indigo, and my favorite example is the Gene Autry Museum Radio concert, January 26, 1995. She is constantly fussing with the tunings and explains about her Irish ear (listening in a lower frequency) and begging the audience to be patient. And the patience pays off because in each song she performs the guitar sings like a chorus of chimes ... but she does something in the middle of Facelift that really floored me ... she plays an interlude of variations on the same chord for a couple of minutes that sounds like an aural version of a rushing mountain stream ... that's the type of creativity that sends me ... that's why I think Joni Mitchell is a genius ... Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu - -----Original Message----- From: Dave Blackburn [mailto:beatntrack@att.net] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:14 AM To: Susan E. McNamara; JMDL JMDL Subject: Re: tunings I think that if the sonorities and the voicings are right, the tuning/fingering is a matter of preference, or on-stage convenience in my case. For example, I play Furry in drop D; It's the same notes as Joni's version but I can get into the tuning faster than using Joni's and the guitar is happier because the neck is not being torqued in a way that it was not built for. Same idea with Electricity and Cold Blue Steel which I do in double drop D, For the Roses in standard etc. For me Joni's exact tuning is not as much her cool innovation as her voicings, and those can be played in different ways, in many cases. Sometimes she chose a tuning that let her play the chords with one or two fingers, so ease was a factor; apparently her polio experience left her hand strength weaker. One another, but related note, I bet Joni would have loved having a baritone guitar, which are now commonplace but were rare in her heyday. All those slack strings and pitchy intonation issues go away when the guitar is meant to be dropped down a third or fourth. I played Hejira on a Brazilian rosewood baritone once and it was a whole different thing having it in tune. Dave On Feb 27, 2014, at 2:11 PM, Susan E. McNamara wrote: > I got my book yesterday but didn't get a chance to look at it yet. It is my understanding that Joel Bernstein, Joni's long time guitar technician, compiled and produced the book with Joni's imprimatur. Joni has said many times that she depended on Joel to keep an archive of her tunings because she didn't have time or the inclination to cling to old songs past! Although I stand behind some of the tried and true transcriptions on the JM.com site, I believe that there will be more than a couple differences between what we've come up with and what Joel believes is the way Joni played it. Plus I may be pleasantly surprised and find that, oh, maybe Joel got this one right and I'm wrong. I'm OK with that too. It's all a beautiful and fun process and I don't think we will be done soon studying our sublime Queen of Tunings. :-) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 12:47:11 -0600 From: Michael Paz Subject: Re: tunings I did record that night. I do not know if Dave will ever do anything with those recordings. I remember that period you are talking about and saw her a couple of times here in New Orleans and I agree that it was a great time for her guitar playing. On Feb 28, 2014, at 11:16 AM, Susan E. McNamara wrote: Of course, I completely agree that you can play these songs in the same way in different tunings as long as you are getting the same sound (I used argue with my ex about that all the time). For me it's always been "how is Joni playing it" more from a desire to really get into her creative spirit ... plus the tunings are such a great puzzle ... So I would say playing it how you want to play it as long as it sounds true to the song, or playing it just as Joni plays it in her tunings and her picking/strumming style are both completely valid ... plus I've been to Mutts concerts and there is everything right in the way Dave and Robin perform these songs!! I wish I had a recording of Friday night at Pazfest III in New Orleans (Dawntreader ... ahhh). I did get my book and turned immediately to Sweet Bird, which is one of the songs I'll be playing at the Joni tribute here in Ithaca on March 8. I think Joel's version is a bit simplified and has a number of differences from Marian's tab (which I'm using). He doesn't use the 10th and 8th fret fingerings at the end of the verses, which I think sounds better (and I agree with Marian that Joni plays it that way). Otherwise, it's the correct tuning and the chord shapes he uses are true to Joni's style. I just want to describe an experience I had the other day driving in my car, to illustrate why I love the way Joni Mitchell plays guitar. For me, one of the greatest periods of her mature performances was pre- VG8 when she was doing small venues to promote Turbulent Indigo, and my favorite example is the Gene Autry Museum Radio concert, January 26, 1995. She is constantly fussing with the tunings and explains about her Irish ear (listening in a lower frequency) and begging the audience to be patient. And the patience pays off because in each song she performs the guitar sings like a chorus of chimes ... but she does something in the middle of Facelift that really floored me ... she plays an interlude of variations on the same chord for a couple of minutes that sounds like an aural version of a rushing mountain stream ... that's the type of creativity that sends me ... that's why I think Joni Mitchell is a genius ... Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu - -----Original Message----- From: Dave Blackburn [mailto:beatntrack@att.net] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:14 AM To: Susan E. McNamara; JMDL JMDL Subject: Re: tunings I think that if the sonorities and the voicings are right, the tuning/fingering is a matter of preference, or on-stage convenience in my case. For example, I play Furry in drop D; It's the same notes as Joni's version but I can get into the tuning faster than using Joni's and the guitar is happier because the neck is not being torqued in a way that it was not built for. Same idea with Electricity and Cold Blue Steel which I do in double drop D, For the Roses in standard etc. For me Joni's exact tuning is not as much her cool innovation as her voicings, and those can be played in different ways, in many cases. Sometimes she chose a tuning that let her play the chords with one or two fingers, so ease was a factor; apparently her polio experience left her hand strength weaker. One another, but related note, I bet Joni would have loved having a baritone guitar, which are now commonplace but were rare in her heyday. All those slack strings and pitchy intonation issues go away when the guitar is meant to be dropped down a third or fourth. I played Hejira on a Brazilian rosewood baritone once and it was a whole different thing having it in tune. Dave On Feb 27, 2014, at 2:11 PM, Susan E. McNamara wrote: > I got my book yesterday but didn't get a chance to look at it yet. It is my understanding that Joel Bernstein, Joni's long time guitar technician, compiled and produced the book with Joni's imprimatur. Joni has said many times that she depended on Joel to keep an archive of her tunings because she didn't have time or the inclination to cling to old songs past! Although I stand behind some of the tried and true transcriptions on the JM.com site, I believe that there will be more than a couple differences between what we've come up with and what Joel believes is the way Joni played it. Plus I may be pleasantly surprised and find that, oh, maybe Joel got this one right and I'm wrong. I'm OK with that too. It's all a beautiful and fun process and I don't think we will be done soon studying our sublime Queen of Tunings. :-) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 08:11:46 -0800 From: Dave Blackburn Subject: Re: For the Roses tunings kmk, Yes, I play FTR in standard tuning at capo 1. Heres a live capture of us playing it at Holycombe Fest 08: http://tinyurl.com/lbe2udh Correction: Electricity (capo 3) and Cold Blue Steel I play in drop top D, not double drop D. On Feb 27, 2014, at 10:58 PM, kmk wrote: > Really? Without even bringing the 5th string down to a G? I've always played all 3 of those songs in CGDGBD - that low C comes in handy on For the Roses's Cminor, and I can hardly imagine doing the bass run in CBS&SF without it. But leaving that A in there would drive me nuts trying to work around it. > > > Date: Thu, 27 Feb 2014 22:13:49 -0800 > From: Dave Blackburn > Subject: Re: tunings > > I think that if the sonorities and the voicings are right, the tuning/fingering is a matter of preference, or on-stage convenience in my case. For example, I play Furry in drop D; Its the same notes as Jonis version but I can get into the tuning faster than using Jonis and the guitar is happier because the neck is not being torqued in a way that it was not built for. Same idea with Electricity and Cold Blue Steel which I do in double drop D, For the Roses in standard etc. For me Jonis exact tuning is not as much her cool innovation as her voicings, and those can be played in different ways, in many cases. Sometimes she chose a tuning that let her play the chords with one or two fingers, so ease was a factor; apparently her polio experience left her hand strength weaker. > > One another, but related note, I bet Joni would have loved having a baritone guitar, which are now commonplace but were rare in her heyday. All those slack strings and pitchy intonation issues go away when the guitar is meant to be dropped down a third or fourth. I played Hejira on a Brazilian rosewood baritone once and it was a whole different thing having it in tune. > > Dave ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 20:25:52 +0000 From: "Susan E. McNamara" Subject: RE: Tunings The picture of her from the concert at the website is small but the guitar is definitely not the Steve Klein. I think it's one of her Martins. You can see pictures of these guitars at this blog: http://uniqueguitar.blogspot.com/2013/01/joni-mitchells-guitars-and-tunings.h tml Here's the chronology write up on the Gene Autry concert: http://jonimitchell.com/chronology/detail.cfm?id=1664 Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu From: c Karma [mailto:ckarma@hotmail.com] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:19 PM To: Susan E. McNamara; Dave Blackburn; joni@smoe.org Subject: re: Tunings Sue wrote: For me, one of the greatest periods of her mature performances was pre- VG8 when she was doing small venues to promote Turbulent Indigo, and my favorite example is the Gene Autry Museum Radio concert, January 26, 1995. Was she back to using her Martin then or was it the Steve Klein? Did she use the Steve Klein on any recordings? For some reason I tend to think that DJRD and Mingus were the Klein. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 09:22:14 +0000 (GMT) From: "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" Subject: Re: G, Well the obvious answer is recovering from the surgery following the facelift:-) John >----Original Message---- >From: gpkm6208@comcast.net >Date: 27/02/2014 22:24 >To: "Jeff Clark" >Cc: "Mark", "joni" >Subj: Re: > >RE: the recent photo of joni at the Clive Davis party. Does anyone think she looked suspiciously good? I thought she looked particularly bad lately, then suddenly, she looks great?? Well, I guess that's our Joni. Any comments? > >Sent from my iPhone > >> On Feb 24, 2014, at 7:31 PM, Jeff Clark wrote: >> >> Hi Mark, I remember Joni saying about Two Grey Rooms that it was 7 years. I >> was sort making another bad joke (I have to not drink while posting), trying >> to compare a genius to Madona, but at the same time, pondering her muse and >> creative process. Like when she says a certain painting is never really >> finished. I would love for her to say what inspired >> certain songs. I doubt >> borderline took that long to write, but it is a very thoughtful song and one >> of my favorites. Best, Jeff >> >> >> >> On Monday, February 24, 2014 1: 04 AM, Mark >> wrote: >> >> Hi Jeff, >> >> Is it maybe 'Two Grey Rooms' >> that you are saying took 12 years for her to >> write?B I hadn't heard that >> about 'Borderline' but doesnbt mean that it >> isn't so (as if thinking makes >> things so!). B But I do know she had a chord >> progression and melody sketched >> out for 'Two Grey Rooms' that she didn't >> write lyrics for for a long time. >> Mark in Seattle >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Jeff Clark >> Sent: Sunday, >> February 23, 2014 6:45 PM >> To: joni@smoe.org >> >> >> ok, is this how you do it? i was >> just reflecting about Joni Mitchell's >> Borderline. From an artist's >> perspective, i was musing upon how some songs, >> paintings, whatever, mature >> and gestate in their appropriate time frame. >> While Man from Mars took 17 days >> to create, according to reports, Mitchell's >> "Borderline" may have taken 12 >> years, I don't know, you'd have to ask her. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 06:56:11 -0800 (PST) From: Catherine McKay Subject: Re: Recent Joni photos Happiness is the best facelift. Not sure which photo people are referring to here but, in searching for recent photos, I came across this illustration. I kind of like Joni as a redhead: http://eplet.se/2013/08/joni-mitchell-2/ >________________________________ > From: Gerald Kent >To: "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" >Cc: Jeff Clark ; Mark ; joni >Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 8:33:26 AM >Subject: Re: > > >Exactly my thoughts John! G > >Sent from my iPad > >> On Feb 28, 2014, at 4:22 AM, "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" wrote: >> >> G, >> >> Well the obvious answer is recovering from the surgery following >> the facelift:-) >> >> John >> >>> ----Original Message---- >>> From: >> gpkm6208@comcast.net >>> Date: 27/02/2014 22:24 >>> To: "Jeff Clark" >> >>> Cc: "Mark", "joni" >> >>> Subj: Re: >>> >>> RE: the recent photo of joni at the Clive >> Davis party. Does anyone think she looked suspiciously good? I >> thought she looked particularly bad lately, then suddenly, she looks >> great?? Well, I guess that's our Joni. Any comments? ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 17:10:53 -0500 From: Steve Dulson Subject: Joni's guitars I was at the 6/5/93 Troubadours of Folk show at UCLA. I'll take a look at my photos and see if I can ID the guitar. > Double dang ... at that point I didn't even have the JMDL to alert me to such > things. > > Susan Tierney McNamara > > From: Bob.Muller@fluor.com [mailto:Bob.Muller@fluor.com] > > in > over 10 years? > > > No - she played the Wells Fargo gig in January that year and a handful in '94 > including the Troubadours of Folk show. None of which I was in attendance for, > dang it. *************************************************** Steve Dulson Costa Mesa CA FAR-West (Folk Alliance Region - West) tinkersown@ca.rr.com www.far-west.org ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 18:18:40 +0000 From: c Karma Subject: re: Tunings Sue wrote:For me, one of the greatest periods of her mature performances was pre- VG8 when she was doing small venues to promote Turbulent Indigo, and my favorite example is the Gene Autry Museum Radio concert, January 26, 1995. Was she back to using her Martin then or was it the Steve Klein? Did she use the Steve Klein on any recordings? For some reason I tend to think that DJRD and Mingus were the Klein. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 15:47:29 +0000 From: c Karma Subject: re: Recent Joni photos (2) OR, she took the potion. CC ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 21:14:12 +0000 From: "Susan E. McNamara" Subject: RE: Gigs Double dang ... at that point I didn't even have the JMDL to alert me to such things. Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu From: Bob.Muller@fluor.com [mailto:Bob.Muller@fluor.com] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 4:12 PM To: Susan E. McNamara Cc: joni@smoe.org Subject: Gigs No - she played the Wells Fargo gig in January that year and a handful in '94 including the Troubadours of Folk show. None of which I was in attendance for, dang it. Bob NP: Stan Ridgway, "Behind The Mask" - ------------------------------------------------------------ The information transmitted is intended only for the person or entity to which it is addressed and may contain proprietary, business-confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient of this message you are hereby notified that any use, review, retransmission, dissemination, distribution, reproduction or any action taken in reliance upon this message is prohibited. If you received this in error, please contact the sender and delete the material from any computer. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of the company. - ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 15:45:49 +0000 From: c Karma Subject: re: Recent Joni photos It's just a little peroxide, spray tan and a good joke, folks. CC ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 08:33:26 -0500 From: Gerald Kent Subject: Re: Exactly my thoughts John! G Sent from my iPad > On Feb 28, 2014, at 4:22 AM, "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" wrote: > > G, > > Well the obvious answer is recovering from the surgery following > the facelift:-) > > John > >> ----Original Message---- >> From: > gpkm6208@comcast.net >> Date: 27/02/2014 22:24 >> To: "Jeff Clark" > >> Cc: "Mark", "joni" > >> Subj: Re: >> >> RE: the recent photo of joni at the Clive > Davis party. Does anyone think she looked suspiciously good? I > thought she looked particularly bad lately, then suddenly, she looks > great?? Well, I guess that's our Joni. Any comments? >> >> Sent from my > iPhone >> >>> On Feb 24, 2014, at 7:31 PM, Jeff Clark com> wrote: >>> >>> Hi Mark, I remember Joni saying about Two Grey Rooms > that it was 7 years. I >>> was sort making another bad joke (I have to > not drink while posting), trying >>> to compare a genius to Madona, but > at the same time, pondering her muse and >>> creative process. Like when > she says a certain painting is never really >>> finished. I would love > for her to say what inspired >>> certain songs. I doubt >>> borderline > took that long to write, but it is a very thoughtful song and one >>> of > my favorites. Best, Jeff >>> >>> >>> >>> On Monday, February 24, 2014 1: > 04 AM, Mark >>> wrote: >>> >>> Hi Jeff, > Is it maybe 'Two Grey Rooms' >>> that you are saying took 12 years for > her to >>> write?B I hadn't heard that >>> about 'Borderline' but > doesnbt mean that it >>> isn't so (as if thinking makes >>> things so!). > B But I do know she had a chord >>> progression and melody sketched > out for 'Two Grey Rooms' that she didn't >>> write lyrics for for a > long time. >>> Mark in Seattle >>> >>> >>> -----Original Message----- > From: Jeff Clark >>> Sent: Sunday, >>> February 23, 2014 6:45 PM >>> To: > joni@smoe.org >>> >>> >>> ok, is this how you do it? i was >>> just > reflecting about Joni Mitchell's >>> Borderline. From an artist's > perspective, i was musing upon how some songs, >>> paintings, whatever, > mature >>> and gestate in their appropriate time frame. >>> While Man > from Mars took 17 days >>> to create, according to reports, Mitchell's > >>> "Borderline" may have taken 12 >>> years, I don't know, you'd have to > ask her. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 08:29:35 -0800 (PST) From: Catherine McKay Subject: Re: Recent Joni photos I was trying to find the photo on which that one was based, but no luck there. It looks familiar and it's obviously a young Joni, so she probably was depressed. I used the google image search to find it and turned up lots of head shots of women with red hair, though. Didya notice Joni has a halo in this? St. Joni of Saskatoon, or Our Lady of The Fallen Angels. The dress she's wearing looks like the one from the cover of the new music book, so maybe it was taken at the same time and that's why it looks familiar. >________________________________ > From: Gerald Kent >To: Catherine McKay >Cc: "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" ; Jeff Clark ; Mark ; joni >Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 10:01:38 AM >Subject: Re: Recent Joni photos > > >I don't know about that one. It looks as though she is suffering severe >clinical depression! > >Sent from my iPad > >> On Feb 28, 2014, at 9:56 AM, Catherine McKay wrote: >> >> Happiness is the best facelift. Not sure which photo people are referring to >here but, in searching for recent photos, I came across this illustration. I >kind of like Joni as a redhead: >> http://eplet.se/2013/08/joni-mitchell-2/ >> >> From: Gerald Kent >> To: "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" >> Cc: Jeff Clark ; Mark ; >joni >> Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 8:33:26 AM >> Subject: Re: >> >> Exactly my thoughts John! G >> >> Sent from my iPad >> >> > On Feb 28, 2014, at 4:22 AM, "johnnybgoode@lineone.net" > wrote: >> > >> > G, >> > >> > Well the obvious answer is recovering from the surgery following >> > the facelift:-) >> > >> > John >> > >> >> ----Original Message---- >> >> From: >> > gpkm6208@comcast.net >> >> Date: 27/02/2014 22:24 >> >> To: "Jeff Clark" >> > >> >> Cc: "Mark", "joni" >> > >> >> Subj: Re: >> >> >> >> RE: the recent photo of joni at the Clive >> > Davis party. Does anyone think she looked suspiciously good? I >> > thought she looked particularly bad lately, then suddenly, she looks >> > great?? Well, I guess that's our Joni. Any comments? ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 19:53:51 +0100 From: "Marian" Subject: Re: JMDL Digest V2014 #329 It was some years ago that I was just by chance in the underground in Vienna and happened to see an ad for a Joni tribute concert scheduled for just a few days later. I was thrilled to find some Joni fans in Vienna and I went to the concert and took a bunch of photos. The singer was okay, but the musicians who accompanied her were amazing. The bass player, Reinhard Ziegerhofer, can play like Jaco Pastorius and switched between an upright bass, a fretless electric bass (with five strings, I think), and a standard electric bass during the concert. The guitarist managed to work out all of the sounds for the songs using standard tuning - it really sounded just as if Joni was on the stage playing with her simplified fingerings. I talked to the musicians after the concert and told them about JMDL and the guitar tabs. The guitarist later told me he wished he had known about it before the concert. The bass player and I became friends and I have been to several of his concerts. He played in an Austrian folk-jazz fusion band called Broadlahn for awhile, but then branched out into giving solo bass concerts of his own compositions. He also played with Joe Zaiwanul at some point and frequently plays with the symphony orchestra in Graz. He has also played bass for at least one other Joni tribute concert. I had a CD of this second concert, but I don't know what happened to it. It was very amazing. If I ever find it, I will send it to Bob to add to the covers collection. Anyway, it is totally possible to sound exactly like Joni without using her tunings - it's just a lot more challenging. Marian + + + + + + + + Sue wrote: - -----Original Message----- Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 17:16:19 +0000 From: "Susan E. McNamara" Subject: RE: tunings Of course, I completely agree that you can play these songs in the same way in different tunings as long as you are getting the same sound (I used argue with my ex about that all the time). For me it's always been "how is Joni playing it" more from a desire to really get into her creative spirit ... plus the tunings are such a great puzzle ... So I would say playing it how you want to play it as long as it sounds true to the song, or playing it just as Joni plays it in her tunings and her picking/strumming style are both completely valid ... plus I've been to Mutts concerts and there is everything right in the way Dave and Robin perform these songs!! I wish I had a recording of Friday night at Pazfest III in New Orleans (Dawntreader ... ahhh). ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 28 Feb 2014 20:27:44 +0000 From: "Susan E. McNamara" Subject: RE: tunings Wasn't that Jazz festival performance in New Orleans one of her first gigs in over 10 years? I would have loved to have been there!!! :) Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu From: Michael Paz [mailto:michael@thepazgroup.com] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:47 PM To: Susan E. McNamara Cc: Dave Blackburn; JMDL JMDL Subject: Re: tunings I did record that night. I do not know if Dave will ever do anything with those recordings. I remember that period you are talking about and saw her a couple of times here in New Orleans and I agree that it was a great time for her guitar playing. On Feb 28, 2014, at 11:16 AM, Susan E. McNamara wrote: Of course, I completely agree that you can play these songs in the same way in different tunings as long as you are getting the same sound (I used argue with my ex about that all the time). For me it's always been "how is Joni playing it" more from a desire to really get into her creative spirit ... plus the tunings are such a great puzzle ... So I would say playing it how you want to play it as long as it sounds true to the song, or playing it just as Joni plays it in her tunings and her picking/strumming style are both completely valid ... plus I've been to Mutts concerts and there is everything right in the way Dave and Robin perform these songs!! I wish I had a recording of Friday night at Pazfest III in New Orleans (Dawntreader ... ahhh). I did get my book and turned immediately to Sweet Bird, which is one of the songs I'll be playing at the Joni tribute here in Ithaca on March 8. I think Joel's version is a bit simplified and has a number of differences from Marian's tab (which I'm using). He doesn't use the 10th and 8th fret fingerings at the end of the verses, which I think sounds better (and I agree with Marian that Joni plays it that way). Otherwise, it's the correct tuning and the chord shapes he uses are true to Joni's style. I just want to describe an experience I had the other day driving in my car, to illustrate why I love the way Joni Mitchell plays guitar. For me, one of the greatest periods of her mature performances was pre- VG8 when she was doing small venues to promote Turbulent Indigo, and my favorite example is the Gene Autry Museum Radio concert, January 26, 1995. She is constantly fussing with the tunings and explains about her Irish ear (listening in a lower frequency) and begging the audience to be patient. And the patience pays off because in each song she performs the guitar sings like a chorus of chimes ... but she does something in the middle of Facelift that really floored me ... she plays an interlude of variations on the same chord for a couple of minutes that sounds like an aural version of a rushing mountain stream ... that's the type of creativity that sends me ... that's why I think Joni Mitchell is a genius ... Susan Tierney McNamara email: sem8@cornell.edu - -----Original Message----- From: Dave Blackburn [mailto:beatntrack@att.net] Sent: Friday, February 28, 2014 1:14 AM To: Susan E. McNamara; JMDL JMDL Subject: Re: tunings I think that if the sonorities and the voicings are right, the tuning/fingering is a matter of preference, or on-stage convenience in my case. For example, I play Furry in drop D; It's the same notes as Joni's version but I can get into the tuning faster than using Joni's and the guitar is happier because the neck is not being torqued in a way that it was not built for. Same idea with Electricity and Cold Blue Steel which I do in double drop D, For the Roses in standard etc. For me Joni's exact tuning is not as much her cool innovation as her voicings, and those can be played in different ways, in many cases. Sometimes she chose a tuning that let her play the chords with one or two fingers, so ease was a factor; apparently her polio experience left her hand strength weaker. One another, but related note, I bet Joni would have loved having a baritone guitar, which are now commonplace but were rare in her heyday. All those slack strings and pitchy intonation issues go away when the guitar is meant to be dropped down a third or fourth. I played Hejira on a Brazilian rosewood baritone once and it was a whole different thing having it in tune. Dave On Feb 27, 2014, at 2:11 PM, Susan E. McNamara > wrote: I got my book yesterday but didn't get a chance to look at it yet. It is my understanding that Joel Bernstein, Joni's long time guitar technician, compiled and produced the book with Joni's imprimatur. Joni has said many times that she depended on Joel to keep an archive of her tunings because she didn't have time or the inclination to cling to old songs past! Although I stand behind some of the tried and true transcriptions on the JM.com site, I believe that there will be more than a couple differences between what we've come up with and what Joel believes is the way Joni played it. Plus I may be pleasantly surprised and find that, oh, maybe Joel got this one right and I'm wrong. I'm OK with that too. It's all a beautiful and fun process and I don't think we will be done soon studying our sublime Queen of Tunings. :-) ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 1 Mar 2014 00:16:15 -0500 From: jlhommedieu@insight.rr.com Subject: Fwd: Spot the Typos Our story so far... Stereophile Magazine mentioned two of Joni's songs in a review of some stereo gear but they credited the songs to the wrong albums. I asked JMDLers to spot the typos. Several did. I forwarded one email to the editor, John Atkinson, and thanked him for mentioning Joni so often. Mr. Atkinson responded with heart and humor and humility. Jim L'Hommedieu Begin forwarded message: > From: stletters > Date: February 28, 2014, 4:16:56 PM EST > To: 'Jim L'Hommedieu' > Subject: RE: Re: Spot the Typos > And our faces are red! This was an error on the part of our copy editor, who is suitably ashamed. J > > John Atkinson > Editor, Stereophile > www.stereophile.com > > > > From: Jim L'Hommedieu [mailto:jlhommedieu@insight.rr.com] > Sent: Wednesday, February 19, 2014 11:29 PM > To: stletters > Subject: Fwd: Re: Spot the Typos > > We had a bit of harmless fun on the Joni Mitchell Discussion List. No malice intended. > > Thanks for mentioning Joni's work so often and for appreciating her talents. > > Jim L'Hommedieu > Columbus, Ohio, USA > > > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: > Re: Spot the Typos > Date: > Wed, 19 Feb 2014 22:01:53 -0600 > From: > Steve Anderson > To: > Jim L'Hommedieu > > > Wrong songs to albums. Backwards. > > Steve Anderson > > =============================== > > On Feb 19, 2014, at 9:42 PM, "Jim L'Hommedieu" wrote: > > > Hello, and welcome back to another edition of "Spot the Typos," the game where Joni fans all over the English-speaking world match wits with magazine writers. This time we look at Stereophile magazine, which reviews high-fi gear and often mentions favorite musical selections. In a review of the $699 (USD) Channel Islands Audio Transient Mk.II digital-to-analog converter, Jon Iverson wrote this. Spot the typos... if you can. > > > > >Joni Mitchell may have been from Canada, but California quickly claimed her, and she proceeded to turn out one classic album after another while living in the heart of Los Angeles. Her voice on "Coyote" (from Ladies of the Canyon) and "For Free" (Hejira), both from CD rips, revealed the one subtle weakness I detected in the Transient compared to DACs in the next price tiers, such as the NAD M51 Direct Digital ($1999) or Ayre Acoustics QB-9 ($3250): a slight lack of focus that rendered the higher frequencies a little fuzzy.> > > > > Stereophile vol. 37, No.3 (current issue, March 2014) on page 93 > > > > Jim L'Hommedieu > > np: Pandora1 playing a computer-generated selection of favorites from Neil Young. ------------------------------ End of onlyJMDL Digest V2014 #72 ******************************** ------- Post messages to the list by clicking here:mailto:joni@smoe.org Unsubscribe by clicking here: mailto:onlyjoni-digest-request@smoe.org?body=unsubscribe