Ladies of the Canyon

Artist: Joni Mitchell
Label: Wea/Warner
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Format: Import
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1
EAN: 4943674259922
ASIN: B00005HGSI

Release Date: 2002-06-19

Ladies of the Canyon

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Tracks:

Morning Morgantown
For Free
Conversation
Ladies of the Canyon
Willy
Arrangement
Rainy Night House
Priest
Blue Boy
Big Yellow Taxi
Woodstock
Circle Game

Similar Items:

Clouds
Blue
Court and Spark
For the Roses
Song To A Seagull

Amazon.com

Joni Mitchell's third album offers a bridge between the artful but sometimes dour meditations of her earlier work and the more mature, confessional revelations of the classics that would follow. Voice and guitar still hew to the pretty filigree of a folk poet, but there's the giggling rush of rock & roll freedom in "Big Yellow Taxi," and the formal metaphor of her older songs ("The Circle Game," already oft-covered by the time of this recording) yields to the more impressionistic images of the new ones ("Woodstock"). The dark lyricism of her earliest ballads is intact (on "For Free" and "Rainy Night House"), yet there's a prevailing idealism here that sounds poignant alongside the warier, more mature songs to come on Blue and Court And Spark. <I>--Sam Sutherland</I>

Customer Reviews:

Canyon life and the heart who lived there. .......2006-12-15

As my first introduction to Ms. Mitchell's work, I had no idea what to expect. I was riding the wave of celebration for the 20th anniversary of Woodstock, and happened to catch an interview with Graham Nash, where he mentioned her penning the ode for the event, that piqued my interest. Fourteen years old and eager to explore, I went in search of the eartheral creature described.

The tape, long ago replaced by a CD, exceeded all expectations. The " Woodstock" anthem was so well written, especially for a " Kid who couldn't make it", as Mitchell was quoted as saying a few years later. However, in typical fashion, she captured the spirit behind the event. In retrospect, this ability to create vivid pictures with her words created the hallmark for the brilliance of her emerging greatness as a song writer.

Ms. Mitchell's voice is above reproach; she easily had the most angelic, sincere delivery of all the genre combined. The songs contained here reflect the free spirited ethos of the late 60's, with some personal observations painting a lush portrait of Canyon life. The skill of distilling gender role questions, pastoral living, spiritual seeking, and the thrill of opening oneself, as well as another, to the possibility of love is amazing. Considering she was only twenty seven, at the oldest, when these songs were written, the talent assumes a new level.

This is a great intro to Joni's work; then, if you choose to work back to the first two, you will see the improvements on already exquisit work. If you proceed to the next succession of material, you can trace the gift truly taking form. For days that mellowing out seems the only option, this is a perfect soundtrack.

Best Joni Mitchell Album.......2006-11-06

I bought this album on LP when it first came out and have always liked it. This was Joni's third album and I enjoy it more than any others. Never heard her first two albums until just recently and they didn't strike me as anything that special. The next two albums (4th & 5th), Blue and For the Roses were fine albums, but had no particularly memorable songs, as this album has. In the 6th album (Court & Spark), the sound is different; some people like it the best, but it didn't do much for me. Ladies of the Canyon is still the best sounding Joni Mitchell, in my opinion. Big Yellow Taxi is my favorite, but all the songs are nice sounding. Joni has an interesting delivery and sometimes it seems that she is trying to sing a rambling poem that in some cases should not have been made into a song. A little Joni goes a long way and her delivery tends to make some of her songs sound a lot a alike. In spite of all that and in spite of the fact that she isn't my favorite singer, she is still very interesting and this album is a strong 5-star album. A great starter album for someone who has never heard Mitchell.

Almost for free.......2006-02-16

I have loved this album, and Joni, for more than thirty years now. In this and many times in the two preceding and next three albums, she is giving us, and is capable of giving us, wreckage and craziness and joy straight from her marrow. The poetry of "Blue Boy" or "The Priest", amongst others, is similar in a way to Elizabeth Bishop or Robert Lowell, and just as unfettered by commercialism. It's funny, just how un-commercial this music sounds, now, and how uncaring Joni the artist auteur is. She is focused on other, higher things, here, and it always gives me goosebumps hearing how unabashedly un-self-conscious she is, a trait she shares in common with fellow Canucks Neil Young and Gordon Lightfoot. Essential music this is, if you would know the folk and very LIBERAL bedrock from which all contemporary music, including hiphop, is builded.

The First In A Long Line Of Masterpieces.......2006-02-09

By the time the Seventies rolled in, Joni Mitchell had two albums to her name and was one of the biggest rising names in folk-pop music in America. The release of her third album, "Ladies Of The Canyon," would further establish her and raise her profile amongst the public and critics alike. She took even more control over the music and writing (almost all) on this album, which is seen by many to her the transitional album between her earlier folk music sound and the more poignant, jazz-influenced epics that would follow later in the decade. Every song on this album is either great or excellent. Joni wistfully plays her piano in almost every song on the album, and the vocals are stunning and varied in pitch. Her legendary distinct vocal delivery is evident in every song here.

The album opens with the beautiful "Morning Morgantown." This is a wistful, and happy, upbeat song. It's quite mid-tempo and one of Joni's first-recorded songs, dating back to 1967! It appeared three years down the line on this album, and it sounds as fresh today as it no doubt did almost 40 years ago. The chorus is very melodic and airy, Joni's vocals sunlit with sweet affection. "For Free" is arguably the most beautiful song on the album. I wasn't too fond of it to begin with, but there's just something about that stunning piano that catches my soul every time I hear it. Joni's vocals are gorgeous, especially when she sings, "And I play if you have the money..." It's a song about an artist (Joni) who is a singer, who performs in bars, making her money - yet she sees a man on the streets playing for free. He wants nothing but to play for the sheer joy of playing his songs. The last thirty seconds are so intense as a clarinet solo plays out, emphasising the isolation of this song. "Conversation" is a brilliant up-tempo number, very fast-paced and probably the most positive song on the album. The lyrics are brilliant and quite psychedelic. I love the pianos, the guitars and everything about this song. The last minute is brilliant where Joni and backing singers pipe "Doo, doo doo!" over and over to a trumpet. "Ladies Of The Canyon," the title track, is another stunning song. This is a more folksy guitar-driven song. Joni's vocal delivery is bright, very high-pitched and expressive. There is the essence of life, heart and soul in her voice and it's so wonderful to hear something like this in this day and age, at least for me anyway.

"Willy" is a more sombre song where Joni's voice is very sorrowful. The piano changes its tone in accordance to Joni's delivery. Lyrics such as "And counting all the cars up the hill, and the stars on my window sill, there are still more reasons why I love him." It's three minutes of pure classic Joni. "The Arrangement" is one of my favourite Joni songs ever. The piano introduction is just heart-breaking, I feel so privileged to just hear it. Joni's voice is gorgeous in this song, as she sings about not feeling wanted in life, and how hard it is to keep pushing on in a world where you feel so alone. Around 2:34 Joni starts her 'wailing' but when it goes so high, and so passionate, you can't help but feel your soul rip in half! It's like she grabs a hold of you and forces you to listen. Stunning. "Rainy Night House" is a very depressing song, you can almost hear the pouring rain against a window of this night house. The lyrics tells the story of a man who (with his girlfriend) goes up to his mother's night house while she is away. There's a sense of being somewhere you shouldn't be in this song, very ambiguous and almost tragic, emphasised the soprano wail. "The Priest" is probably my least favourite song on the album, but it's still very good. It's quite upbeat and the lyrics are quite eerie. Joni's vocal delivery is very strange and annoys me sometimes, because she draws every last word out. The guitar is what creates this unnerving effect in me every time I hear this song, also the fact it seems to be quite religion-orientated.

"Blue Boy" is a very sad song about a man who comes to Joni's place only for sex. They fall asleep together, but he's always gone when she wakes up in the morning. Then she stares out of her bedroom window and sees a statue that always looks the same. When Joni draws out the line, "Oh..." at the end of each verse, the crackling in her voice is the sound of pure heartache. So powerful. "Big Yellow Taxi" is arguably Joni's most famous song ever, becoming an instant classic upon its release and ascending in status and notoriety as each decade passes. It's a song about the tragedy of modernity and how old things are so often replaced and forgotten by new things. Musically, it's very upbeat and fun. "Woodstock" is a classic hit that the very legendary event itself was named after! Not many artists can say that they had something so big named after one of their songs. Joni performs beautifully on the electric piano, giving this song a deep, old-age atmosphere and a sense of time passing. Her voice is all over the place and quite out of melody, but that was always Joni's trademark, and she works it perfectly here. The album closes with the stunning "The Circle Game." This song was written and recorded by Joni way back in 1966, exactly 40 years ago! It's a gorgeous song though, the melody is incredible and the vocals give the effect of rotation, coming full circle.

OVERALL GRADE: 9/10

Joni Mitchell created many masterpieces throughout her time in the music industry. I believe that Ladies Of The Canyon was her first true masterpiece. From then on, they came thick and fast with "Blue," "Court And Spark," "The Hissing Of Summer Lawns," and "Hejira." The rate that these albums came out (usually a new one every year) was also incredible. Many artists take four or five years in the present day to get a truly great album out. Joni was doing it every year, which is just one of the many reasons why she is a legend, a treasure of singer-songwriting beauty and the most revered woman of music in the 20th Century.

Jovial & heartwarming work........2005-11-14

"Ladies Of the Canyon" is a sweet & beautiful album. It contains 3 of her most popular songs (Big Yellow Taxi, Woodstock, & The Circle Game) But it is truly so much more. Gorgeous ballads such as "Rainy Night House" "The Arrangement" & "Blue Boy" bring a tear to the eye. & Upbeat songs such as "Conversation", "Morning Morgantown", & "Ladies Of the Canyon" are wonderful & life-affirming. The lyrics have a delicate & vivid sophistication that brings a smile to the face. The intricate simplicity of each song is both endearing & startling. It's overall a lovely record. On "Woodstock" she sings beautiful lyrics such as:

"By the time we got to Woodstock
We were half a million strong
And everywhere there was song and celebration
And I dreamed I saw the bombers
Riding shotgun in the sky
And they were turning into butterflies
Above our nation."

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