Joni Mitchell's albums ranked. Discuss

[Dad3353]

Personally, I'm not fussed about rankings, even my own, so those of the Guardian  ... Anyway, the floor is open for opinions on ranking in general, this one in particular and any other sentiments that you feel the need to express. Over to you ...

The Guardian : Joni Mitchell's albums - ranked..!

[Dan Dare]

My favourite is The Hissing of Summer Lawns, followed by Hejira, but I wouldn't argue they're better than any others. Just my preference.

Edited November 13, 2020 by Dan Dare

[4000]

Can’t say I’m really a huge fan of much of Joni’s output; I rather struggle with her voice, amongst other things, but I’d say I much prefer the earlier stuff. I’m currently listening to Clouds, which is probably my favourite, although I haven’t listened to every album she’s made. I’m going to try and revisit Blue for the umpteenth time later, as I’ve just not been able to get on with it previously, not for want of trying. I probably like her “jazz” stuff least, unlike most here. I just find it a bit too detached, for me at least. 
 

EDIT: Nope, still not getting Blue. Much, much prefer Clouds. 

Edited November 13, 2020 by 4000

[fleabag]

Its only someone's opinion, so these rankings are meaningless but we all know that.  I have several  JM  CD's and my own meaningless opinion is that  Hejira , Court  n  Spark, and Hissing of Summer Lawns should be top 3.  I have all 3 and if i had to push one into top spot, it would be Court n Spark,  but i love all  three

I will give a shout out to the live  " Miles of Aisles "  and not least because there's a wonderful live rendition of Rainy Night House.  Supposedly  written about  Leonard Cohen, but its just something i read somewhere many decades ago, so take with a pinch of salt

[Passinwind]

3 hours ago, Dad3353 said:

Personally, I'm not fussed about rankings, even my own, so those of the Guardian  ... Anyway, the floor is open for opinions on ranking in general, this one in particular and any other sentiments that you feel the need to express. Over to you ...

The Guardian : Joni Mitchell's albums - ranked..!

Shadows And Light is my clear favorite (having seen a supporting tour show is a factor), which they didn't even list. After that, probably Hejira, then Mingus, then Hissing.

[bumnote]

I dont like Mingus.

 

[Old Man Riva]

2 hours ago, fleabag said:

Its only someone's opinion, so these rankings are meaningless but we all know that.  I have several  JM  CD's and my own meaningless opinion is that  Hejira , Court  n  Spark, and Hissing of Summer Lawns should be top 3.  I have all 3 and if i had to push one into top spot, it would be Court n Spark,  but i love all  three.

They’re my favourite three, with Hejira at the top.

[NickA]

Album? Hejira No1 .  No question.  

I rate Mingus higher too, maybe no 2 for me. They didn't even mention miles of aisles which is excellent and has many of the songs from blue done better.

Anything after (and including) wild things run fast is not much good for me.. gave up after that.

Best tracks? Edith and the king pin probably, hissing of summer lawns maybe (the rest of that LP isn't close to those two).  Almost anything on Hejira ( Jaco on bass aside: he's not even on some of the best tracks ) 

Even without the great music, some of her lyrics are brilliant 

" Richard got married to a figure skater, bought her a refrigerator and a coffee perculator" a particular fave ( when I'm sitting up most evenings drinking beer with the TV on 😉 ).

[NickA]

3 hours ago, 4000 said:

Can’t say I’m really a huge fan of much of Joni’s output; I rather struggle with her voice,

That is an issue, especially that ott whiny vibrato on the early stuff.  She got better though.

[chris_b]

Hejira , Court and  Spark, Shadows and Light and Hissing of Summer Lawns. I used to listen to these for hours.

The only downside for me is Jaco Pastorius. It's all clever bass paying, but IMO he doesn't fit and is a distraction. Max Bennett was a much better bassist for her great songs.

[leftybassman392]

Sgt. Pepper. Not even close.

[4000]

13 minutes ago, NickA said:

That is an issue, especially that ott whiny vibrato on the early stuff.  She got better though.

On Clouds, for instance,  I thought she sounded fine. Listening to Blue again today (and somewhat ironically given my absolute and unwavering adoration of Kate Bush😉), she’s mostly far too high pitched, wandering and warbly for my taste. Obviously that changed over time, but I still don’t love her voice, high, low or anywhere in between.

As talented as she obviously is, for me she’s also sometimes guilty of my absolute top writer’s sin; cramming too many words in. I absolutely detest that, probably why I have little time for many of the “great” singer-songwriters. The words often seem to come before the melody, which is a complete non-no for me. “The Last Time I Saw Richard” is a perfect example of that. 

Still, the above is just my taste and no reflection on my respect for her as an artist. 

[leftybassman392]

And while we're at it, here's my favourite film on the subject:

 

[visog]

Erm not interested in ranking. I just know she thrusts her fist through my sternum and removes my heart every time I hear her singing. 'Blue' is incredible. 'Court and Spark' is wonderful. And so bass players, we get to 'Hejira' and Jaco sounds off his 6/9 harmonics in 'Coyote' and it's just perfect. 'Refuge of the Roads' has a multi-tracked fretless bass orchestra. Non-Jaco tracks so great too. 

[musicbassman]

'Edith' is among my top 10 songs of all time

Here's an early demo version of the song. She clearly already knows exactly how it should sound.

Pure genius, I never tire of listening to this!

 

[Bilbo]

Shadows and Light for the band. After that, I love them all and think that ranking them is a completely pointless exercise because it doesn't change the way I think or feel about them. She is a genius : end of. 😀

[Old Man Riva]

The contributions of both Jaco and Max Bennett rightly mentioned with regards to Joni bass duties, but let’s also not forget the contribution of Wilton Felder.

The bass on Don’t Interrupt the Sorrow is sublime, IMHO. Well worth a listen and play along!

[Old Man Riva]

2 hours ago, musicbassman said:

'Edith' is among my top 10 songs of all time

Here's an early demo version of the song. She clearly already knows exactly how it should sound.

Pure genius, I never tire of listening to this!

 

Not heard the demo before. I really like that, thanks for posting!

I think some of the vocal ideas (call and response, layered harmonies and counter melodies) she did in this period are really out there. Song for Sharon is a great example...

... and then, of course, there are those amazing guitar tunings that she used!

[fleabag]

Here's a treat for JM fans.  This is the live version of Rainy Night House i mentioned.  I have this on CD too

Absolutely beautiful bass by Max Bennett.  And check the control she has over her voice.  Remember this is live, and not a flaw anywhere.

Best under headphones ...awesome

 

 

[Stingray5]

I've followed Joni right from her early days and have most of the previously mentioned albums. I also love her 80's albums and what she did with bassist/producer/hubby Larry Klein.

 

[Old Man Riva]

20 hours ago, chris_b said:

Hejira , Court and  Spark, Shadows and Light and Hissing of Summer Lawns. I used to listen to these for hours.

The only downside for me is Jaco Pastorius. It's all clever bass paying, but IMO he doesn't fit and is a distraction. Max Bennett was a much better bassist for her great songs.

It’s funny how tastes change over the years. I was introduced to Joni Mitchell’s music in the mid 70s when I was in my teens. An uncle (who was a big influence on introducing me to different music at the time - some Jazz, Steely Dan, Weather Report, to name but a few) said that if I was interested in bass to check this guy (Jaco) out, and recorded Hejira for me.

I only had a mono cassette player at the time so much of the music was lost but you could still really hear the Jaco parts and even then I appreciated how different it was to any bass I’d heard before.

For years I tended to focus on the bass on the Jaco tracks, and as such didn’t really pay much attention to the wonderful bass played by Max Bennett on, say, Song for Sharon off Hejira.

As I got older and I found my own style I became way more drawn to Max Bennett and Wilton Felder’s playing, and the way they approached Joni’s songs, rather than the Jaco tracks.

These days Max Bennett and Wilton Felder are definitely more my thing but Jaco’s playing on some of Joni’s songs take them to a different level and offer something unique to the songs due to him and his playing.

I suppose it’s a long-winded way of saying I like them all!! 

[NickA]

On 13/11/2020 at 18:08, chris_b said:

The only downside for me is Jaco Pastorius. It's all clever bass paying, but IMO he doesn't fit and is a distraction.

Ooooh.  How very dare you! 

Though he's not on many (most) of the tracks I like best, he certainly adds to those he's on.  Coyote for instance, would not be the same; though Amelia is none the worse for his absence.

 

Edited November 14, 2020 by NickA

[wateroftyne]

She's, what... 24 when this was recorded? Beautiful.

 

[Misdee]

22 hours ago, Stingray5 said:

I've followed Joni right from her early days and have most of the previously mentioned albums. I also love her 80's albums and what she did with bassist/producer/hubby Larry Klein.

 

Larry Klein is a phenomenal player, and in my estimation Wild Things Run Fast is right up there with Joni's best work. 

Echoing what others have said, I would take all rankings with a pinch of salt, but Shadows And Light was my first real introduction to Jaco, and I was stunned and smitten. Hejira is wonderful, as is Blue, both very different but I love them primarily for the songs rather than any of the playing . 

 

Edited November 14, 2020 by Misdee

[EMG456]

Late to this as usual- do all you guys not do anything else? 😀

Joni fan since the 1970s here- my all time favourite artist.

The Guardian falling into all the usual time-honoured traps with JM - a nostalgia for the "simpler" times when Joni was a west coast acoustic guitar playing singer songwriter in the mould of Dylan, James Taylor etc.

My all time favourite Joni Album is... Chalkmark in a Rainstorm! Heresy, I know but it has everything - great storytelling, performances, collaborations, arrangements, production. 

Truth is, whatever album Joni released over most of her career is likely to have been one of the best released in that year. An amazing career and portfolio of work.