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Notable for its expansion of Mitchell's artistic vision and its varied song topics (ranging from the aesthetic weight of celebrity, to clear-eyed observation of the Woodstock generation, to the complexities of love), ''Ladies of the Canyon'' is often viewed as a transition between Mitchell's folky earlier work and the more sophisticated, poignant albums that were to follow. In particular, "For Free" foreshadows the lyrical [[leitmotif]] of the isolation triggered by success that would be elaborated upon in ''[[For the Roses]]'' and ''[[Court and Spark]]''. The sparse, alternate-tuning laden sound of later records comes to the forefront on "Ladies of the Canyon" (one of those "ladies" supposedly being female [[underground comix]] pioneer [[Trina Robbins]]).<ref>Weller, Sheila (2008). ''Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and the Journey of a Generation'', p. 293. Atria. ISBN 0743491475.</ref>
Notable for its expansion of Mitchell's artistic vision and its varied song topics (ranging from the aesthetic weight of celebrity, to clear-eyed observation of the Woodstock generation, to the complexities of love), ''Ladies of the Canyon'' is often viewed as a transition between Mitchell's folky earlier work and the more sophisticated, poignant albums that were to follow. In particular, "For Free" foreshadows the lyrical [[leitmotif]] of the isolation triggered by success that would be elaborated upon in ''[[For the Roses]]'' and ''[[Court and Spark]]''. The sparse, alternate-tuning laden sound of later records comes to the forefront on "Ladies of the Canyon" (one of those "ladies" supposedly being female [[underground comix]] pioneer [[Trina Robbins]]).<ref>Weller, Sheila (2008). ''Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and the Journey of a Generation'', p. 293. Atria. ISBN 0743491475.</ref>


Of all of Mitchell's work, this album is arguably the most related to her long-standing friendships and relationships with [[Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young]] (whose [[hard rock]] arrangement of "Woodstock" was one of their three radio hits in 1970). A number of the album's songs, including the aforementioned "Ladies of the Canyon" and "Woodstock", feature densely stacked, wordless harmony overdubs reminiscent of [[David Crosby]]'s oeuvre; Crosby himself has performed "For Free" for many years. "Willy" is a girlishly infatuated paean to [[Graham Nash]]. "The Circle Game", one of the artist's most recognizable songs, features background vocals from all four. "Big Yellow Taxi" has also managed to become a standard over the years, even being sampled by [[Janet Jackson]]. In 1995 Annie Lennox performed the song "Ladies of the Canyon" and released it as B-side of her single "[[No More I Love You's]]".
Of all of Mitchell's work, this album is arguably the most related to her long-standing friendships and relationships with [[Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young]] (whose [[hard rock]] arrangement of "Woodstock" was one of their three radio hits in 1970). A number of the album's songs, including the aforementioned "Ladies of the Canyon" and "Woodstock", feature densely stacked, wordless harmony overdubs reminiscent of [[David Crosby]]'s oeuvre; Crosby himself has performed "For Free" for many years. "Willy" is a girlishly infatuated paean to [[Graham Nash]]. "The Circle Game", one of the artist's most recognizable songs, features background vocals from all four, and is a response to Neil Young's "Sugar Mountain". "Big Yellow Taxi" has also managed to become a standard over the years, even being sampled by [[Janet Jackson]]. In 1995 Annie Lennox performed the song "Ladies of the Canyon" and released it as B-side of her single "[[No More I Love You's]]".


''[[Young and the Restless]]'' star [[Jess Walton]] has said that one of the houses featured on the album's cover belonged to her.<ref name="2272007sow">{{cite news | title=Raising Cane | date=2007-02-27 | publisher= ''Soap Opera Weekly''| page = 20 }}</ref>
''[[Young and the Restless]]'' star [[Jess Walton]] has said that one of the houses featured on the album's cover belonged to her.<ref name="2272007sow">{{cite news | title=Raising Cane | date=2007-02-27 | publisher= ''Soap Opera Weekly''| page = 20 }}</ref>

Revision as of 21:00, 5 December 2011

For the Canadian country music group, see Ladies of the Canyon (band).
Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Rolling Stone(not rated)[2]
Robert Christgau(A-)[3]

Ladies of the Canyon is Joni Mitchell's third album, released in 1970. Its title refers to Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles, a center of popular music culture in Los Angeles during the sixties. It features several of Mitchell's most noted songs, including "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock" and "The Circle Game".

Notable for its expansion of Mitchell's artistic vision and its varied song topics (ranging from the aesthetic weight of celebrity, to clear-eyed observation of the Woodstock generation, to the complexities of love), Ladies of the Canyon is often viewed as a transition between Mitchell's folky earlier work and the more sophisticated, poignant albums that were to follow. In particular, "For Free" foreshadows the lyrical leitmotif of the isolation triggered by success that would be elaborated upon in For the Roses and Court and Spark. The sparse, alternate-tuning laden sound of later records comes to the forefront on "Ladies of the Canyon" (one of those "ladies" supposedly being female underground comix pioneer Trina Robbins).[4]

Of all of Mitchell's work, this album is arguably the most related to her long-standing friendships and relationships with Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young (whose hard rock arrangement of "Woodstock" was one of their three radio hits in 1970). A number of the album's songs, including the aforementioned "Ladies of the Canyon" and "Woodstock", feature densely stacked, wordless harmony overdubs reminiscent of David Crosby's oeuvre; Crosby himself has performed "For Free" for many years. "Willy" is a girlishly infatuated paean to Graham Nash. "The Circle Game", one of the artist's most recognizable songs, features background vocals from all four, and is a response to Neil Young's "Sugar Mountain". "Big Yellow Taxi" has also managed to become a standard over the years, even being sampled by Janet Jackson. In 1995 Annie Lennox performed the song "Ladies of the Canyon" and released it as B-side of her single "No More I Love You's".

Young and the Restless star Jess Walton has said that one of the houses featured on the album's cover belonged to her.[5]

Track listing

All tracks composed and arranged by Joni Mitchell

  1. "Morning Morgantown" – 3:12
  2. "For Free" – 4:31
  3. "Conversation" – 4:21
  4. "Ladies of the Canyon" – 3:32
  5. "Willy" – 3:00
  6. "The Arrangement" – 3:32
  7. "Rainy Night House" – 3:22
  8. "The Priest" – 3:39
  9. "Blue Boy" – 2:53
  10. "Big Yellow Taxi" – 2:16
  11. "Woodstock" – 5:25
  12. "The Circle Game" – 4:50

Personnel

  • Joni Mitchell - guitar, piano, vocals
  • Teresa Adams - cello
  • Paul Horn - clarinet, flute
  • Jim Horn - baritone saxophone
  • Milt Holland - percussion
  • The Saskatunes - bop vocals
  • The Lookout Mountain United Downstairs Choir - chorus on "The Circle Game"
  • Don Bagley - cello arrangement

References

  1. ^ Cleary, D. (2011 [last update]). "Ladies of the Canyon - Joni Mitchell | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 19 July 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  2. ^ von Tersch, Gary (2011 [last update]). "Joni Mitchell: Ladies Of The Canyon : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". web.archive.org. Retrieved 19 July 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  3. ^ Christgau, R. (2011 [last update]). "Robert Christgau: CG: joni mitchell". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 19 July 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  4. ^ Weller, Sheila (2008). Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon and the Journey of a Generation, p. 293. Atria. ISBN 0743491475.
  5. ^ "Raising Cane". Soap Opera Weekly. 2007-02-27. p. 20. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)


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