Getting into Joni's Mingus..

Hi

I was looking for an old thread so as not to start a new one but it seems this album's never been the subject of one.

I picked up an LP of this one some time ago after reading it was quite the piece but couldn't really get past the 70s-fretless bass-fusion thing.

I'm just spinning it as I type after having given it a good cleaning and I'm beginning to dig it quite a bit.. somehow it's falling into place, I'm getting past the sound, to the music.

I'd thought I wouldn't stand Joni's voice for too long but I'm doing fine for now . Some parts are even quite anarchic with those brassy guitar stabs .. is that Joni herself playing on this one?

 

Huh? Joni's voice is gold.

Overall, it's an awkward album, but some nice moments.

I've recently been pouring through Joni's music, re-absorbing it all. I'm not up to Mingus yet.

 

I'm not putting down Joni, it's just that I'd never listened to her before and I haven't got entirely used to her singing yet. Just that.

Why do you say it's an awkward album (just curious)?

Cheers

 

Of course it's all a matter of opinion, but can anyone really question the genius of this amazing singer/songwriter? Not only has she never been afraid to take chances, but who can really compete with her in terms of overall concept/melodic ability/lyrical brilliance? David Crosby (who is obviously prejudiced and has even admitted to still being in love with her all these years later) recently said he thought Joni was better than Dylan, both as a poet and as an overall musician. While I can't agree completely with this blanket statement, it's hard to ignore the fact that her melodies are often better wedded to her lyrics than so many other artists, not only Mr. Z. At any rate, wouldn't it be nice if today's solo artists could take some more cues from Joni? (I know they claim to, but the results speak for themselves)

 

It's a mish-mash of ideas of two people of disparate musical backgrounds, one of which was not in the best of health. Sometimes, that comes through in the music.

Mitchell was taking on quite the challenging assignment, working with a jazz master when she herself was relatively new to that sort of musical theory and learning it on the fly.

But she still did an admirable job.


While it is always silly to compare musicians, I personally do prefer Joni over Dylan (and this from a guy who is on his way out the door to pick up a stack of Dylan SACDs from the post office). Besides, or because of, all the objective musical stuff (her voice, her intonation, songwriting, lyrics, experimentation), Joni Mitchell simply moves me like no other singer/songwriter. My favorite by a mile.

 

I prefer Joni to Bobby D. as well. Mingus has some wonderful moments and I used to listen to it all the time when it was new...I remember being especially fond of side 2. True, it's not Blue or Court and Spark but it's still a nice album in its own right, an even more challenging work than the previous Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (IMO, a masterpiece)..and speaking of Don Juans, isn't it cool how Joni dressed up as a black guy?

 

Yay! Don Juan's Reckless Daughter is my favorite Joni album!

It's an interesting tale how Joni came up with the idea to go "blackface."

Mingus hasn't clicked for me yet, but in time it will.

 

Don Juan's is the first album after her first which I don't love. There are some great songs and moments, but she finally goes a little overboard there for my tastes.

I haven't heard any of the material she's done for Geffen.

 

mike,

joni's geffen material is much mor "pop' oriented (for lack of a better word).

more guests, more insturments.

i really like "dog eat dog" and "chalk mark in a rainstorm", but most joni fans dimiss them.

renny

 

Actually, Night Ride Home is my second favorite Joni album of all.

 

I know several guys who dismiss Mingus and all of her albums made in the 80s just because they were not as good as her output in the 70s.

There is actually nothing wrong with Dog Eat Dog but I can't stand those synthesizers and electric drums that were all around in the 80s.

 

I really need to dig into Mingus, if only out of loyalty to Joni, who has given more shivers, tears, and joy than just about any other singer-songwriter I can think of. For me, Hejira is the zenith, with more great songs than most artists can muster over an entire career: in particular, "Amelia" takes all the personal intensity of the songs on Blue to an even higher plane.

It was the hexagram of the heavens
It was the strings of my guitar
Oh Amelia, it was just a false alarm

 

Kym, I just listened to NIGHT RIDE HOME for the first time last night. What a beautiful record! A great companion to my favorite Joni album, HEJIRA.

 

This period is some of my favorite Joni Mitchell and one of the best bands ever, methinks. Jaco was the Hendrix of the bass - if you were most any bass player when he came out, you either felt you had to learn to play all over again or find some other job. Joni Mitchell's band was one of the few times when he worked with a great songwriter.

 

Sorry to veer off the topic but I hung out w/ Joni Mitchell during a documentry filming when I about 15. It was right around 1992. It sucks that it took me over 11 years later to appreciate her and I could've actually talked to this living legend.
Thanks to the DCC's I tried her out and now I'm going to be buying her whole catalog up to Night Ride Home. Her post-Geffen stuff is a little weird for me.

 

Getting into Joni's Mingus...

Oh, is that what David Crosby called it?

 

Re: Getting into Joni's Mingus...

 

Re: Getting into Joni's Mingus...

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Crossed my mind too.

 

It is a challenging album to listen to, but spend some time with it, you'll find repeated listenings rewarding. "Mingus" has become one of my favorite Joni albums. "The Dry Cleaner From Des Moines" and "God Must Be A Boogie Man" are worth the price of admission alone IMHO.

 

I'm glad you like it! It's a greatly underrated record. I like it more than any of the later back-to-Reprise stuff. I always found Turbulent Indigo a bit overrated.

 

For me, Hejira is a very special Joni album from that period, and Don Juan's is a close second. I found Mingus a difficult follow-up - I think it's a rather unsatisfying album, notwithstanding the personnel (check out the names on the credits!). Shadows and Light is a worthy summation of the period.

Then came Wild Things Run Fast, which I think is another high point for Joni - a beautiful album. I love the screeching guitar of Mike Landau, and the bass of Larry Klein. Dog Eat Dog was a bit lost on me, as was Chalk Mark. Night Ride Home was worth the trip, and after that I've kind of lost contact...

 

Paul Christie:

Dog Eat Dog and Chalk Mark are rather disappointing Joni albums but on the other hand most of the artist who began in the 60s made some very disappointing albums in the 80s. Take for example Bob Dylan: Empire Burlesque,Knocked Out Loaded and Down In The Groove. Truly terrible albums in my opinion.

Has anyone seen her DVD "A Woman Of Heart And Mind" yet? Is it worth buying?

 

What a great thread! Hey Steve! How 'bout that Ladies of the Canyon! And then, please, please - Hejira, For the Roses, Hissing of Summer Lawns, etc. I would pay hundreds for the Hoffman DCC treatment of Hejira.......