Twist my arm and ask me what artist's body of work I'd take to a deserted island. Ten times out of ten I'm going to answer Joni Mitchell. Despite the fact that Hejira, which came out over thirty years ago in 1976, is her last indispensable record, Joni Mitchell soared higher than anyone I've ever listened to. I'll make the claim that once she caught fire with 1971's Blue, she reached a peak that continued with For the Roses (1972), Court and Spark (1974), The Hissing of Summer Lawns (1975), and Hejira (1976). If you haven't lived with these five albums for most of your adult life, you're missing a vital piece of not mere music history, but history itself.
Obviously, I approached this tribute album with utter trepidation. There have been some really lousy Joni Mitchell covers over the years (Counting Crow's "Big Yellow Taxi" anyone?). Very few of them added anything to the originals. Even the incomparable Diana Krall didn't add much to her cover of "Black Crow". This album has been in the works for many years. I was mainly interested in it because of PM Dawn's wonderful grasp of Joni in their sampling and quoting her. The rumor was that they were covering "Night in the City" but they didn't maintain enough commercial success to warrant inclusion on this tribute album. Janet Jackson and Stevie Wonder were also among those artists rumored to contribute. Instead what is included here is half utter sacrilege and half mediocre covers that would have been better off as B-sides.
1. Sufjan Stevens - "Free Man In Paris"
Whoever put this together should be ashamed of themselves. Putting Sufjan Stevens first is a clear attempt at hipster credibility and yet this is the worst piece of garbage on the whole record. Believe me, you know exactly what this sounds like. It sounds like every other Sufjans Stevens song. It is completely dispassionate and robs possibly the most vital sounding song in Joni's catalogue of any energy whatsoever. Shame on you.
2. Bjork - "The Boho Dance"
While I am not a fan of Bjork's meanderingly chordless music, this is an appropriate fit. With musicbox-like backing, Bjork sings her heart out of this song. One of Joni's strangerst and most beautiful compositions, Bjork hold her own here. The tempo is a bit too slowed down and by the end it is a relief that the song ends but comparatively speaking, its one of the better offerings here.
3. Caetano Veloso - "Dreamland"
I never got into Don Juan's Reckless Daughter. This is coming from someone whose heard some of Joni's lesser later period works like Chalk Mark in a Rainstorm, Turbulent Indigo and especially Night Ride Home and hundreds of times. Caetano Veloso is a well known Brazilian singer, but this is not a song I needed to hear again, and I find his cover taxing and annoying. Perhaps the person who put this together wanted a World Music bent on one track. Ugh.
4.Brad Mehldau - "Don't Interrupt the Sorrow"
Okay, now its time for some fist slamming. Take my favorite song of all time and turn it into a jazzy piano instrumental! I now have an answer for most infuriating cover of all time. Who the hell wants to hear an instrumental version of one of Joni's best melodies? I shudder to think what Bruce Hornsby, Prince Be or Prince for that matter would have done with this song. More on that later.
5. Cassandra Wilson - "For the Roses"
Another one of my favorite Joni songs, I really wanted to like this. Again, it sounds exactly what you'd expect it to. It is again completely faithful, and adds nothing to the original except to show that nobody can express lyrics like this vocally better than Joni Mitchell can. This four minute song slowed down and stretched out to six minutes. Yawn!
6. Prince - "A Case of You"
Okay, I'll admit it. I probably wouldn't have reviewed this collection at all if it weren't for this Prince cover. This is by far Joni Mitchell's most covered song. It has been done by Tori Amos, Diana Krall and K.D. Lang among others. Here, Prince just smokes it. It is one of the best cover versions I've heard done of anything. It shows in three and a half minutes what an unbelievable singer and performer Prince is, what an incredible song this is, and what a huge influence Joni Mitchell has been on Prince.
7. Sarah McLaughlin - "Blue"
I'm not sure why I've always found Sarah McLaughlin to be completely unbearable in the way that Natalie Merchant is. Maybe it is the way they both completely oversing every note put in front of them. Maybe it is because they both sound like they've swallowed loads of animal sperm. This slowed down, sparsely accompanied version of Blue is so unbelievably painful that I can almost forgive Sufjan Stevens' cover. One of the worst covers of all time.
8. Annie Lennox - Ladies of the Canyon
This is more like it. Annie Lennox's voice is beautiful and distinct enough that it often produces some great covers. She even did a respectable Blue Nile cover. This is a great choice for her voice, especially since this is from the earlier part of Joni's career before she'd learn to reign in the flaws in her singing. The instrumentation is pure Annie Lenox cover, but she still does the song justice. Indispensable? No. Respectful, yes.
9. Emmylou Harris - "The Magdalene Laundries"
Joni Mitchell won her Grammy off of this song. Sure it was the album Turbulent Indigo that was awarded the Grammy, but this song is one of its shining moments. Harris' voice has aged so well, and she has such a grasp of the main character in this song, that this cover might actually improve on the original. The lyrics are much clearer and the acoustic setting suits the song better than Joni Mitchell late career jazziness does.
10. Elvis Costello - "Edith and the Kingpin"
The third song from the Hissing of Summer Lawns to make this record provides a rare instance of one of my real heroes covering another one. Elvis Costello gives this song a very similar treatment that Bjork did: slow down, gently sung with horn accompaniment. It really doesn't live up to what I hoped for. My problem is mostly with the tempo. I have no doubt that Elvis Costello wanted no part of trying to outdo or massively change the original, and this restriction makes this cover a nice listen, but inessential.
11. K.D. Lang - "Help Me"
K.D. Lang does a nice job here with one of Joni Mitchell's more famous songs. She's got a beautiful voice but this version lacks the teeth that Joni's had. Like most of this record, its breezy. I would have preferred hearing someone rock this out.
12. James Taylor - "River"
This also sounds exactly like you'd imagine it would. Hearing James Taylor's voice try to wrap itself around a melody that has been previously butchered by Robert Downey Jr. and countless others, is just too much to bear.
I felt it necessary to review this album. It is the perfect example of some A&R person completely dropping the ball. I could do a much better Joni Mitchell covers album using artists that I am friends with and work with. Shame on you Nonesuch.
