Hejira
Joni Mitchell
1976
Album Summary
Hejira is the eighth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. The songs on the album were written during a series of road trips in 1975 and 1976, and reflect events that occurred during those trips, including several romantic relationships she had at the time. Characterized by lyrically dense, sprawling songs, as well as the overdubbed fretless bass playing of Jaco Pastorius (whom Mitchell had just met), Hejira continued the musician's journey beyond her pop records towards the freer, jazz-inspired music she would implement on later recordings. Some of the songs were written while Mitchell traveled as a member of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue tour, and she performed the album tracks "Coyote" and "Furry Sings the Blues" with The Band at their final concert (later released as Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz). The album did not sell as well as its predecessors, peaking at No. 22 in her native Canada. It reached No. 13 on the Billboard 200 pop album chart in the United States, where it was certified gold by the RIAA, and No. 11 in the UK, where it attained a silver certification. Critically, the album was generally well received, and in the years since its release, Hejira has been considered one of the high marks of her career.
WikipediaJoni Mitchell wrote the songs for "Hejira" all over America in the mid 1970s, travelling partly toward another show and partly in pursuit of pleasure. It's her "road" album, and the context of rambling travel perfectly suits both her writing style and the lyrical themes. Snapshots of old towns, lost lovers, fleeting moments and passing thoughts all slip in and out of view, relayed in startling detail and breathtaking lyricism. Mitchell also uses her restless travelling as an opportunity for self-evaluation, using the magnificent epic "Song for Sharon" to ask exactly where she's headed. Some favourite lyrics? Where to begin... "A prisoner of the white lines on the freeway"... what a way to subvert the cliché of the "open road". Later, aeroplane vapour trails- images of escape and freedom- are compared to a hexagram of the heavens, strings on a guitar, and finally false alarms. "We're only particles of change I know, I know Orbiting around the sun But how can I have that point of view When I'm always bound and tied to someone" And the whole last verse of Refuge on the Roads- just listen to it. What an artist. They're such beautiful words, and I'm so glad I gave this multiple listens because it took a while for them to start standing out. This is even more the case with the music: sophisticated, dense, jazz-influenced... it's certainly beyond "Blue". The beauty of each song has been slowly revealing itself over the last few days, unravelling delicately on each repeated listen. The vibraphone and sustained guitar in the gorgeous "Amelia", "Hejira"'s "strains of Benny Goodman" being evoked by a distant clarinet; the fretless bass work throughout. There's so much to get lost in and I'm still in the process of doing so after listening six or seven times over the last two days. For now, all I can say is that it sounds like a restless spirit at the height of her powers, carving timeless words into the roads of America.
I was a fan of Joni Mitchell from the get go, back when she was sweetly singing good morning to Morgantown and such. But there was always a dark blue current moving underneath the surface of this petite woman, even then. 'Hejira' seems to have dug the well to that subterranean river. Musically, its gorgeously haunting. (Her cover art represents the same, visually.) Gone, are the gently sustained notes of the piano, replaced with ringing guitars, marvelously odd melodies and chord structures. Joni Jazz, which is not really jazz at all, but something else entirely. Nothing that can be exactly pinned down, mind you. Fitting for Joni’s (nomadic) lifestyle, (moody) temperament, (troubled) spirituality. 1976 found a lot of Joni’s 60’s comrades suffering under the excess of drugs like cocaine, which combined with her rolling and thundering along with Dylan’s infamous review for a while couldn’t help but further darken the gathering of Joni’s latent storm clouds. The opening song has her already confessing that she’s a prisoner of the white lines on the freeway, and not really fit for healthy companionship; that said, he’s only a randy coyote anyway, so fuck it! With some ‘Strange Boy, she gets ‘… high on travel, drunk on alcohol, and on love, the strongest poison and medicine of all.’ But it’s the title track that really seems to sum up who Joni Mitchell was at this time in her life, both professionally and personally (I would guess she doesn’t draw a distinction between the two): ‘There’s comfort in melancholy when there’s no need to explain. It’s just as natural as the weather in this moody sky today.’ And, ‘I’m porous with travel fever. But, you know, I’m so glad to be on my own. Still somehow the slightest touch of a stranger can set up trembling in my bones.’ The hejira that Joni mostly seems to be attempting is the one from herself. And that reminds me of that quote that says something to the effect of: wherever you go, there you are. I didn’t know this myself in 1976, entering into my senior year of high school, and suffered accordingly for years. I’m finally learning that one can be moody and prone to blue while nurturing an inner spirit of gratitude and even joy as well. Not to be too simplistic, but to a certain extent, it is a choice. Just like my choice to be careful with this recording, reserving it only for days when I have optimum emotional/spiritual health and clarity.
wow - never listened to her and I was blown away. quite a singer songwriter - I get the hype now
Full disclosure, this is my favorite Joni Mitchell album. Haven't listened to it in a while, and never noticed the penis on the album cover before. Learning something new all the time. "Coyote" is such a great opening track. Lyrically, it is just fantastic storytelling, the bass tone and playing set the expectations for the musicality of this ensemble. I love it. "Amelia" has such a sense of longing. Mitchell has a gift for putting pain to melody. And on this album, it's the perfect lyrical blend — high-minded poetic construction that tells rich, beautiful stories. Whether Mitchell set out to create a concept album, I don't know, but there's something so cohesive about these songs, like we're spending a week on the road with her and the band. Quiet moments crossing the middle of the country. This album just transports me. I can listen to Jaco play like this all day. He's a master on the bass. And then comes "Black Crow," which is a clinic on how to be the coolest motherfucker on an instrument possible. Seriously. I get that this may not be her most accessible album, but it's brilliant. Road dick!
I listened to this one on a solo midnight bus ride from Los Angeles to Snata Barbara. I own this album, it's one I've listened to a hundred times but never like this and it finally dawned on me that this is a solitaire album. The music is incredibly complex, as is the musicianship. Tunings. Chords. Progressions. None of which are predictable or even easily accessible. Which makes it reveal more and more on every listen. It's a long way from Blue, a record only ~5 years in the past. This is an electric jazzy record. It might not be everyone's cup of tea but it's right up my alley - mysterious and haunting. Don't listen to this album just once. Give it a few runs and all the way through each time (although the clear highlight is "Amelia"). Slam dunk 5 stars: 10/10. One of my alltime favourite albums by anyone.
4.5/5. This def feels like an essential Joni album, and I think it’s gonna grow on me more
Beautiful. I've never listened to Mitchell before, and today I saw footage of Mitchell playing "Both Sides Now" at the Newport Folk Festival with Brandi Carlile which is one of the poignant performances I have ever seen. I usually hate music that comes out of folk, probably too much of it is blues based, but her music is refreshing with her alternate tunings and strong writing about the experience of girls and women. Now I will continue to dive into her catalog.
I was 55 years old when I realized that this album I've listened to hundreds of times has a penis on it! WTF? I guess you can chalk that up to CD vs LP? Or maybe because I was so mesmerized by Joni's beauty that my eyes never left those cheekbones except to glance down at how she holds her cigarette with her pinky in such a delicate position. I listened to this album on CD (as opposed to Spotify) and as my husband suggested, my good headphones with a CD was the complete aural experience. What fun to hear Joni's whispers on Furry Sings the Blues! I'm a lyrics bitch over the music and this time round some hit harder: "I do accept the changes at least better than I used to do." "I looked at my haggard face in the bathroom light" "I met a friend of spirit" "I well up with affection Thinking back down the roads to then" It feels so trite to attempt a review of any Joni Mitchell album (as well as Jacko's contributions). So I won't. This one is most definitely an 11.
I love a whole lot of the art Joni Mitchell has shared with the world, and this album is high up there in her work that I love most. The jazz influence, Jaco Pastorius' contributions, Larry Carlton's presence, and so on. She always composes brilliantly and is one of the finest lyricists. What an ear for harmony and her sense of melody is intricate and intriguing. Of course, her vocal performances are spectacular and she is quite underrated as a guitarist. Some truly beautiful and emotional stuff here. Brilliant.
Love this record. Joni has made some of the most beautiful and unique music. Her voice and her phrasing, the songwriting- all are so good. I love how loose and open the folky/ jazzy vibe of all these songs are. The music really breathes and flows and goes on a journey in a way you don’t really hear in pop music. It totally feels like a road trip. I love Jaco’s bass playing on her records. It’s so melodic and his tone is so voicelike. It’s so different from what any other bass player would think of playing. It’s like he’s supporting her and singing a duet at the same time. They really perfected this sound on Mingus. Also, worth noting some really beautiful guitar playing by Larry Carlton, I like all the swelly stuff on Amelia. Kudos to her for taking her music off of Spotify, first album I’ve bought in a long time. 5
Liked the concept, storytelling Joni has a great voice of course, and a few tracks had some great baselines from jaco pastorius Still didn’t stand out as especially fantastic as a whole
Thick bots, fresh tops Like a gentle rain, just let it wash over you Lyrically a mouthful, alot to digest. 3/5 4/5 if she just shut up and let the music shine
there were like two good tracks on this and they were both ones with jaco and the guy who played guitar on a lot of steely dan shit. joni seems completely unnecessary here.
Coyote is one of the most vivid experiences in the history of music, a must-listen to The rest of the songs were absolutely splendid, the atmosphere felt a bit dull at times but almost every Joni album is a 5
perfect album. favorites: coyote, amelia, hejira, blue motel room, refuge of the roads
The 1,001 randomizer granted me my wish for more 1970's Joni Mitchell rather quickly. "Hejira" is the eighth studio album from Joni Mitchell. The album was written during a series of three road trips in 1975-1976 including one as a member of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. The music is jazz-inspired and the best descriptor I saw was jazz-pop; she had distanced her music from what I would classify as folk. Many of these sprawling songs are about severed relationship including one of hers with drummer John Guerin. The music is guitar-driven, acoustic and electric, (as opposed to a piano). Joni also met fretless electronic bass player Jaco Pastorius during the writing and recording and he adds just great playing and a jazzy atmophere on four of the songs. Hejira is a transliteration of the Arabic word Heira or Hijra referring to the migration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina; Joni used it to reference/describe "running away with honor." "Coyote" starts things off with guitar, percussion and Jaco's subtle bass. Great free-flowing lyrics. It's about a one-night stand with a ladies man; many say it's about Sam Shepard whom Joni had a fling with. One of my favorite Joni songs. "Amelia" is a slower song. Electric guitar. Vibraphone. A beautiful and sad song. It was inspired by her break-up to drummer John Guerin in the desert. Imageries of airplanes in the desert and Amelia Earhart disappearing. Another great and melancholy song is "Hejira" which Joni said was her toughest song to write. It accounts her reasons for leaving Guerin. Jaco's bass adds to the atmosphere. "Songs for Sharon" begins side two and it's about a woman deciding between freedom and her marriage. Allusions to Joni's break-up and road trips. "Black Crow" almost sounds like a fusion; the electric guitar reminds me of the Woodstock era which is justaposed with a clarinet and Jaco's bass adding a jazzy element. Great song! "Refuge of the Roads" finishes things in sprawling fashion with a song about Joni's trip to a Buddhist meditation which she attributes to helping kick a cocaine addiction which she was battling during the recording and writing of this album. This is an excellent album. It seemed very personal and autobiographical. The emotion carries through. It just added to my quest for re-visiting all of 1970's Joni Mitchell.
Joni Mitchell is an acquired taste, generally speaking, but I'm sure glad I acquired said taste for such extraordinary music. I think *Hejira* is probably my favorite record of hers, along with the poppier *Court And Speak*. I even prefer those two records to her earlier classic albums on the Reprise label, including the all-time great *Blue*. *Hejira* is the one record where she burned all her ships behind her so as to fully embrace that jazzy, sophisticated sound she would never completely forget in the rest of her carreer. Jaco Pastorius' fretless bass does wonders on it, but the guitar parts are insane too. Yet what seals the deal in it is what Joni's voice is accomplishing here. Her vocal lines are incredible, and the lyrics exploring that theme of finding yourself while on the road are driven and focused, as many other reviewers already pointed here. Brilliant literary writing all around. What struck me as I read some of those reviews is how laudatory the four-star ones were--actually suggesting a 5/5 grade instead. I'm pretty sure those Joni fans couldn't bring themselves to bring that higher grade because of the "experimental" nature of this record, and the fact that it is not *Blue*. But the two should *at least* be considered as equal in their overall quality. Both are masterpieces exploring the American psyche, and this in moving and sensitive ways no other record had attempted to reach before. To sum it up, *Hejira* is not merely an "experimental" album, it's an album with a lot of heart and intelligence in it. 5 stars is the least I can give for it. Number of albums left to review: 765 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 118 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 57 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 60
Wonderful record all the way around – unhurried, mellow, contemplative – exactly like a great road trip (surely just a coincidence). The guitar playing is excellent – who knew Joni had such axe chops but Jaco's name should be on the masthead, too. Speaking personally, this feels like peak Joni: "We got high on travel / And we got drunk on alcohol / And on love, the strongest poison and medicine of all." First two cuts are most engaging and the last a beautiful closer.
I literally never listen to this kind of stuff, but this went really hard.
The apex of Joni Mitchell's adventures into "Folk-Jazz" yields a wonderfully groovy album with long, winding songs about travels and tyrsts, all overdubbed by the masterful fretless bass of Jaco Pastorius. A great album shrouded in the haze of lounge cigarette smoke, coupled with the moodiness of someone who's traveled there and back again. Standout Songs: "Coyote" "Furry Sings the Blues" "Song for Sharon"
What a stunning record by Joni Mitchell, the artwork alone makes me long for a road trip, far away from home. Hejira falls right in between pop songs and some more jazz structures, so that it remains nice and relaxed listening/musing music. This album is especially amazing with the combination of all these songs, written for guitar, with bass, vocal and guitar. After all the (deserved) praise for Jaco Pastorius, I would like to point out that he is not the only bassist on this album. Max Bennett and Chuck Domanico also leave their mark on the songs they play on. Hejira is therefore perhaps the highlight of Joni's impressive discography for me, a beautiful album!
Once again, I will be unable to be impartial about Joni. She's fantastic, and this is another one of my favorites of hers. Songs like "Amelia" and "Coyote" have so much feeling to them. Her jazz influences continue to be more strongly felt than on her past works, maintaining the trajectory that she had been on, and due in no small part to Jaco Pastorius' fretless bass playing. This is maybe her last "perfect" album, but it's a perfect closer to an incredible run.
Such a lovely album from such a lovely woman. The songs have long, descriptive narratives that create such vivid images of their subjects. Just what I would want on a road trip with Joni Mitchell.
I think this kind of meandering jazzy song structure would not work for me, in general. However, the instrumentation was very nice and Joni's voice just had me from the first note. I kind of felt uneasy at times, but each time the album ended, I wanted to start it again.
Primer disco que no tengo dudas que es perfecto 10/10. Desde las letras, las melodias, todo es espectacularmente perfecto. No aburre, no cansa, no me pasó como en Blue que algunos temas rozaban lo monótono pero se veían salvados por la voz y las letras de Joni. Este caso es excelente, el mejor que he escuchado de ella.
Powerful lyrics that truly make me feel like I was on the road with her Props to the other reviewers that pointed out the road head on the cover because I never would have noticed Can't wait for the generator to flip me some more Joni 5/5
Goodness me another obvious and unavoidable five star. A thing of undisputed beauty.
This album shows Joni at the peak of her creativity and is especially through the collaboration with Jaco Pastorius simply unique.
A year ago, I hadn’t heard any Joni Mitchell. Today, when seeing that I was generated this album, I felt excited. I loved Court and Spark, and I loved Blue, so I have high hopes for Hejira. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Coyote, Amelia I love the storytelling on this album. Most music that I tend to listen to might tend to have lyrics more about an idea or a feeling, whereas here we have music that pints a picture and tells a story. It’s a staple of folk music, and something I never expected that I would feel so drawn to. As usual, the vocals are the perfection that I’ve come to expect. I did want to also mention the bass playing on this album. It’s fairly simple, but complex enough to stay interesting, and very complimentary to the music in general. Overall, another fantastic album by Joni Mitchell that I enjoyed a lot.
Dec 16 2021. Album #1. Calming and great storytelling in lyrics but feels dissonant with current life.
Ah Joni, a Canadian national treasure! Always a pleasure listening to her. She's a powerful storyteller and wonderful musician.
Joni Mitchell on a quest for love, meaning and the next bingo game. Here is an insightful "modern" review of the songstress by Rob Moura. https://www.popmatters.com/joni-mitchell-hejira-atr4
Absolutely gorgeous album lyrically. Complex and nuanced. Musically it sure isn't straight ahead pop. Jazzy with complex melodies that are not always accessible. Favourite song; Coyote. 4 🌟
‘Hejira’ is a bit less immediate than some of Joni Mitchell’s other work. It has a restless nature in sound and storytelling, with complex chords and strong jazz overtones. It’s a slow burn, but it’s also possibly her most rewarding album.
Joni slowly but surely found her inner sophisticated lounge singer. It's a folk jazz album. Deal with it (8/10) FT: Coyote
Hejira is an album of explorations. Joni Mitchell created big lyrics for long songs, just like the road trips that inspired the record. The jazzy feeling of the album makes every listening an oportunity to discover something new. Tracks like "Coyote", "Furry Sings the Blues" and "Song for Sharon" becomes prettier every time you listen to them.
Cet album extrêmement mystérieux a très vite attisé ma curiosité et s'est soldé par une découverte assez surprenante. Le point de départ de tout ceci est la non-disponibilité de cet album sur l'application Spotify, qui nous amène très vite sur une autre application : YouTube. L'album y figure bel et bien sous forme d'une playlist. Chaque morceau du projet est décrit dans l'onglet prévu à cet effet de la même façon : « Provided to YouTube by Rhino ». Très intrigant n'est-ce pas ? Après de longues recherches, voici ce que j'ai trouvé : le dénommé Rhino est en réalité un véritable rhinocéros blanc et possède l'intégralité des droits de la discographie de Joni Mitchell. Une fois tous ces faits vérifiés par deux fois, j'appelai donc Robert pour l'alerter sur la situation de la chanteuse. En quelques coups de fil, celui-ci parvint à faire capturer le rhino et à organiser sa réintroduction dans une réserve naturelle ougandaise.
There's not much folky jazzy goodness that's not here. An excellent road album. Jaco does his thing and at times shines out. The cores of the songs are dead simple classic, though: Voice, guitar, the language of the West.
I love Joni Mitchell. I need to listen to more of her work, but I love her.
I didn't know Joni Mitchell did sophi-pop a decade before it was a thing. Reminds me of a lot of indie folk from the area, especially Tim Buckley and Nick Drake. Guitars envelop you, and there are jazz and country influences to relax you. All songs start with Joni in some random setting in the country taking in the sights, feels like a drive on Route 66, although Memphis is a bit off the beaten path. Few complaints, maybe a little long overall but the songs were fine. Excellent songwriting, voice, and fitting instrumentals. Favorites: Coyote, Hejira, Song for Sharon
Absolutely love Joni Mitchell - Coyote is in my all time top 10 and Amelia isn't far behind.
WOW! A beautiful album, with stunning vocals. Tired from travelling, so this will be short, but truly I loved this. Loved the bass so much, didn't know Jaco was on this album until I looked into it more, and he really added a lot on the songs he played in. Anyways, stellar STELLAR album. Favorite song was probably Black Crow.
J'adore joni mitchell, un bon album mais pas extra comme d'autres du memem artiste 4
Really cool guitar tones on this one. Blue Motel Room is a sweet low swung song. totally worth a revisit.
I'm not sure who is playing that guitar, but there is a lot of emotions behind those strings
In love with the lyricism on "Furry Sings the Blues", and "Refuge of the Roads" is pretty dang groovy!
This album very much felt like a natural progression for Joni: as time does by, she (had to?) evolve a bit away from the stripped down, guitar-only music and this album proved that she could pull it off as well. A overall enjoyable album full of nice songs that maybe have a bit less storytelling quality but make it up with ncie but subtle background arrangements
Tydzien powtarzanych artystow, tym razem kolejny krazek od Joni Mitchell, Hejira bedaca jej osmym studyjnym albumem z 76, tak jak poprzedni pick jest to solidnie napisane i zaspiewane, czuc ze jest to material artystki ktora stara sie wyrzucic na papier swoje przezycia, a nie wyciskane na sile sztampowe zawodzenia byle by sie dobrze sluchalo, a przeciez najlepiej slucha sie czegos za czym artysta naprawde stoi i tym zyje, w tym przypadku motywami przewodnimi sa doswiadczenia z podrozowania lub zycia w podrozy, bo taki tryb zycia prowadzila w latach 70 pani Joni, ale nie bedzie jedynie o celach podrozy a raczej o drodze i rzeczach oraz ludziach przy niej spotkanych, a jak spotkania to musza byc rowniez rozstania, no i walenie po kablach, instrumentalnie jest to folkowy rock z influencjalmi jazzowymi w zaleznosci od utworu, w nagrania bylo zangazowanych bylo 10 muzykow sesyjnych, na uwage zasluguja zwlaszcza Jaco Pastorius na basie oraz Larry Carlton ktory gral gitarki elektrokowe oraz akustykowe, w zalenosci od tego na czym szarpala pani Mitchell, calosc sklada sie z 9 trakow na 52 minutach, o ile poprzedni album od niej urzekl mnie wokalnie i przyjemnymi dla ucha instrumentalami, tak ten robi to jeszcze lepiej, a dodatkowo trafia lirycznie w moja wagabondowa dusze, na plejke spotifajowa nie dodam nic, bo pani Joni zaraz obok Neila Younga wycofala swoja dyskografie, gdy dodali podkasty tego buca do biblioteki serwisu, ale chyba najbardziej zapadajacymi w pamiec trakami beda dla mnie openingowy coyote, z ktorego sampel slyszalem w jakims muryznskim traku oraz a strange boy
Very soothing listen. Mitchell is an excellent songwriter and I know I'll be back for more. I might need a couple more listens of this to get a better grasp on it, but unfortunately YouTube is not my preferred way to listen to music...
Another stunning album from Joni Mitchell. If less catchy then Blue or Court and Spark, this is still an exhibition of the songwriter’s craft. Beautiful singing, gorgeous guitar work, poetic and evocative, it’s is a delight to hear the artist create works like this.
Interesting concept from Joni that speaks for itself. I mean, it's Joni Mitchell. This album gets bonus points for having Jaco Pastorius on some of the tracks. While not her more familiar work, definitely a must listen. 4/5.
Love her long rambling vignettes The music rambles with her Triggers my wanderlust Beautiful voice Captured by the cover art
I gotta be in the right mood to listen to something like this. And I was! I can't name a list of songs from this album that I'd say are incredible, or even pulling me back in to listen to them again immediately, but there was something about the overall tone and timbre of the record that I really enjoyed. It's moody and nothing but stories that unfold through Joni doing her Joni thing. Hell, it's almost spoken word. If you asked me to name a song on the album that has a repeated chorus, I'm not sure I could do it. But it worked. I also quite liked the clean guitar tones throughout. Here's a little exchange that stuck out to me from "Song of Sharon:" Well, there's a wide wide world of noble causes And lovely landscapes to discover But all i really want right now Is to find another lover That's my kind of poetry right there. Plus there's a dick on the cover?? Thanks for pointing that out, Andy. Irrefutable fact.
Never heard this one before. Not my favourite album of hers musically, but I really enjoy the writing. Ok I take it back it's got Jaco and it's starting to grow on me. 4 stars
Musically, this is good but a bit past her peak (sorry Jaco). Lyrically, however, she is at the absolute top of her game. I just wish I cared about lyrics more.
This has been on repeat all day as I try to solve the mysteries of this album. This is truly music as story telling.
Coyote is so gorgeous. All of it is gorgeous. I think I start to lose interest towards the end around Black Crow.
The album gets off to a very good star with Coyote. I like that her music developed beyond folk. The rhythm section is very competent and she lets them wander. They end up miles away from where folk music rhythms usually hang out. The guitars are very loose and continue to float all over the place even during the verses. In theory, loose wandering guitars shouldn't work with folk, but they do. Kinda the way Keith Moon's drumming isn't supposed to work, but it does.
Not really my thing but there's no doubt this is some good stuff. It's probably a 5 star album but I can't give it more than 4 stars when I balance my enjoyment of this kind of music (low) with how good it actually is (high).
Joni Mitchell Isn't what I would normally listen to but I respect her as a songwriter and musician. She always does things with alternate guitar tuning's in the bass on this album is very pronounced which I always like.
Intriguing that this was written amidst a period of lots of travel. The songs feel like that - some of them seem to be stuck in a state of waiting, thinking, the way you might feel if you were stuck at an airport or on a long train ride. It seems to make sense that this album didn't initially perform as well as her previous works, but became one of her most beloved. It's like a journal that you can keep reading and discovering new things each time.
Very good, with great lyrics, but all felt a bit restrained. Clearly very influential, especially on female singer songwriters, but not quite 5 🌟 for me.
Þetta er töff og skemmtilegt. Kannski fá lög utan Coyote sem grípa mann strax, en platan vinnur á við frekari hlustun, eins og góðar plötur gera.
It's not on Spotify! I'm so glad this came up, I've been meaning to properly listen to Joni Mitchell for ages but for some reason never got round to it. Such a beautiful voice. Favourite track: Hejira - haunting guitar and the lyrics are poetry, the 'comfort in melancholy'. The sadness of a breakup leads her to realise that love is the purpose of life, and also teaches her to cope with solitude