I’ve been a fan of Joni Mitchell since I was 15. I even performed a cover of Same Situation in one of my high school assemblies, as well as at a school concert held in a church building. People giggled at the words, “sex appeal”.
The first Joni album I owned was Court & Spark. I fell in love with the poetry and the unusual musical arrangements. Today, I’d like to share with you some of my favourite lines from various Joni Mitchell songs:
I remember that time you told me, you said, “love is touching souls”, well surely you touched mine
‘Cause part of you pours out of me in these lines from time to time.
A Case Of You
Call her Green, and the winters cannot fade her
Call her Green, for the children who have made her
Little Green (This song was written about the daughter she gave up for adoption as a teenager.)
Nobody stopped to hear him
Though he played so sweet and high
They knew he had never been on their TV
So they passed his music by
For Free
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StugAUy7hsc
I wish I had a river I could skate away on.
River
You’ve had lots of lovely women, now you turn your gaze to me
Weighing the beauty and the imperfections, to see if I’m worthy
Like the church, like a cop, like a mother, you want me to be truthful
Sometimes you turn it on me like a weapon though, and I need your approval
Same Situation
One minute she’s so happy, then she’s crying on someone’s knee
Saying, “Laughing and crying, you know it’s the same release”.
People’s Parties
Everything comes and goes
Marked by lovers and styles of clothes
Down To You
But now it’s just another show
You leave ’em laughing when you go
And if you care, don’t let them know
Don’t give yourself away
Both Sides Now
I could go on all night. And there are so many Joni albums that I haven’t even listened to yet, so I know that there’s many more gems out there for me to discover. In the meantime, I hope the words above leave you feeling inspired!
Photo courtesy of Sue Hasker – Away for a while