5. Joni MitchellHejira
This is the one with ‘Song For Sharon’ on it. [sings] ‘I went to Staten Island, to buy myself a mandolin/ And I saw the long white dress of love on a storefront mannequin/ Big boat chuggin’ back with a belly full of cars/ All for something lacy/ Some girl’s going to see that dress/ And crave that day like crazy…’ Hejira is about a woman who did a road trip across America, and it’s almost like a diary of that time, and it’s just this soul-searching thing, and there’s this gorgeous atmosphere on it. It’s Jaco Pastorius’ bass, and that’s his stamp. Neil Young’s on it too, Larry Carlton, and various other great people, and the synergy of the band is just incredible. Again, what I love about it is that it’s a collaboration. It’s very much her, but it’s also about her relationship with all the other musicians. There’s lots of beautiful lyrical imagery on this: ‘Snow gathers like bolts of lace/ Waltzing on a ballroom girl…’ It’s very eccentric, lyrically, and very vivid and melancholic at the same time. You can see that she’s a painter, ’cause she paints beautiful pictures with words and music. Gorgeous landscapes. She’s a visceral artist, and no wonder she’s always pissed off, because no one appreciates her enough. We’re not smart enough, yet, to have a context in which to appreciate her.
