Mitchell, Joni, 1943–,
Canadian-American songwriter, singer, guitarist, poet, and painter, b.
MacLeod (now Fort Macleod), Alta., as Roberta Joan Anderson; married
musician Chuck Mitchell (1965–67). She moved (1967) from Detroit to
New York City, and sang on the East Coast folk circuit. She cut her first
record, Joni Mitchell, in 1968, the year singer Judy
Collins recorded Mitchell's “Both Sides Now,” which became a
top pop hit. Mitchell's quirky, complex, witty, and often introspective
songs, frequently marked by social or feminist concerns, resonated with the
young folk-rock audience. She had successive hits with such albums as
Clouds (1969; Grammy), Ladies of the
Canyon (1970), Blue (1971), and Court
and Spark (1974), producing her only top ten hit, "Help Me."
During the late 1970s she turned to jazz experiments in The Hissing
of Summer Lawns (1975), Hejira (1976),
Mingus (1979), and other albums. Among her notable
later albums are Dog Eat Dog (1985), Turbulent
Indigo (1997; Grammy), and Travelogue (2002).
Mitchell continued to record into the 21st cent., although she was hampered
increasingly by health issues. Her music has been championed as a major
influence by many other female singer/songwriters, most notably in the 2020s
by Brandi Carlile, who has performed the entire Blue album
live in homage to Mitchell. Among her many awards include nine Grammy Awards
and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2002) and a Kennedy Center Honor
(2021).
See Joni Mitchell: The Complete Poems and Lyrics (1997), Morning Glory
on the Vine: Early Songs and Drawings (2019); biographies by B.
Hinton (1996), K. O'Brien (2001), D. Yaffe (2017), M.A. O'Neill (2021);
studies by S. Nelson, Joni Mitchell: Court and Spark
(2006), S. Weller, Girls Like Us: Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly
Simon—And the Journey of A Generation; collections by M.
Marom, ed., Joni Mitchell: In Her Own Words (2013), B.
Hoskyns, ed., Joni: The Anthology (2017), S. Whitall, ed.,
Joni on Joni: Interviews and Encounters with Joni
Mitchell (2018); Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and
Mind (documentary, 2003).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
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