By AVA LIVERSIDGE
The fourth volume of the ongoing Joni Mitchell Archives series is upon us with The Asylum Albums (1976 – 1980).
An effort to preserve the beloved Canadian singer-songwritrer’s discography has taken us through the early days as she found her folk footings, to the pop hits that grew ubiquitous at the height of Mitchell’s career, and finally, to the experimental years. The year 1976 was a turning point for Mitchell who, in her words, made a conscious shift from the “hit department” to the “art department.”
The collection includes four remastered records: Hejira (1976), Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter (1977), Mingus (1979), and the live LP Shadows and Light (1980).
The first came on the heels of Bob Dylan’s acclaimed Rolling Thunder Revue—the idiosyncratic troupe of old friends and foes—Mitchell, Ginsberg, and Baez included—who gathered to jettison their stadium appearances for touring at off-the-path venues. Mitchell spent her time on the road trying out her new artistic incarnation on peers, penning tracks like “Coyote” that would come to define her new era.
Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter (1977) was an experimental tour de force, unlike anything in her previous placid, folk catalog. This step thrust her fully into the world of footloose jazz on Mingus (1979), named for jazz bassist and composer Charles Mingus who collaborated with Mitchell on a number of tracks for the album.
The concluding double live record Shadows and Light (1980) was recorded at the Santa Barbara Bowl amidst a tour promoting Mingus. Unrelenting to the wiles of fans wanting the singer-songwriter back, the show highlighted the freewheeling, expansive tracks that litter much of her later work.
The Asylum Albums archival project pays tribute to an era of Mitchell’s musicianship that too often gets left out of her legacy. I hope that the four-part release reminds her listeners to relish in the fruits of studio sessions with Herbie Hancock, late evenings writing poetry with Ginsberg, and in the mature artist who doesn’t always feel called towards pleasant progressions and sing-along choruses.
Listen to The Asylum Albums here:
