Mitchell, Joni (1943-…), is a Canadian-born singer and composer known for her expressive voice and broad vocal range. She first gained recognition as a folk singer during the 1960’s, but her personal and lyrical music extends beyond any single style. Mitchell’s compositions reflect influences of jazz, rock music, and classical art songs as well as the folk tradition. She has won a number of Grammy Awards for her music, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. Mitchell has also won a number of Juno Awards. Juno Awards are given annually by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to Canadian musical artists and bands for their artistic and technical achievements.
Mitchell was born in Fort Macleod, Alberta. Her real name was Roberta Joan Anderson. She married Chuck Mitchell in 1965. They divorced a year later, but she retained her married name. In the mid-1960’s, Mitchell began singing in Toronto folk music clubs. She then moved to New York City and recorded her first album, Joni Mitchell (later called Song to a Seagull) in 1968. She gained her first national recognition with her second album, Clouds (1970), which included the hit single “Both Sides Now.” Her album Ladies of the Canyon (1970) included the hits “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Woodstock,” and “Circle Game.”
By the mid-1970’s, Mitchell had become so popular that she moved out of clubs and cabarets and performed in arenas and stadiums. Her sixth album, Court and Spark (1974), included the hits “Help Me” and “Raised on Robbery.” Mitchell’s other successful albums of the 1970’s included Blue (1971), Miles of Aisles (1974), The Hissing of Summer Lawns (1975), and Hejira (1976). Her 1979 album Mingus was named jazz album of the year and folk-blues album of the year by Down Beat magazine.
In the 1980’s, Mitchell experimented with a rock-oriented style on such albums as Dog Eat Dog (1985) and Chalk Mark in a Rainstorm (1988). She moved closer again to the folk tradition in the 1990’s with such albums as Night Ride Home (1991), Turbulent Indigo (1994), and Taming the Tiger (1998). Many songs on these albums combined eloquent lyrics with simple guitar or piano accompaniment, much like her hits of the 1970’s. Mitchell’s notable later albums include Both Sides Now (2000), Shine (2007), and the live album Joni Mitchell at Newport (2023).
The book Morning Glory on the Vine (2019) features handwritten lyrics and drawings by Mitchell. Mitchell originally created the book in 1971 as a gift for some close friends. Mitchell was inducted (entered) into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. She became a Kennedy Center honoree in 2021.
