FIRST TIME REACTING TO | JONI MITCHELL "FOR FREE" LIVE BBC 1970 REACTION

[@ContrarianCorner]

In an era of some of the greatest singer/songwriters, Joni Mitchell was (and still is) unsurpassed. She is a master musician, singer and songwriter. One of the greatest ever.

[@dudeymcduderson]

If ever there was an epitome of 'they don't make them like this anymore' then Joni Mitchell is it. She is otherworldly.

[@tomenrico6199]

It is funny that you should talk about Joni painting a picture with her lyrics. In fact, Joni was also an accomplished painter. Among other things she painted the cover art for many of her record albums.

[@looneygardener]

A talent for the century! Singer, poet, artist, musician. A deep dive.

[@LSW1869]

Your comment " she is painting a picture" was spot on. I didn't realize until you said it but my mind was already going visual from the song. I consider Joni to be a national treasure. Well, she is Canadian but still. She brought American folk music to a higher level where it seemed natural to collaborate with the top jazz musicians.

[@conniedean1977]

This is country music level story telling without being country at all. I have loved her music since the early 70s. 😍🎶

[@rapidfirerob4]

My first concert was Joni in 68 playing piano and guitar by herself. Sadly, I never saw her live again. Thankfully she's still alive. Genius songwriter, singer and a wonderful painter. She moved from folk to rock to jazz effortlessly and played with some of the best musicians on the planet.

[@steveullrich7737]

Not sure if you heard that Joni sang at last summers Newport Folk Festival and a recoding of it called 'At Newport' will be released this July 28.

[@looneygardener]

The album Court andSpark is stunning and classic. She is a multi instrumentalist. Writes everything.

[@bobcorbin3294]

She's painted several of her own album covers that are just as beauriful as her songs

[@gablen23]

This song is on " Ladies Of The Canyon".

[@looneygardener]

@@gablen23perhaps, but I wasn't talking about the song.

[@davmil2002]

It's about capturing a moment. Just sitting at a stoplight and looking around and she sees him. And he's doing it all for free. A complete picture of events and emotions.

[@Noodleboy56]

The song she plays next is done on a Dulcimer which is a stringed instrument from Appalachia. The song is called "A Case of You" and you're going to love it. Make sure and check it out. You've found a giant rabbit hole to go down with Joni. So much great music. I loved this reaction(actually cried) and I look forward to more.

[@ContrarianCorner]

Correct. Specifically, it's a 'Mountain' Dulcimer (as opposed to a Hammer Dulcimer). It was also her main instrument for composition. Joni was so unique in that she would constantly look for non-standard tunings until she found one that was right for the song. The word 'genius' is way over used but I think it might actually apply to Joni Mitchell.

[@lisaharrison1031]

I could drink a case of you…….. absolutely mesmerizing.

[@alanaltimont9007]

That next instrument is a mountain dulcimer, which she plays on several of her songs on her great album, Blue. Nice reaction!

[@TonyG111]

Not only is Joni Mitchell a brilliant vocalist and songwriter, but she is also an incredible painter - artist - check out her work - it will blow you away.

[@colleencreamer2472]

I listened to this song when it came out in the early 70s over and over and over and over. And it still floors me .... the sentiment.

[@pbrooks4040]

her phrasing is flawless! what a gift.

[@painetdldy]

I will never understand how some individuals got all the talent. She sings her own backup harmonies, illustrates her albums, and plays guitar and piano soooooo beautifully

[@j.kevvideoproductions.6463]

No one makes me cry like Joni.

[@randsimon1313]

It's because the beauty that comes from her is unbearable.

[@conniedean1977]

She has had a long career full of beautiful songs-“A Case of You”, I Wish I Had a River”, Help Me”,…..❤🎶

[@gablen23]

She is painting pictures with her songs, but she is a painter too, she even makes the covers of her own albums!

[@roswails1492]

she won Grammys for music and artistic album cover

[@winding-roads]

Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Leanord Cowen some of Canada's best.

[@57briben]

Cohen

[@ThistleAndSea]

So, so many beautiful songs by Joni. She was the real deal. 🙂

[@gizmo5925]

I'm gonna put this up though I doubt anyone will see it. Listen to her album "Blue." It will change your life. Despite the fact that it was released more than 50 years ago, it's still selling. Some of her songs you should listen to written and performed by her: (early period) "Both Sides Now," "Chelsea Morning," "Night in the City," "The Circle Game," "A Case of You," "Carey," "California," "River," "All I Want," "You Turn Me on, I'm a Radio," (Middle Period) "Help Me," "Free Man in Paris," "In France They Kiss on Main Street," "Don't Interrupt the Sorrow," "Shades of Scarlet Conquering," "Edith and the Kingpin," "Jericho," "Dreamland," "The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines," (Later period) "Two Grey Rooms," "Passion Play (When All the Slaves Are Free)," "Magdalen Laundries," "Sunny Sunday," "Turbulent Indigo," "Man from Mars." You should also know that she is a painter.

[@davidburgess3882]

Take a deep dive into Joni. She's a GOAT! "Blue", Hejira", "Court and Spark", "Hissing of Summer Lawns", "Turbulent Indigo", "For the Roses", etc, etc, etc...

[@margoburns9085]

Joni is a painter. She usually plays the guitar when she performs. Her art is on the covers of all of her albums. Greatest Canadian singer songwriter in history. Literally me here. Please listen to the album lady's of the canyon. You will need those tissues.

[@michaelkniskern5786]

You get it. She is brilliant. One sidebar though.... she was shopping for jewels, not juice.

[@josephscally6270]

Your reaction to the wonderful Joni Mitchell makes me appreciate you all the more as I only subscribed and hour or so ago. Thank you.

[@brittreacts]

Thanks for subbing and welcome to the party!!!

[@sharonstark1014]

Joni is a national treasure. Check out "California", she plays an instrument called the Dulcimer and "Both Sides Now" and "River."

[@royleggitt3307]

So cool you metaphor painting as she is a prolific painter too 🎨

[@toot0913]

Luv me some Joni. That’s a deep rabbit hole…

[@gerhardlegeland4523]

Watching you listening to this great song you were very much entranced. This made you look even more pretty. Did you noticed what she played on the piano after she sang ...he was playing so sweet and high? That is Joni's musicality. So amazing. Nobody comes close to her. This song is a great gift to each and every street musician. She gives them respect and dignity, rather different to what you can see how people passing by even great street musicians. Is there another famous musician who has given those people so much attention as Joni did? Real good for free. Love you Joni ❤

[@PerryVase]

You may be interested in two songs that are linked together. "Sugar Mountain" was written by Neil Young on his 19th birthday on November 12, 1964. A response in 1966 called "The Circle Game" came from his good friend and fellow Canadian Joni Mitchell.

[@cynergy4]

I had forgotten about this gem. Thanks for the reminder!

[@9thedreaming9]

Great reaction! Joni has been my number one artist for decades now. It's very interesting that you saw the "painting" in Joni's music. I think you absolutely got it. She said several times that she considers herself a painting first and a musician second. You should check her art, it's amazingly beautiful.

[@trybalone396]

Lv you Sis thanks for this. :)

[@chucknonverbal]

I saw her live outdoors just after she released “Blue”. Two hours of pure bliss.

[@lisaharrison1031]

She actually is a painter also. She’s a national treasure. I have been a huge fan since 1973.

[@neilwoodley530]

I watched you watching this...and you were entranced. It reminded me of something. The first time that I heard this song I was 16 years old. No video...just the song. You took me back there. I was a little lost then....50 + years later I can feel 16 again. Bittersweet.

[@jodyalaniz]

Prince was a huge fan of hers. You can hear her influence in a lot of his songs.

[@AndrewMalcolmson]

Good comment about her song painting a picture. As a teenager she studied painting and but switched to music. Later in her career she returned to painting.

[@chickenlampbrent]

Yeah you get it. She just reaches into you and shows you she knows you better than you do. Joni is something special to be sure, she sings me to sleep every night and has done for years and I never get tired of the playlist. And in fact, you were right about something, she can sing about something gruesome and make it seem sweet, she's well known for tackling thorny subjects. To get someone who is a multi-instrumentalist and an expert with a phenomenal voice and sense of musicality who is also one of the greatest songwriters of all time. That's quite a lot all rolled into one human being.

[@j-mo3129]

Joni also played guitar in her own special style

[@markchapel6694]

Interesting how you mentioned how she was "paining a picture". She is also a very talented painter. Of her 19 studio album covers, 12 are paintings by her, and most of these are self-portraits

[@theodillon3216]

I’m think you should really listen to the two songs “The Dawntreader” and “Cactus Tree” from her first album. The painting she paints with those two are so exquisite, they’re life changing songs.

[@BRIANZ969]

Great review -lovely song Brian Birch Joni is the best

[@sylvialang6606]

Loved your reaction, Britt. Some other story songs and voices you will love. Elvis Presley - If I Can Dream, Queen - Somebody to Love (live in Montreal), Bonnie Raitt - I can't make you love me. And Home Free When a Man Loves A Woman. And Joni's Big Yellow Taxi. And the best voice of all Ella Fitgerald my fave. Cry me a river, but most peope like summertime, or dream a little dream

[@jamesbull6266]

Joni is not only a singer-songwriter, but she is also a painter as well. Some of them are on her album covers. That other instrument she was about to sit down and play, is an Applachian dulcimer. By the way she wrote, "Both Sides Now, " "Circle Game" "Woodstock" and many others.

[@PaulSchuster-yj4zb]

"To me, that made me feel like I was listening to a rainbow sing." That was a great response!

[@allauricia1985]

Great reaction!!!!!!!!!! I mean it

[@had64198]

She is a painter, too❤

[@johnharkness7114]

Yes, Joni is a miracle. But when you described the ability to play and sing, you described also my dear mother, who could play pretty much any song you gave her, if she had ever heard of it, and sing along as well. She, also is a true miracle

[@Handleweary]

Wow! 53 years ago? Unbelievable...

[@bobdelp2023]

THERE WAS NOBODYYYYY THAT CAME CLOSE TO JONIIIIII BRITT GIRL! 😊 ONE OF HER HUGE HIT SONGS ( A CASE OF YOU ) AND SHE SAYS ' I'M A LONELY PAINTER, I LIVE IN A BOX OF PAINTS 😊 I MEAN CMONNNN!. AND THAT INSTRUMENT SHE WAS ABOUT TO PLAY BRITT IS CALLED A ( DULCIMER ) CROSS BETWEEN A MANDOLIN AND ACOUSTIC GUITAR KINDA SOUND. THIS BBC SHOW SHE DID WAS AWESOME, SHE TELLS SOME STORIES BEFORE THE SONGS ARE PLAYED, ONE BEING ( WOODSTOCK ) AND YESSSSS YOU SHOULD DO THAT FOR SURE! 😊

[@simonrangeley]

Nobody writes lyrics like Joni.

[@Alright70]

Ironically she’s a painter, and a very good one. ❤

[@plasticonion]

Funny you mention how she paints a picture because she is also an artist who paints.

[@pamhunter-to4xs]

Ironically, Joni is also a beautiful paibter🇨🇦🙏❤️

[@tomrockwood851]

Please do more Joni Mitchell. You could even start with the more famous AM hits.

[@aarontrzeciak2298]

Your description of painting a picture with song is spot on here. I subscribed immediately. I would say, react to the song Vincent (about Van Gogh) by Don McLean. Also, Amelia, my favorite Joni song. Though there are many that I might say that about with her. ….Very intelligent and empathetic reaction. Good job.

[@jcurmudgeon6155]

Your respect for Joni is noted

[@MattJocks]

Love watching your face as the story unfolded. And funny you talked about her painting a picture because she is an accomplished artist. She did the cover art for many of her albums. If you love storytellers who paint word pictures, I would very very highly recommend Mary Chapin Carpenter. "I Am A Town" is one of the best word-picture songs ever (live version at Wolftrap is excellent). Only A Dream, too.

[@jamesreilly606]

Blue is her opus magnus. .

[@esjaybee5555]

@jh2264 Opus magnus did put a smile on my day. You have to admit.

[@notvalidcharacters]

Very perceptive. Joni considers herself a visual artist first and approaches her music the same way, painting pictures with words. The instrument she's picking up is a dulcimer, you should check that out too. But mostly she's known for playing guitar -- in unique styles, using some 60 different tunings.

[@WildArtFlyFree]

On the same screen BrittReacts could be Joni Mitchell's sister. A compliment to both.

[@hlawrencepowell]

Even the greats call Joni the greatest.

[@jnagarya519]

Note that the guy is also free of the show business trappings on which she is dependent.

[@lindaostrom570]

the circle game by joni mitchell.

[@davidclarke6304]

Joni Mitchell is a genius and in her early days (19 albums) very accessible , personally I never liked this song it is beneath her talents. She was rambling the streets and a little dazed and disgruntled at her own commercial success A bright pop hit "Help Me" you'd love girly, clever and winsome. Songs from her penultimate album Blue are all classics like "A Case of You" a seductive song about her Leonard Cohen affair or "River" about her regrets ending a long Graham Nash romance. Oddly that is now a Xmas classic the saddest one possible but lovely . There is "Green" about giving up her only child for adoption "Magdalene Laundries" about women's oppression in Ireland and she wrote Woodstock, Both Sides Now ,Circle Game songs you may know without knowing done by others. There was a time when Canadian music was known for singer song writers Joni Mitchell , Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Leonard Cohen, Ian Tyson, Buffy Sainte- Marie not Drake, Justin Bieber and Avril Lavigne. ​

[@looneygardener]

Don't forget Gord and the Tragically Hip!

[@jameswiglesworth5004]

Sorry, but penultimate means last but one and there were many other albums after Blue. There is speculation that "A Case Of You" refers to Graham Nash, as does "River", however I think Leonard Cohen is more likely. "Magdalene Laundries" is more specific than the general term women's oppression in Ireland. They were Institutes, initially for" Fallen Women", i.e prostitutes, but later also housed those perceived to be promiscuous, unmarried mothers, even those that had been sexually abused. They suffered physical and mental abuse and were completely cut off from the outside world. it is estimated that over 1600 died while imprisoned, Shockingly they did not cease operating until 1996

[@davidclarke6304]

@@jameswiglesworth5004 Thanks for the nudge on penultimate I will be more careful in my choice of words. You may note I mentioned in the first sentence 19 albums. I have read several biographies of Joni including David Yaffe's semi authorized "Reckless Daughter". Even Wikipedia refers to Nash and ":River" and he has acknowledged that in interviews ,so a safe assertion. Cohen we are told is referenced in a "Case of You" (O'Canada trill) and that seems likely to me. As to the Magdalene Laundries I am well aware. I did not think a casual first time listener like Britt needed a ponderous history lesson so I used a blanket term.

[@davidclarke6304]

@@looneygardener That is a different Generation and a music group. I would be unusual in not sharing your enthusiasm . For myself I would be mentioning Bruce Cockburn, Robert Charlebois, Murray McLauchlan, Stan Rogers, Alanis Morrisette, Sarah McLaughlin, Gilles Vigneault ,Susan Aglukark. A few moderns I have enjoyed like Feist and I really like Corb Lund but then again I am from Alberta

[@looneygardener]

@@davidclarke6304 had to give a shout out to my homeboy!

[@manonthemoog]

The first time you stopped the video, you went silent. it was a painfully long pause and I had no idea what you were going to say. I half-suspected you weren't going to like my main girl Joni. But instead, you came out with the perfect description of Joni's talent and her music. She really does use music to craft viewscapes and detailed portraits: many of them self-portraits, all are insightful. The reason for this as you now know, is Joni is as accomplished a painter as she is a musician. By comparing her songwriting to painting you showed you have real insight too.

[@charlemarcharlemar2401]

The instrument she is holding is a dulcimer and the next song was A case of you… which you should also listen to as it is one of her best.

[@mikeross14]

Please do"Coyote!" with Jaco Pastorius on bass the beginning of Joni"s Jazz Phase which hasn't ended!

[@mwilliams1330]

Love you reactions. If you want a picture in song find Harry Chapin, Taxi. He has more, but that will tickle your fancy.

[@YManCyberDude]

Yea . . . She actually paints pictures too . . . Even album covers for other famous groups . . . Yup . . . Did you know that ?

[@joecampos5624]

The story is what we become he was giving every thing for free..

[@davidrauh8118]

Also check out Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush doing Don't Give Up. You'll need tissues for that music video. Gets me everytime.

[@jimjimgl3]

And she was also literally a painter...

[@voodooacidman]

no auto tune, no ghost singers/ ghost musicians, this is from a different time! back then, you were considered a sensation if you were talented, now, it seems our "stars" only need to be pretty =/, sorry if i put a downer on the mood, i am feeling my age today. big love to all people :)

[@gzucc]

She writes about David Geffen cruising for gay sex in Paris. She goes everywhere and you should go there with her.

[@oldstudent2587]

If you like scene/story songs, try Joni Mitchell's Urge For Going.

[@albarton7189]

You said she could sing about something gruesome and make it sound sweet. That’s true. Check out her songs The Magdalene Laundries, Cherokee Louise, Two Gray Rooms, and Sex Kills.

[@susanrussell3001]

Please you must get her album BLUE you won't regret it

[@brentabbott3954]

Coyote is a good song.the live version from the last waltz.

[@davidrauh8118]

I love Joni and I could go on and on about her. You must check out some more of her live performances. But I would like to recommend for you a group called Procol Harum. Doing A Whiter Shade of Pale, live in Denmark 2006. Check it out. I think you'll love it.

[@jnagarya519]

The other instrument is a dulcimer.

[@kevingrady8736]

Please react to Eva Cassidy singing "Over the rainbow."

[@powers.cj.80]

Check out :CACTUS TREE

[@ChristineDay-r4b]

Please do Joni Mitchell Woodstock or a case of you or Carey

[@ThisTrainIsLost]

Pardon me but it wasn't "juice," it was "jewels."

[@rickkemp1]

You obviously haven't seen her sing and play guitar, or the dulcimer.

[@fredkrissman6527]

AND Joni too?!? Your channel should burn up with subbers based on your very eclectic (and fine!) reaction selections... Please do more Joni, including from this BBC concert featuring her on dulcimer (what you saw at the end) and guitar; with piano Joni is a triple-threat!!! IMO, this is THE greatest singer/songwriter/musician of the past 60 yrs (too bad Robert Zimmerman!), in multiple genres ranging from folk and pop to world and jazz... Thanks very much Joni, for being the soundtrack of so many of our lives.

[@evelynrossetto3143]

JEWELS!! NOT JUICE HUN!! JINI IS MY POETRY GODDESS!!

[@markdettra1794]

The album version is better still.