<<Both were chosen by the Globe and Mail as 2 of the top 25 Canadian pop songs.>>
This may be true, Brett (and thanks for sharing that interesting article), but my answer would have been... They're both Joni songs that appear on "Covers, Volume 31"! :~) Yep, I'm a day late & a dollar short like they say down south, but it's NEVER to late to bask in the warm glow that can only come from a collection of Joni covers, and July finds us with yet another gallery of glorious gems from around this great world of ours. Thanks to my "pally" Jody Johnson for her help in contributing to this edition! Love ya, gal! And of all the volumes I've assembled, this is surely one of them! Here's the rundown: 1. Kentucky Express - Big Yellow Taxi: Don't know if these guys ever played Hee Haw, but they could have...I wouldn't have noticed anyway with all those half-clad gals running around! 2. Jeanne Newhall - The Hissing of Summer Lawns: The only other vocal recording of this one that I know of. And an excellent one it is too. Nice, full arrangement with great playing & singing. 3. Dana Winner - Dat ben jij: I guess that means Both Sides Now, in any regard that's what song she sings. While I'm nutty for foreign language versions, this one proves that not all the cheese that comes from Holland is tasty! 4. Dana Winner - Both Sides Now: Basically the same music track, but Dana gives it a go in English this time 'round. 5. Cheryl Fisher - Moon At The Window: I LOVE the fact that Cheryl Fisher chose this song as a jazz cover, I just wish she was a better singer. Not that she's bad...there's just something missing here. Anyway, she's a big Joni fan as I found out from her, and her band is perfectly wonderful. 6. Cheryl Fisher - Goodbye Pork Pie Hat: Ditto for this one, but she gets some extra points for difficulty - not an easy melody to croon in case you haven't tried. 7. Elmerhassel - Big Yellow Taxi: I can GUARANTEE that these guys were never on Hee Haw! Nice and punk-rocky, I love the energy on this Taxi take. 8. Gerd Schinkel - Parkuhrn (Big Yellow Taxi/German) 9. Gerd Schinkel - Beide Seiten (Both Sides Now/German) 10. Gerd Schinkel - Das Kreiselspiel (The Circle Game/German): Gerd's also a big Joni fan, as witnessed by the fact that he included THREE Joni covers on his private issue CD "Treibgut Im Wind" (Dust In The Wind). He's quite a guitarist, his vocals are right on the money, and Mr. van Tiel (who is MUCH more worldly than I) tells me his translations are very good as well. 11. Courtney Lawsing - The Urge For Going: Another lovely take on one of Joni's earliest songs...Don't know anything about Courtney, but that doesn't stop me one bit from enjoying her lovely voice. 12. Ann Sally - Both Sides Now 13. Ann Sally - All I Want Ann is an Asian jazz singer, her voice is really nice in a slightly flawed way, if that makes sense. You can tell she is passionate about the material. The band behind her on both these tracks is just outstanding (But really & truly, Asian singers should never attempt the word "unravelling") :~) 14. Tanya Chua - I Don't Know Where I Stand: Like Bree said, the thing that jumps out at you immediately is how much the bassist sounds like Jaco. Imagine Jaco & Joni on those Clouds songs - oh, my! Tanya, a pop singer from Singapore, does a more than capable job - one of my personal faves on this disc. 15. Something Extra - Woodstock: Something Extra is the girls' acapella choral group from Yale University...this one stopped me dead in my tracks. The arrangement and execution of it is a treasure. And we haven't heard the last of these ladies... 16. Tori Amos - River Live; (Indianapolis, IN 2001) A tip of the old covers hat to Stephanie Morrison for putting me on the trail of this one! An audience recording from her "Strange Little Girls" tour, the quality is good and of course Tori gives it her all. 17. Pat Kelly - Both Sides Now: Pat is a South African pop singer, with a couple of records out. His version of the ol' warhorse isn't the best, but certainly not the worst, and bounces right along in a fun way. 18. Mark Murphy - Goodbye Pork Pie Hat: Mark has previously graced our collection with his great take on "Barangrill". He's got a nice rich, smooth voice that lends itself well to Joni's lyrics and to this melody. 19. Irene Sheer - Big Yellow Taxi: Another one that I don't know much about, other than the fact that her song is a "Sheer" delight! ;~) So there you have it...19 songs, 19 hits! From Singapore to Kentucky, folks all over the world just love that Joni! :~) Bob NP: Jonatha Brooke, "Paris"
