I've just listened to Volume 13 of "Covers and Contributions." Thanks,
Bob!! This is an especially tasty disc! I especially like the Lydia Van
Dam Group version of "Down to You," although I'll need to warm up to their
"Shadows & Light."
A lot of folks have mentioned recently that they don't like to hear Joni's
songs out of their original album context, but I do! Sometimes I just stop
hearing a song because of the familiarity of its context, and hearing the
song all by its lonesome helps me appreciate it again. Case in point:
Willy, which I NEVER appreciated until I heard her sing it on the Dick
Cavett video.
Hearing these songs not only out of context but performed by other artists
has given me greater appreciation, if that's possible, of Joni's songwriting
genius. She's not one of these navel-gazing artistes who are so damn
idiosyncratic that no one can cover them (or no one cares to). She has
created a body of work that's gone out into the world. In a way it doesn't
belong to Joni, it belongs to the ages. It can and will be covered by many
people. Some of the covers will be inspired and beautiful, and some will
suck big time (see Volume IV).
Anyway, thanks again, Bob, for undertaking this covers project. I love it!
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Deb Messling
"I like cats. They give the home a heartbeat." ~Joni Mitchell
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