Gawd Shane,
That was great. I loved this post. (See what Kakki's missing?) I really
like that you ended with the phrase "accomplished daughter". I liked this
post I'm going to break the rules and re-post it in its entirety. Thanks
Shane.
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Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2001 11:10:31 -0700
From: "shane mattison" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: "back in my home town, they would have cleared the floor just to
watch the rain come down..."
sitting with my morning java...i contemplate the
prairie sun filtering through my den blinds, a prairie
sun that knows no borders...so thoughts on
"paprika plains" from my favourite joni album DJRD...
favourite because it was a kind of creative peak...
it had some of the polish of "hejira" but added an
experimental edge, coupled with the romantic
ravings of jaco taken just a little further...a wide
variety of creativity here with links to all points of
joni's creative career, there is stompin' beat,
romantic rhapsody, social satire, symphonic composition, and the sublime
acoustic reverie "silky veils of ardour" finale....the satisfaction of
"paprika
plains" covering the whole side of the LP, a piece
that shares joni's canadian prairie identity...both
of my parents were raised on sakatchewan farms and
i spent many days there on tractor and combine...
i know this heartland...and its glorious! Yes, there are
no borders in the sense that the piece is similar to
aron copeland....on the other hand, joni is referring
in the above subject quote "they would have cleared
the floor" to maidstone, saskatchewan, joni's home
after being born in fort macleod, alberta,...moving
to sask at age 3...so, let's admit it...this is canadian
geography and topography we're talking about...
these saskatchewan farmers would indeed have
cleared the floor...calgary's 16"s of rain per annum
would have seemed a luxury to them...because its
a great composition it becomes universal and can
just as easily be identified with in nebraska or kansas...
but properly speaking we are dealing with saskatchewan...a prairie province
of
canada...where
wheat is king...where joni's parents still reside...where
she still returns "home" every year...where she took larry
klein to share its stark landscape...and she sees don
freed in between his musical journeys to the always
present native communities...saskatchewan is joni
mitchell and they can be proud that she is and will
always be their accomplished daughter...
shane mattison
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