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– Joni: The Creative Odyssey of Joni Mitchell (By Katherine Monk)

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Friday 01st January 2016,

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Joni: The Creative Odyssey of Joni Mitchell (By Katherine Monk)

Kelly Skinner January 1, 2013

Joni: The Creative Odyssey of Joni Mitchell is a critical exploration of the life and inner-workings of Joni Mitchell; the singer-songwriter highly regarded as one of the greatest rock stars (male or female) of all time.

Joni Mitchell is notable not only for her crisp, resonating vocals, complex tunings, high-profile love affairs and trendsetting style, but also—as this book shows—for her inquisitiveness, both musically and beyond, and a restless creative spirit.

Author Katherine Monk digs through decades of interviews, news clippings and albums to produce a tome that ventures to paint quite a different picture of the iconic vocalist. With clear-cutting language and an encyclopedic rock knowledge, Monk pursues the project with the laser-sharp focus of an anthropologist, digging for a more genuine portrait of the love-song-singing ingenue. Grounded in research, Monk’s spin on the songstress takes an academic look at Mitchell as she pulls back the curtain on the blonde haired beauty—revealing the complexities, paradoxes and depth to the ever-evolving artist.

Christened Roberta Joan Anderson, this Mitchell narrative is as much about her defining (and redefining) identity as it is about her touring with Bob Dylan, winning eight Grammys (including a Lifetime Achievement Award) and being dubbed one of Rolling Stone‘s “100 Greatest Artists of All Time.” Growing up among Canada’s prairies, Mitchell developed aspirations in music early on and dropped out of art school to pursue a career as a singer in the states. After a brief marriage to Chuck Mitchell (a name she would keep) and receiving a green card, the singer gradually established herself as a leader in the folk movement, producing momentous albums like Clouds, For the Roses and Court and Spark, and later expanding upon her jazz repertoire with Mingus and Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter

Often grouped with contemporaries (and lovers) like Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Graham Nash and David Crosby, Mitchell constantly pushed her music—and herself—to new boundaries, always with characteristic outspokenness and a strong sense of self worth. And, as Monk’s thesis suggests (and this book reads very much like an academic paper), philosophy and psychology have proven to be guiding forces in her life.

It’s an insightful read from cover to cover—particularly when taken through this analytical lens—and one that would undoubtedly make a solid addition to any Mitchell devotee’s library. And though there are dozens of journalists’ and musicians’ interviews chronicled in the book, the reader does sense a disconnect in the absence of an interview between the artist and the author—something that keeps Mitchell and the author at arm’s length from the reader.

Pop culture junkies also should be prepared to know that this is not a collection of “rock lore” or “what happened at Woodstock” anecdotes (though there is a brief outline of Mitchell’s major love affairs). Big-name stars of her era are included in the book only as they pertain to a specific stage in Mitchell’s life; so if you’re looking for a juicy tell-all, search elsewhere. The book is, at its essence, an exploration of Mitchell as philosopher, artist and creator—and a reminder that there is much, much more to Joni Mitchell than a pretty voice or a pretty face.

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