DVD REVIEW
Joni Mitchell- Woman of Heart and Mind, American Masters-PBS, 2003
I viewed the American Masters documentary on Joni Mitchell during a time when I had been re-reading Norman Mailer's Marilyn- his take on the life of the legendary screen star Marilyn Monroe. And although there is no obvious connection between the lives or the talents of the two women there is a tale of two generations hidden here. Marilyn represented for my parents' generation, the generation that survived the Great Depression and fought World War II, the epitome of blond glamour, sex and talent. To my more `sedate' generation blond-haired Joni represented the introspective, searching, quiet beauty that we sought to represent our longings for understanding in a seemingly baffling world that we had not made. As this documentary and Mailer's book point out however they `represented' our fantasies they also shared a common vulnerability- attempting to be independent women in worlds dominated by men- the movie and recording studios. Such is the life of the great creative talents.
This well-done documentary traces Joni's life from the snow-bound Canadian farmlands to her early rise to stardom at the tail end of the folk revival of the 1960's. It also traces the later twists in her creative career as she tried to break out of the `folkie' milieu; the successful attempt to be a rocker; the less successful attempt to be a female Leonard Cohen searching the depths of her soul; the attempt to turn herself into a torch singer and later the attempt to take on the jazz idiom under the direction of the legendary Charlie Mingus: and, finally the semi-reversion to her youth under the banner of protest against some of the injustices of the world. Along the way various lovers, learners, hangers-on and fellow song writers give their takes on her place in the musical history of her time. This is always a welcome touch. Moreover, since she will have a big place in that history it helps tell us how very influential she was in that endeavor.
There are many good Joni Mitchell lyrics for the aging children of the 1960's. Here one that I presume reflects her cold weather Canadian roots. I alway like the line "When the sun turns traitor cold." Every time I am in Maine during the winter I think of it. Damn, I wish I had thought of it.
ReplyDeleteUrge For Going
I awoke today and found the frost perched on the town
It hovered in a frozen sky, then it gobbled summer down
When the sun turns traitor cold
and all the trees are shivering in a naked row
I get the urge for going but I never seem to go
I get the urge for going
When the meadow grass is turning brown
Summertime is falling down and winter is closing in
I had me a man in summertime
He had summer-colored skin
And not another girl in town
My darling's heart could win
But when the leaves fell on the ground, and
Bully winds came around, pushed them face down in the snow
He got the urge for going
And I had to let him go
He got the urge for going
When the meadow grass was turning brown
Summertime was falling down and winter was closing in
Now the warriors of winter they gave a cold triumphant shout
And all that stays is dying, all that lives is getting out
See the geese in chevron flight flapping and a-racing on before the snow
They've got the urge for going, and they've got the wings so they can go
They get the urge for going
When the meadow grass is turning brown
Summertime is falling down and winter is closing in
I'll ply the fire with kindling now, I'll pull the blankets up to my chin
I'll lock the vagrant winter out and bolt my wandering in
I'd like to call back summertime and have her stay for just another month or so
But she's got the urge for going and I guess she'll have to go
She gets the urge for going when the meadow grass is turning brown
And all her empire's falling down