Maps of Music
Shadows and Light (1980)
Where the lyrics of Shadows and Light take you, and where it was really made.
Not every track came from one night: the album draws mostly on songs from Court and Spark onward, and some recordings came from PA mix cassettes.
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Where the album was recorded (1979)
Recording site Santa Barbara Bowl — Mitchell's live album was recorded on 9 September 1979 at the Santa Barbara Bowl during her 1979 summer tour. The point marks the venue building. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Album story
Overview
- Shadows and Light: second live album by Canadian musician Joni Mitchell
- Released September 1980 through Asylum Records, her last release for the label
- Recorded 9 September 1979 at the Santa Barbara Bowl in Santa Barbara, California
- Mostly material from Court and Spark (1974) onward
- The only exceptions are "Woodstock" and the cover of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love"
Background
- Recorded during Mitchell's 1979 summer tour
- Backing band of jazz and fusion musicians: Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorius, Don Alias, Lyle Mays, Michael Brecker
- The vocal group the Persuasions sings on the title track and on the Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers cover
Recording
- Mitchell used equipment of the Record Plant in Sausalito
- "Furry Sings the Blues", "Dreamland" and "God Must Be a Boogie Man" were taken from PA mix cassette recordings
- Andy Johns is credited as recording engineer and Bernie Grundman as mastering engineer
Cover
- Art direction and photography credited to Glen Cristensen
- Photography also credited to Joel Bernstein
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · ko.wikipedia.org
Artist
- Canadian and American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter, born Roberta Joan Anderson in 1943 in Fort Macleod, Alberta.
Formation
- Began singing in Saskatoon nightclubs, then performed in Calgary and Toronto before moving to the United States in 1965.
- Her songs were first recorded by other singers, which helped her sign with Reprise Records.
- Debut album Song to a Seagull was released in 1968.
Career
- Blue (1971) is often cited as one of the greatest albums of all time.
- Court and Spark (1974) moved toward jazz influences and became her best-selling album.
- Collaborated with jazz musicians including Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, and Charles Mingus.
- Won eleven Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
- Returned to live performance in 2022 at the Newport Folk Festival after a 2015 brain aneurysm.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
At release
- Rolling Stone: Stephen Holden called the album a surprise and a triumph and one of a handful of great live rock albums
- Holden praised Mitchell's backing band as the finest ensemble she had worked with
- Holden named "Edith and the Kingpin" and the title track as the record's biggest stunners
- The Economist called the album unjustly overlooked when it marked its 40th anniversary
Reappraisal
- AllMusic: Vik Iyengar praised the album's live renditions as more energetic than the studio versions
- Iyengar also felt many live versions were not different enough from the originals
- The Economist highlighted the title track, saying the Persuasions gave it a new, organic richness
Records
- Billboard 200: peaked at number 38
- "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" was released as a single and peaked at number 102 on the Hot 100
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- The concert film was also released on VHS and DVD.
- The first CD release omitted "Black Crow", "Don's Solo" and "Free Man in Paris".
- VHS and DVD releases add "Jaco's Solo" and "Raised on Robbery" and include a different version of "Furry Sings the Blues".
- The Persuasions sing on the title track and on the cover of "Why Do Fools Fall in Love".
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org
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