June 12, 2021
Reprise
1xLP (RSD Edition)
Out of the countless musicians to hail from the Canadian prairies, few cast as heavy of a shadow as Joni Mitchell. Born in Fort Macleod, Alberta and raised in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Mitchell straddled the worlds of folk, rock and jazz music to make for a back catalogue filled with masterpieces such as the sun-drenched California singalongs of Blue or the hypnotic rhythms of Hissing at Summer Lawn. Before all of this, she was an aspiring folk-singer on the Canadian prairies attempting to find her own voice. This collection captures highlights from last years Archives Volume 1: The Early Years, beginning with radio sessions made in her hometown of Saskatoon where she performed haunting covers of folk standards like “House of the Rising Sun” and continued onto 1967, the year she released her debut album, documenting early performances of now-classics like “Both Sides Now”. Filled with recordings of originals and interpretations of others songs, this set doubles as a brilliant folk-album and an essential historical document.