December 13 – Joni Mitchell – Hejira

Let’s get back to some music shall we?

Right now I’m kind of set on my music selections for the workout routines and I’m not going to bore you with that again. So now I’m just listening to other music as I putter around the house or getting some writing done. I’m also addicted to those math puzzles now referred to as Kakuro. For many years I would buy Penny Press and Dell puzzle magazines for the puzzles that they called Sum Totals or Cross Sums. There are actually whole books out now, not as many as Soduko, which for some reason has been all the rage for some years, but enough for me to determine that I am a level three brown belt. I’m very happy with that and do not have aspirations to reach the fourth level to become a black belt. They’re puzzles. They’re supposed to be fun and challenging, not impossible, and I just don’t have the level four brain. So with the TV off and redirecting my energy, I poked into the Trouble Buddy box of albums and came out with Joni Mitchell. And it’s about time, huh.

This is a bit off topic, but I don’t have any Judy Collins albums and this is close enough to remind me of her. When I worked at the American craft store/gallery, the one with all the cats, a friend of the owner’s had set up a mini sound system by way of tape deck to pipe in music from the back room (there were cats there too). We mostly played new agey kind of stuff, but then someone got hold of a best of Judy Collins tape, a compilation of songs like “My Father,” “Someday Soon,” and “Who Knows Where the Time Goes,” written by Sandy Denny of the Fairport Convention, who died way too young. In any case, we were loving this Judy Collins tape, singing along out loud or alone in my head as I rearranged a display case at a slow time. The customers enjoyed it. Brought back memories for many of us. Alas, the tape deck was on replay, and the tape did just that. Over and over and over, day after day after day until came that point in time when I no longer wanted to hear it or Judy Collins again. It went from most enjoyable to horribly irksome. The owner argued that we had to do it for the customers, plus she could be spiteful, but eventually she didn’t object when we put on a different tape. It really is a good compilation, and Collins’ voice… It’s been 20, 25 years though. I think enough time has passed that I can bear hearing it again. In fact, I think I’d like that.

There are several Joni Mitchell songs that I like, my favorite being “Carey (get out your cane),” which is on neither Hejira nor the double album Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter, also from the TB collection. I’ve not had much exposure to a complete album of Joni’s and found Hejira to be enjoyable easy listening. That may not be the way she nor her fans would want her music described, but it’s the best I can do. I got some writing done, and the dishes as well while trying to listen to the double album. I will admit that I turned off the 16 minute “Paprika Plains” after the first couple of minutes and took a nap on side four. You know, I think Trouble Buddy had Clouds way back, because I do have a pretty clear recollection of listening to “Chelsea Morning” while sitting on her bedroom floor thinking that we should have tea and oranges. I don’t blame her for hanging on to that one for herself, even if she doesn’t have a record player.

Btw – I forgot to mention last week that the ex and I saw the movie Spotlight. Really, really good movie. I love Michael Keaton, but never Liev Schreiber. Something about his face that just turns me off. However, as I’m watching the movie, I keep wondering who is playing the new, bearded editor in the movie because I was thinking he was an awesome actor. I figured it out nearly halfway through and now have a new respect for Liev regardless of his face. The beard allowed me to give him a chance, and perhaps I can judge his skills differently without it.