Joni - Song to a Seagull
Posted by: schizo on 03 May 2010
I bought this a few weeks ago, and have been listening to it ever since.
I had previously overlooked this album, as it only charted at 189 in the US. Big Mistake.
To any other Joni Mitchell fans who have also overlooked this offering, I would strongly recommend it to you.
It is easily up on a par with the rest of her early recordings, and has now been digitally remastered and HDCD encoded.
It sounds simply wonderful, and is one of the best albums I have bought for a long time.
Enjoy!
Schizo
I had previously overlooked this album, as it only charted at 189 in the US. Big Mistake.
To any other Joni Mitchell fans who have also overlooked this offering, I would strongly recommend it to you.
It is easily up on a par with the rest of her early recordings, and has now been digitally remastered and HDCD encoded.
It sounds simply wonderful, and is one of the best albums I have bought for a long time.
Enjoy!
Schizo
Posted on: 04 May 2010 by Hot Rats
I agree that it is a great album. Not her strongest but the potential can be clearly heard from this first recording.
It is well worth seeking out the HDCD remasters that were issued in the USA. In fact it's essential ... The European releases are not remastered and not HDCD. They sound dreadful!
I have picked up a few USA HDCDs from eBay:
Blue
Court And Spark
For The Roses
Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Hejira
The Hissing Of Summer Lawns
Shadows And Light
All are worth having and can be had cheaply.
It is well worth seeking out the HDCD remasters that were issued in the USA. In fact it's essential ... The European releases are not remastered and not HDCD. They sound dreadful!
I have picked up a few USA HDCDs from eBay:
Blue
Court And Spark
For The Roses
Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Hejira
The Hissing Of Summer Lawns
Shadows And Light
All are worth having and can be had cheaply.
Posted on: 04 May 2010 by schizo
I have some of the early transcriptions of Joni's stuff to CD, and I agree the sound quality is not great.
However, the digitally remastered, HDCD encoded versions are now available in the UK, and not just the US.
Regards,
Schizo
However, the digitally remastered, HDCD encoded versions are now available in the UK, and not just the US.
Regards,
Schizo
Posted on: 04 May 2010 by Guido Fawkes
I have Joni's elpee up to Miles of Ailes on vinyl and they all sound great to me - the later CDs don't really match this quality (soundwise: the music remains great.
Posted on: 04 May 2010 by seagull
It was really nice of her to dedicate a whole album to me - pity I never really got her music though.
Posted on: 05 May 2010 by fred simon
One of my all-time favorites. It's Joni's debut, and I think it's one of her very best. The arrival of an already well-defined musical original.
Fred
Posted on: 05 May 2010 by mudwolf
I don't have that one, early ones on CD to Hissing, some of those duplicated on vinyl. One bartender friend shamed me of not having anything past Hejira. In one visit to Amoeba I picked up 6 later works on vinyl. They're very interesting and totally Joni, something you want a serious session with not just as background. Late night, lights low, glass of booze in hand...
I'd even smoke funny stuff if I had any.
I'd even smoke funny stuff if I had any.
Posted on: 05 May 2010 by David O'Higgins
Are the HDCD's still available new? I was looking for 'Wild things run fast' but had to settle for the original CD. I have many of the other HDCD releases and they are very good.
Posted on: 07 May 2010 by fred simon
quote:Originally posted by mudwolf:
I don't have that one, early ones on CD to Hissing, some of those duplicated on vinyl. One bartender friend shamed me of not having anything past Hejira. In one visit to Amoeba I picked up 6 later works on vinyl. They're very interesting and totally Joni, something you want a serious session with not just as background. Late night, lights low, glass of booze in hand...
I'd even smoke funny stuff if I had any.
Some might view my take on Joni as heretical, but for me, her writing falls off significantly after Hejira, her last masterpiece in my opinion. There's much to enjoy on Mingus and its live follow-up, Shadows and Light, and a scattering of good songs througout subsequent studio albums, especially on Turbulent Indigo. But nothing approaching the consistent string of masterworks starting with her debut, the subject of this thread, Song To A Seagull.
To be very clear: no one could possibly be a bigger fan than I am of Joni's early work, through Hejira ... I consider her to be one of the very few best songwriters of the 20th century.
All best,
Fred
Posted on: 09 May 2010 by mudwolf
I came home feeling punk from mom's day and put on Blue. Those first songs are so short and direct hitting their mark. Now it's A Case of You, that phrase of I can drink a case of you I've used once or twice in intimate communication. She could really put it down direct. In a book Ronstadt said everyone put their affairs in couched terms but Joni just put them all to shame.... lol