Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent, 1 Sep 2002
Having never really heard much of Joni's music before I went out on a limb and gave this CD a go and have not regretted it. This album shows her amazing songwriting ability in a number of different genres, capturing the attitude of the 1960s perfectly using a voice that is soft but full of attitude and an acoustic guitar. The songs are raw and relatively underproduced which highlights the atmospheric lyrics and singing. She swings with some aplomb between folk music (Urge for Going), soft rock (Raised on robbery), pop (You turn me on), easy listening (Both sides now)and creates her own emotional genre (Chinese Cafe, Come in from the cold). All her classics are on this album from Woodstock to Big Yellow Taxi and some other songs that I bet you didn't know she wrote. Takes a couple of listens to get into but once you do you'll never look back.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Tip of the Iceberg!, 25 Dec 2005
Joni Mitchell is one of the few late-20th-century artists to whom the term 'Musical Genius' can be reasonably attached. In the singer-songwriter genre, she is equalled only by Bob Dylan and there is one area, I would say, in which she steps past him - musical diversity.
That explains the above title. It is impossible not to give the work presented in 'Hits' five stars, because it is exceptional, but equally it seems futile to try and condense such a totally varied, (now) forty-year catalogue of work into 15 tracks in 80 minutes. To take Joni - album-wise - at her two extremes, there is the folk singer debuted in 'Song to a Seagull', with the soprano voice, the purposefully constructed melodies and the first-person emotional considerations, and then there is the experimental avant-gardist with 'her big toe stuck in the metaphorical lake of jazz' (to quote Joni herself) exposed in 'Mingus', and a great musical journey comes in between. So while this compilation covers perhaps her most accessible work and it's companion, 'Misses', gives a eclectic taste of her more ambitious output, Joni Mitchell is really an 'album' artist and to fully appreciate the extent of her musical brilliance it takes, as I said, more than 80 minutes, 15 tracks.
If however you are looking for her most accessible work or her most famous songs, or you are new to Joni, this is a good purchase - either this or the album 'Blue', which is one of those every-track-is-outstanding albums (it also happens to be one of the finest ever made).
Just remember, what you are listening to really is the tip of the iceberg. Sort of like reading the back blurb of a really outstanding book.
I once read something about Joni which described someone introducing themselves to her by saying, "I think you're one of the greatest female singer-songwriters of our time," and how did Joni react? - she walked away, vaguely annoyed. I think she was quite right to do that, I think there is unintended offense in that, and I think that when you listen to this CD (even if you don't go on to explore the rest of her catalogue, which you should) you will see why.
She is one of the greatest singer-songwriters of all time, period. Gender doesn't come into it.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
women independance, 12 Jul 2005
joni mitchell one of the best women songwriters ever, such deep meaning in her lyrics and vocals, that will make your hairs on the back of you're neck stand up, all the songs here are excellent not a single dud, which is cool,
it's great that you've got the lyrics too so you can understand the magic and know the actual words...
my favorites songs are chelsea morning, big yellow taxi,
woodstock, carey, raised on robbery, free man in paris and the beautiful come in from the cold[beautiful] i don't really like female singers but mitchell is different she has a peaceful way with words that ill leave a lump in your throat, and soothing music to make a perfect escape from reality when you're that the worlds too much,
NOT enough HITS i want more
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