Connect to Joni Mitchell with the Library

There are weeks when I have to rack my brain to think of a blog topic. And then there are weeks, like this one, where I have just been hit over the head with a topic I can’t avoid. But no, this isn’t about Charlie Sheen. In the last two weeks I have been suddenly and inexplicably been reminded of my love for Joni Mitchell. These reminders also serve as great tips on some of the library’s services available to you!

1) While watching The Kids are All Right, Annette Benning breaks into a haunting (in the context of the scene) rendition of Mitchell’s quintessential song "All I Want".

Library Connection: The soundtrack and DVD to The Kids are All Right can both be found in APL’s catalog, as well as Joni Mitchell’s album Blue, the original publication of "All I Want".

2) The trivia-of-the month in my monthly planner (published by Texas Amateur Athletic Federation) is as follows: “Remember Woodstock? The March 25, 1995 issue of Billboard magazine announced that Joni Mitchell, Canadian-born singer/songwriter, was to be the recipient of its Billboard Century Award for 1995.”

Library Connection: You can read the full text of this article through several of APL’s databases, including Academic Search Complete. You can also read a quick biography of her life in our database Biography in Context.

3) A friend of mine, who usually sings the praises of Led Zeppelin and the Grateful Dead, suddenly recommended Mitchell’s album Hejira and talked about a documentary he’d seen on her life.

Library Connection: Both the album Hejira and the documentary Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and Mind can be found in our collection.

4) While listening to Seattle-based podcast Air-Raid.net, I learned about

Continuum Publishing's series 33 1/3 which tackles important albums one book at a time. Air-Raid's guest happened to be Sean Nelson, author of the book covering Mitchell's album Court and Spark.

Library Connection: Although APL doesn’t carry the item, I was able to easily obtain a copy through APL’s Interlibrary Loan program.

Thanks to the library’s resources and several happy accidents, I’ve learned all kinds of interesting facts about my favorite folk singer. If only I could unlearn that she named her cat Nietzsche.