My mother watched this. She loved Joni and always watched Mama Cass. No wonder I was a huge fan of hers and the storytellers of the 70s, Carole King, Jim Croche, Harry Chapin, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and Carly Simon to name a few.
During times of chaos and insanity, I needed this. I looked for it after watching her sing on the 2024 Grammys twice. Meryl Streep and her daughter were in the audience. I think you may want to ask a tearful Streep daughter, why she was in tears (as we were). Transports us back to better times.
I love this so much because I'm just learning to play guitar in my high school. And I feel like this is a whole different group of folk singers from the current ones I listen to. There is something so special and beautiful and raw about this era.. And I think it's so cute to see such influential women (especially Joni) chilling on a stage. :) so glad I'm performing this song this week.
+Oval Teen Good for you for recognizing the beauty of that era, because you're absolutely right: there was nothing like it. It was a time of experimentation and creativity, along with some incredible talent, the likes of which we've seen little of since. I hope your performance was moving, and satisfying. And the very best of luck with your growth on the guitar!
+Oval Teen You should search youtube for Heather Maloney. She is a wonderful singer and songwriter out of Western Mass, and Joni was a huge influence on her. Heather also did a cover of 'Woodstock' along with a band called Darlingside, also worth checking out. Good luck with your guitar playing!
+Oval Teen Joni Mitchell is one of a kind. Sadly, there won't be another Joni Mitchell. Good ol' songwriting and singer all in one. She did it on her terms. Good luck with your playing. Hope you can be like Joni Mitchell, on your terms and your style.
Chills. The older I get the more I appreciate her and think of her as the most original of the folk rock artists. Those unusual chord progressions, that gorgeous singing voice, and of course those image-rich lyrics. Even a song like this above which we've all heard a thousand times can move one to tears if hearing a slightly different live version. And with Joni the live voice had every bit the same range as the recorded voice.
Same as so many other comments. Her first Grammy performance ever at the age of 80 after surviving a brain aneurysm. "Well something's lost, but something's gained in living every day" Amazing performer, amazing song. Yes, the meaning has evolved over my last 54 years.
I can't listen to this original version without thinking of the remake she did in the 2000s. Now, a much older and experienced woman, with a heavier voice than the girl we see here. An older woman, who after so many years, still doesn't know clouds... at all.
Young ladies doing covers of this song on RUclips... I mean they are doing a pretty good job.... but... People saying oh you sound as good as Joni and blah blah blah .... There's only one Joni . And this is HER song !!!
Truly a great trio of brilliant singers, they were Divas, without the Ego that seems to come attached with that title, So glad I'm of this generation, when music really had things to say about love, pain, social discord, etc. Just as a little footnote here, last night I, worked doing event staff support for a Concert @ the new NFL Sofi Stadium in Inglewood, CA ( right behind the Forum, still in use)many memories of Lakers games( didn't see too many if them) and, Rock shows, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin Jethro Tull , Yes, we Black Sabbath even, Billy Joel. Last night's featured performer was Justin Bieber, he sounded flat, empty, souless and directionless. It seems like style over substance matters more, also, the way the audience just seemed to burst into a quick sort of "cheerr" and applause, without even listening to a single note. I kind of remember listening to the performance first, then, applaude at the end.
I really can't decide if I prefer this original version or the one she did in 2000, which slowed it down a lot. Her voice is purer, so to speak, here, but the depth of emotion and introspection comes out more in the later version
@@harveymanfredsenjenson5417 I fully agree. I can't decide either. Joni's mature voice packs an palpable emotional punch. I remember noticing the change when Turbulent Indigo came out. The verses played for the movie "Love Actually" would not have been so moving had they been from her youthful recordings -- beautiful as they are.
When Mama Cass says "This is my friend Joni Mitchell, and this is my friend Mary Travers", it goes really deep. In the Laurel Canyon scene, Mama Cass was a true friend to so many people, and made so many introductions. If I recall correctly, she introduced Graham Nash to David Crosby and Stephen Stills. Without her, the world of music would have been a lot poorer. If only she were with us now.
Well...she will always be with us.. right...the fine arts ...music..poetry...art..film...if they are fine...they will never leave us ..they are etched into our hearts forever... just saying... Eric Underwood class of 81 Downey High School California 👍
@Joe Devola whose the Marxist Pedophiles ....how do you come up with that ...you are assuming that Geographic areas are all nothing but evil? So therefore everything including the fine arts is Evil... Brother you are lost! I was born not far from Laurel Canyon...in a Los Angeles suburb... A lot of great talent came from that area... don't you dare stereotype us all...You know what your saying...
I started searching for elementary school friends. When I reached one, I said I can't believe we haven't spoken for 60 years. We were kids back then. I was looking for sanity and like-mindedness. That's why I'm listening to Joni.
She wrote this song when she was still so young... even she herself later said that she felt a bit out of place whenever sang it. She was wise beyond her years... Joni Mitchell, one of a kind.
Reminds me of how Jackson Browne wrote These Days as a teenager. How does someone so young write a line like "Don't confront me with my failures, I have not forgotten them"? Brilliant.
@@richardread8281 - Correct. The song was inspired by a passage in a book Joni was reading while on an airplane. The 1959 novel is called Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow. Per Wikipedia Joni had this to say about writing Both Sides Now: "I was reading on a plane and early in the book the protagonist Henderson is also up in a plane. He's on his way to Africa and he looks down and sees these clouds. I put down the book, looked out the window and saw clouds too and I immediately started writing the song. I had no idea that the song would become as popular as it did."
@@tornadojoegee I guess we're supposed to imagine what it would be like to have friends this talented sitting around in our living rooms playing music. If only...
This gives me chills. Incredible. The 60's were a magic vortex opening up, in time, just for a moment. There will never be a period of creativity like it, again.
@@zyxw2024 Of course! I've been the recipient of many solids! I try to pay it forward too ... the universe gives you back, exactly what you put in to it. Give solids, get solids. Karma is real ☮️
The 70s too, if you were living in the right place. Anyone living in Denton, a small college town in Texas, will know exactly what I mean. All the gays from Dallas, all the shit kickers from Fort Worth, one of the top jazz schools in the country with music everywhere, the most amazing and creative conceptual artists, students streaking through campus day and night, and it was the center for drugs in the entire country. What a crazy menagerie! Definitely a glitch in the matrix.
Amazing to think that in these early days, Joni had only just begun her voyage of genius. Hard to believe that Hejira, Court and Spark and the rest of her wonderful catalogue were still inside this beautiful woman's mind. Or perhaps we knew, right from the start, that we would be embarking on a life long journey with one of the truly great poets of our time.
When one gets to be my age (almost 70), he begins to recognize the truth of these lyrics. There's a sadness for opportunities missed, but also gratefulness for having survived and persevered in this thing called life.
My wife says, you couldn't get better than this. So wonderfully talented women on the stage. This was when we could hear the words of songs, and artists could write, and play a musical instrument !
+Thomas Gill She is stunning. Every word to describe a beautiful woman fits her; stunning, striking, breathtaking, sexy, foxy, babe, cute, pretty, heart breaking, voluptuous, the list goes on. She takes a backseat to my X girlfriend Claudia Schiffer even.
I've never seen this clip before so I watched Mama Cass introduce her friend. The goosebumps started instantly the lump in the throat after 30 seconds the tears after a minute. I'm a 57 year old man and not much moves me these days but this did.
I am listening, the memories oh the memories of a much nicer world and life and of course the wonderful Joni Mit hell. Her music was my life and indeed still is.. Wonderful bless Joni...
There is a transcendence and a purity of her form of art. Her voice was angelic and could span registers, she wrote sublime poetry. Music like this elevates the soul and that is what makes it art.
It’s strange how music back in the sixties was just about the song. Mostly performers these days get in the way of their own art by making themselves more important than the songs.
You know it's funny, I was born in the 70s, but I listened to a lot of 60s music as a child, and I was just saying the other day, "the music of that era was about the music, and love, and understanding, and coming together, and community, and ending war. It wasn't about 'me or I' it wasn't about the money or fame. That's why it'll never be replicated, the younger generation is too wrapped up in their ego, their fame.... I call it Kardashian-itis.
@@greywolf393 I agree 100 percent. I don’t think younger people understand the culture of the sixties. How can they? It was a unique time for musical change and political and social engagement. The industry that grew out of the seventies and eighties was very different to the industry that grew out of the folk, skiffle, early rock n roll etc. Frank Zappa sums it up in that interview where he talks about the way the role of record executives changed from facilitating the artist to turning them into cash cows. If you get a chance look up Two or Three Spectres by Peter Hammill. Look up the lyrics too. It sums up the poisonous commercial music industry perfectly.
I absolutely love this human being, she is amazing. A great artist this has true depth, a great voice and something to say to the world. It’s a pleasure to live in the same world has Joni.
It would struggle now, but that was why some of us adored the 1970s. I lived in California in the mid 70s and it was a magical time to have a childhood there.
Her face is beautiful. Her voice is a beautiful Her songs are beautiful She is one of the most talented songwriters and singers that ever lived but she is so underrated .
Yes, I was right there with the rest of you all. This takes me back and tugs the heart. What wonderful music and what beautiful talented women we had in music then. Wasn't it a time?!
Indeed, a time when creative souls were cherished, a time when beauty and sex appeal were two and a time before money took over any and all. Fortunately we still have here the sights and sounds and so many wonderful memories, just close your eyes... and listen, and dream.
Someone should find all these old shows and broadcast them on a specialized TV channel. And no more reality shows and other modern rubbish. Youngsters will learn what good music was.
I was lucky enough to see Joni sing this song at the Anaheim Convention center in 1973 with someone I love. As we were leaving someone said "this is where she'll go to catch her limo".No one believed them but we stood and waited anyway and sure enough in a few minutes Joni appeared and stopped to greet her faithful fans. A moment I'll never forget.
I lost my Mom, my Dad, my 3 brothers, 2 sisters, 4 help including the cook, 2 visiting neighbors and 5 different pets - all in a devastating grade fire. They all loved Joni Mitchell. My god, I love them all...
Back in the early 1960's my parents where returning from a weekend in Wasaga Beach when they stopped for gas near Orillia. The attendant asked if they could give his friend a lift to Toronto. Shy, polite kid with curly hair and a guitar case, A few years ĺatet they where watching the CBC when they saw the very same fellow singing on a variety show. Gordon Lightfoot.
@@jimzeleny7213 I was at his concert many years, and it started to rain. I was in the open area and he invited us to fill in the covered area. He was very polite. I imagine he could raise hell too though.
You're so right! Such beautiful women, with such beautiful voices (and beautiful hearts! I got to meet, shake hands, and chat with Mary after one of her Peter, Paul, and Mary concerts, and feel really blessed by that!
Beautiful, poetic lyrics and a crystal clear, pleasant voice. Joni is considered a legend for a reason, she is one. Beautiful poetic songwriting and an amazingly nice voice 💛
Scott McGillivray I'm with you. Every time. That's because you are listening to one of the true genius musicians of our lifetime. The emotional connection is real because her use of her poetry blends perfectly with her music and of course with her incredible voice. If you lose yourself in her words you find the joy, confusion, pain and mystery of life. Her writing and music are so soulfully raw and transparent. Raw, yet so beautifully refined. And this is just one song. Nobody in popular music in years has come close to writing one song at this level of inspired musicianship. And she's written MANY songs of this greatness. I don't think most people realize just how incredible Joni Mitchell is.
Scott McGillivray me too; you aren't alone Joni was my hero right from the first time I heard that incredibly beautiful voice. Okay, so I was a little envious that she could hit notes I couldn't reach with a ladder.... but Joni just had such a wonderful vocal range & in all these years I've yet to hear a voice I loved as much as hers.
@@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm The lack of culture ruined it, so don't blame the substances, blame us people. We just watched it happen and did nothing to stop it. I remember my mother's music collection, Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, Sammy Davis Jr., etc. Today's music just isn't very good, especially when compared to my mother's era I remember my parents going to the Latin Casino (South Jersey) to see the Jackson's when Michael was about 6 years old, my mother loved him.
@@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm - and The Twin Curses of 'Digital Enhancement' and 'Digital Remastering' ... just as video killed the radio star so computer enginners are killing REAL MUSIC ! I for one am so very glad and grateful to have known 'The Real Thing'
I remember the hit Judy Collins had with this and always thought she sang it beautifully. Then, I heard Joni sing it on the Johnny Cash Show and was totally blown away. I can't describe how this song makes me feel.
Me, too. Judy did a beautiful job of it, too. I understand Joni wrote it as a reply to Sugar Mountain. I'm not sure its true or not, but it seems as if it could be.
Met Anne Murray's parents in Nova Scotia where I lived. Very friendly and wanting to hear other's stories. Canadians are great people. I'm from Mississippi.
I wish I could take the kids of today back to those days, so they could see what it was like and how we treated each other then, and how much hope we had for a better future....and, of course, the music.
James Dolan Amen! (JK!) But seriously, I honestly don't understand why any comment, anywhere, about almost anything, is usually followed almost immediately by JESUS or LIBERALS or CONSERVATIVES, all shouted out as if no one will otherwise notice. It seems to me that unless it is a video about religion or politics, then religion or politics should remain out of the conversation completely. I can understand someone, in their natural exuberance over something good, might type "God bless (so and so)," but other than that, we should be spared from others' religious or political rantings. I think that it is only fair, unless the perpetrators of such nonsense want contrary-minded people to their views doing the same to them, that all such comments should be avoided. Otherwise, those said "contrary-minded people" might go on those opinionated people's videos or postings, just to overwhelm them on their own posted materials with comments that are utterly contrary to what the opinionated people confess to believe. What is that about "turnabout is fair play"? I feel that it is petty and unethical, but there might not be any other way to punish the opinionated people for their unwanted and unwarranted opinions. It's called "fighting fire with fire."
I saw her live in 1974 in South Bend Indiana. She had made a bet with one of her tour men that Notre Dame would beat UCLA and Bill Walton, to support the underdog. ND did beat UCLA ending their 88 game winning streak, which made her even more of a favorite with the crowd, although she had my heart for many years beforehand. She was beautiful, musically perfect, winning, and wonderful and after over 40 years I remember her coming on stage like it was yesterday. Here's to you, Joni, the best of the best.
Nearly a thousand have recorded negative comments.........what planet are these people on !!??.... Joni is an amazing artist and this song is hers.......
At 1:15 you see the mark of a brilliant performer; she starts to sing "love's" instead of "clouds", catches it it in the blink of an eye, and then just gives an amazing grin that acknowledges that this is a live performance, and then goes straight on. As a musician this is so inspiring.
She seemed to be having an off night, or was distracted; that was not the only gaffe she made. And yet Joni at 70% is still better than anyone else at 100%. This feels like what it must have been like to see Dowland or Bach or Mozart on an off night, doing something they didn't mean to do and yet still making it work as music, demonstrating that one's mind can slip and yet one can still be committed to the performance and the moment. Inspiring indeed.
It's so incredibly sweet! Thanks for pointing it out. She corrects the little miss so quickly and elegantly that I probably wouldn't have noticed on my own.
I used to listen to this song when I was a kid and it would resonate with me.. even as a child. 40+ years later? its lifes illusions I recall. I really dont know life... at all.
+lambchopxoxo "but life... is for learning." I don't think we get the totality of the answer until we reach for the golden ring at the end of the ride. And even then, the answers are for we alone. Only the chosen few become enlightened and then get the opportunity to return and share that light with those still in the dark.
It is beyond what I can comprehend how Joni wrote such a intrinsically meaningful song that most people would not understand until their elder years at such a young age...A gift from heaven she is.
How much I love you Joni Mitchell.. I am 65... you have always been with me...love ladies of the canyons... like me in my hippy days..went to see you many times in concert...💟💟💟💟💟
Amazing to think of the "musical couples" in the canyon at that time. Stephen Stills and Judy Collins, Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash. Joni even hooked up with David Crosby for a time, in south Florida.
Beautiful lyrics and melody..a voice with such a range..The days of singer songwriters like Joni Mitchell John Denver Gordon Lightfoot are gone..But I still get goosebumps listening to them.
Indeed, goosebumps. Still. However, I don't believe the days of singer/songwriters/performers are over, only that they're less likely to break through to a wider audience and at my age I just don't seem to have the motivation to search out unique new talent from obscure sources (kind of like the law of diminishing returns, with all the amazing innovation over prior decades getting harder to equal, and a limit on how much you can keep previous innovations fresh).
I don't know how I managed in my almost 53 years on this earth to miss such a truthful, wise beyond measure and utterly beautiful song....I am now just grateful I finally found it....I too really don't know life, at all
Better later than never, it's tricky to keep up with current music when you're still in utero. ;-) I'm grateful to be able to easily watch recordings of performances such as this that I didn't have access to half a century ago!
Thank you for sharing. This is actually a little difficult to watch for me, as Joni's version is so wistful and introspective, vs. Judy Collins' happy pop version. Absolutely mesmerising.
builttrainer I'm sure you are aware that Joni wrote the song, but I'm adding this comment here in case others reading your comment are not aware. To me, Joni's version expresses the intention of the song.
melanieprice I agree. Check out her most recent performance when she is older. Very introspective and almost zen like. As I get older this song has so much more meaning to me.
builttrainer One of the most gripping versions I've heard of this song was by Dave Van Ronk. That's when I knew that a pretty voice didn't make someone a singer.
+Jim Eddy I'm not sure if you're referring to Joni with the "pretty voice" remark. Maybe I'll listen to van Ronk to try to understand what you mean...but her voice is astonishing - the songs she wrote are astonishing too and putting them together created something truly awesome. It's more than a pretty voice - much more.
+Gerhold Stolz No, I was referring to Judy Collins who had the "hit" with the song. And I really liked Wildflowers when it came out. Later on I heard Van Ronk's raspy voice singing it in a concert, and it was stunningly alive. Another instance of this for me was on hearing Joan Baez's cover of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. Her version had so much less impact vs. Levon Helm singing it. I agree with you about Joni--I've been listening to her since Song for a Seagull. I love her 25 year old voice, and I love her 70 year old voice. She knows how to use it.
2022 crying because it was a dream song many yrs ago and I had to ask my cousin. I said the cloud song and sang it. And she said oh. Joni Mitchell. Ohhhh yeah. I don't see any family anymore. My angels guide me instead
I didn't know Mama Cass even had a show. I know some people who prefer Joni's ravaged voice as it sounds today, but it was so "pure" in the good old days.
Well, there really was not a Mama Cass Show per se. She made a one hour pilot episode and it was shown on TV (ABC) in June 1969. No sponsor picked it up and so there was no series that fall.
Are you referring to the 2000 appreciation concert video in which she sings this song, only with the gut-wrenching perspective of a life lived long and well? Joni is truly a gift from Canada to the rest of humanity!
Joni is a genius. Mary Travers, the strong female lead from Peter Paul and Mary, and the wonderful undeniable Cass. All three women irreplaceable pioneers. Only Joni remains now.
And imagine....No drums! Oh, beautiful people beautiful times! True art and true talent is like an anointing---it is there without all of the grasping for glitter to disguise the lack of it.
I hope you do....she really changed my life....really thoughtful ,wonderful and sad songs that are so true. I started listening her in 1969......so that makes me a younger than Joni.......er i was 14.
Samara Shelp This song was a hit for another singer named Judy Collins. You might enjoy her recording of it, especially the "hit version" on RUclips. If you watch Mad Men, this song was the closing for "In Care of" - season 6, episode 13. As noted by another commenter below, it's got a "happier" sound, though even as a little kid it made me sad, so I think the melancholy come through in both versions. Love them both.
Rows and flows of angel hair And ice cream castles in the air And feather canyons everywhere Looked at clouds that way But now they only block the sun They rain and they snow on everyone So many things I would have done But clouds got in my way I've looked at clouds from both sides now From up and down and still somehow It's cloud illusions I recall I really don't know clouds at all Moons and Junes and Ferris wheels The dizzy dancing way that you feel As every fairy tale comes real I've looked at love that way But now it's just another show And you leave 'em laughing when you go And if you care, don't let them know Don't give yourself away I've looked at love from both sides now From give and take and still somehow It's love's illusions that I recall I really don't know love Really don't know love at all Tears and fears and feeling proud To say, "I love you" right out loud Dreams and schemes and circus crowds I've looked at life that way Oh, but now old friends they're acting strange And they shake their heads and they tell me that I've changed Well something's lost, but something's gained In living every day I've looked at life from both sides now From win and lose and still somehow It's life's illusions I recall I really don't know life at all It's life's illusions that I recall I really don't know life I really don't know life at all
My grade 12 English teacher taught me this song and the underlining meaning of the song. Time flies and I will turn 65 in September....still love this song and certainly hope my English teacher Miss Hung still alive a well.
I'm 65 now and still remember Miss Booth in Freshman English listening to the poetry of Simon and Garfunkel. She was young and so were we........I can feel myself in the classroom with her heartfelt enthusiasm for the words. We were fortunate to have these teachers King Sole.
I always turn away from new-ish singers who rely on skanky behavior, trashy dancing and all that. Often it's to compensate for a mediocre voice and childish lyrics.
you know there’s a synth playing in the background right 😂 dont be so clouded because passion through music can be protrayed in many ways , yes even auto tune!!
Who’s listening in 2024
I listened to this right after Joni’s performance on the Grammys.
2024 and still showing how it is done.
I'm listening and I was born this Mama Cass show was broadcast 🎩
My mother watched this. She loved Joni and always watched Mama Cass. No wonder I was a huge fan of hers and the storytellers of the 70s, Carole King, Jim Croche, Harry Chapin, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, and Carly Simon to name a few.
During times of chaos and insanity, I needed this. I looked for it after watching her sing on the 2024 Grammys twice. Meryl Streep and her daughter were in the audience. I think you may want to ask a tearful Streep daughter, why she was in tears (as we were). Transports us back to better times.
I was 15 when watching the original broadcast. Joni Mitchell kept me on my toes.
I am 70 now and there song has a new layer of life and meaning.
MeToo!!!
Wow-just Wow, watching this after just watching her at 2024 Grammys. A special woman!!!
Music is at it's most sublime when it moves your heart and touches your soul. This song is one of those it is timeless and immortal
I love this so much because I'm just learning to play guitar in my high school. And I feel like this is a whole different group of folk singers from the current ones I listen to. There is something so special and beautiful and raw about this era.. And I think it's so cute to see such influential women (especially Joni) chilling on a stage. :) so glad I'm performing this song this week.
+Oval Teen Good for you for recognizing the beauty of that era, because you're absolutely right: there was nothing like it. It was a time of experimentation and creativity, along with some incredible talent, the likes of which we've seen little of since. I hope your performance was moving, and satisfying. And the very best of luck with your growth on the guitar!
+Oval Teen You should search youtube for Heather Maloney. She is a wonderful singer and songwriter out of Western Mass, and Joni was a huge influence on her. Heather also did a cover of 'Woodstock' along with a band called Darlingside, also worth checking out. Good luck with your guitar playing!
+Oval Teen Joni Mitchell is one of a kind. Sadly, there won't be another Joni Mitchell. Good ol' songwriting and singer all in one. She did it on her terms. Good luck with your playing. Hope you can be like Joni Mitchell, on your terms and your style.
Steven Baker
Thanks, man. She's quite the inspiration.
Good for you & love your name! I used to drink Oviltine in the 60s or 70s.
Chills.
The older I get the more I appreciate her and think of her as the most original of the folk rock artists. Those unusual chord progressions, that gorgeous singing voice, and of course those image-rich lyrics. Even a song like this above which we've all heard a thousand times can move one to tears if hearing a slightly different live version. And with Joni the live voice had every bit the same range as the recorded voice.
Same as so many other comments. Her first Grammy performance ever at the age of 80 after surviving a brain aneurysm. "Well something's lost, but something's gained in living every day" Amazing performer, amazing song. Yes, the meaning has evolved over my last 54 years.
I can't listen to this original version without thinking of the remake she did in the 2000s. Now, a much older and experienced woman, with a heavier voice than the girl we see here. An older woman, who after so many years, still doesn't know clouds... at all.
Beautiful. And, because of the quality of the lyrics, a song for all time........
Then to sing it, with far more meaning, in her twilight years. How beautiful.
Young ladies doing covers of this song on RUclips... I mean they are doing a pretty good job.... but... People saying oh you sound as good as Joni and blah blah blah .... There's only one Joni . And this is HER song !!!
Judy Collins says hello.
She's so beautiful.
I was only familiar with Judy Collins’ rendition until recently, but Joni’s is a revelation!
She is so beautiful!
One of the prettiest songs I’ve ever heard. ❤️
The world is a better place because Joni Mitchell exists.
Three incredible singers ❤
Truly a great trio of brilliant singers, they were Divas, without the Ego that seems to come attached with that title, So glad I'm of this generation, when music really had things to say about love, pain, social discord, etc. Just as a little footnote here, last night I, worked doing event staff support for a Concert @ the new NFL Sofi Stadium in Inglewood, CA ( right behind the Forum, still in use)many memories of Lakers games( didn't see too many if them) and, Rock shows, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin Jethro Tull , Yes, we Black Sabbath even, Billy Joel. Last night's featured performer was Justin Bieber, he sounded flat, empty, souless and directionless. It seems like style over substance matters more, also, the way the audience just seemed to burst into a quick sort of "cheerr" and applause, without even listening to a single note. I kind of remember listening to the performance first, then, applaude at the end.
These performers could actually entertain.
Watched her sing on the Grammys last night and was moved. I'm 70. To see an 80-year-old win Best Folk Album was wonderful!
Not to mention an 80-year old woman with a voice still so strong and solid. She seems as timeless as her music. ❤
@@nancyharrell8697 wanted to say the same - what a beautiful strong voice. I love this song and it makes me cry.
Thank you for your remark.
Does not say much for the future of folk music
"The dizzy dancing way you feel." They weren't just illusions. This is one of the best songs ever written.
I really can't decide if I prefer this original version or the one she did in 2000, which slowed it down a lot. Her voice is purer, so to speak, here, but the depth of emotion and introspection comes out more in the later version
@@harveymanfredsenjenson5417 I fully agree. I can't decide either. Joni's mature voice packs an palpable emotional punch. I remember noticing the change when Turbulent Indigo came out. The verses played for the movie "Love Actually" would not have been so moving had they been from her youthful recordings -- beautiful as they are.
@@harveymanfredsenjenson5417 yes and the lower key where her voice sits in the later version so poignant and moving
Agree.
The lyrics are amazing aren’t they….
When Mama Cass says "This is my friend Joni Mitchell, and this is my friend Mary Travers", it goes really deep. In the Laurel Canyon scene, Mama Cass was a true friend to so many people, and made so many introductions. If I recall correctly, she introduced Graham Nash to David Crosby and Stephen Stills. Without her, the world of music would have been a lot poorer. If only she were with us now.
Well...she will always be with us.. right...the fine arts ...music..poetry...art..film...if they are fine...they will never leave us ..they are etched into our hearts forever... just saying...
Eric Underwood class of 81 Downey High School California 👍
@Joe Devola whose the Marxist Pedophiles ....how do you come up with that ...you are assuming that Geographic areas are all nothing but evil? So therefore everything including the fine arts is Evil...
Brother you are lost!
I was born not far from Laurel Canyon...in a Los Angeles suburb...
A lot of great talent came from that area... don't you dare stereotype us all...You know what your saying...
Awesomness! Thanks
Apparently, visits at Mama Cass's home were legendary. All of Laurel Canyon came and went. Joni wrote, "Ladies of the Canyon," about her.
So does anyone know who is the 600-pound whale rolling around on the floor in the video? Who is this person?
I have loved this song from childhood and at 61 years old it's still perfect...
It just speaks volumes. Should everyone feel their heart touched. Just vocals and a plain stock 1969 wooden acoustic guitar.
So true
I'm a fellow Albertan, from just down the road, Coaldale.
Her lyrics ring true
She is fron Saskatchewan
@@jiwoonlee6636 she went to high school in Saskatoon
She does album covers also
Same
I just saw a magical performance on the 2024 Grammy's. Joni Michell was amazing to listen to after all these decades gone by...
I started searching for elementary school friends. When I reached one, I said I can't believe we haven't spoken for 60 years. We were kids back then. I was looking for sanity and like-mindedness. That's why I'm listening to Joni.
Take me back..I was 10..Mom and Dad were alive..i was surrounded by friends..I was safe , loved. and wrapped in the magic of the time.
Oh my gosh. You described what I have been thinking recently. I wonder if many other people feel the same.
I was 12. Same.
So perfectly put
Lovely comment ,same memories I was 9
WoW, you have moved me I have nothing more to say. Spain.
She wrote this song when she was still so young... even she herself later said that she felt a bit out of place whenever sang it. She was wise beyond her years... Joni Mitchell, one of a kind.
Yes, she did. I agree, kinda awesome.
I think Joni wrote this song while she was reading a book at the time ( can't remember the book ) and took her inspiration from it.
Reminds me of how Jackson Browne wrote These Days as a teenager. How does someone so young write a line like "Don't confront me with my failures, I have not forgotten them"? Brilliant.
@@richardread8281 - Correct. The song was inspired by a passage in a book Joni was reading while on an airplane. The 1959 novel is called Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow. Per Wikipedia Joni had this to say about writing Both Sides Now: "I was reading on a plane and early in the book the protagonist Henderson is also up in a plane. He's on his way to Africa and he looks down and sees these clouds. I put down the book, looked out the window and saw clouds too and I immediately started writing the song. I had no idea that the song would become as popular as it did."
ruclips.net/video/aCnf46boC3I/видео.html
Who’s listening in 2023? Speak up peeps!
hey i'm a fellow photographer and Joni puts me in a perfect state to work
I AM!!!
2024🎶🎶
I just listened to this song on the morning of January 19, 2024, at 5:40am!
24 🥰
"This is my friend Joni Mitchell ,This is my friend Mary Travers ............and this is singing".................Says it all really.
NVery nce but wasit not and odd choice to have Mary Travers and Cass just sitting there? Director's choice, I suppose.
@@tornadojoegee I guess we're supposed to imagine what it would be like to have friends this talented sitting around in our living rooms playing music. If only...
Amen!!!!😀
I know, I know, I was like "HOLY FUCKBALLS, BATMAN!". Joni Mitchell, Cass Elliot, and Mary Travers on one stage. That's a shitload of talent.
Mama Cass was a special gal, in her own simple way.
Such an extraordinary song - 50 years later it and still incredibly moving.
100%
I am in tears listening to this.
Dave van Ronk did a cover, which Joni loved, that gets me every time: ruclips.net/video/KMhBdIu8gaI/видео.html
My favorite Joni song and god knows she has a lot of good ones...
@@joefriedman9843 Universal masterpieces by universal masters.
It's what our soul is longing for.
I’m 75 and this music is still the magic of the song. Peace and love still goes on. ✌️❤️
Me too - 75! And still loving Joni Mitchel!
Yup. We're still out here. We just went underground when Reagan and Gingrich took over.
@@joelstein4657 Oh FFS shut up...
@@ronfrey6639 I'd offer the same advice to you.
😊
This gives me chills. Incredible. The 60's were a magic vortex opening up, in time, just for a moment. There will never be a period of creativity like it, again.
"Hey man! Do me a solid."
We, meaning us hippies, said this in the 1960's/1970's. Do you know what that means?
@@zyxw2024 Of course! I've been the recipient of many solids! I try to pay it forward too ... the universe gives you back, exactly what you put in to it. Give solids, get solids. Karma is real ☮️
You nailed it!
Yes. We won’t live throughout this again The music
The 70s too, if you were living in the right place. Anyone living in Denton, a small college town in Texas, will know exactly what I mean. All the gays from Dallas, all the shit kickers from Fort Worth, one of the top jazz schools in the country with music everywhere, the most amazing and creative conceptual artists, students streaking through campus day and night, and it was the center for drugs in the entire country. What a crazy menagerie! Definitely a glitch in the matrix.
Amazing to think that in these early days, Joni had only just begun her voyage of genius. Hard to believe that Hejira, Court and Spark and the rest of her wonderful catalogue were still inside this beautiful woman's mind. Or perhaps we knew, right from the start, that we would be embarking on a life long journey with one of the truly great poets of our time.
What a lovely and poetic comment.
Wonderful poet
We knew ...
When one gets to be my age (almost 70), he begins to recognize the truth of these lyrics. There's a sadness for opportunities missed, but also gratefulness for having survived and persevered in this thing called life.
I’m 44 and already starting to feel that...
Same here at 52. We have to learn to accept the good and bad decisions we make in life. This song has touched me most of my life.
This song was really meant to be sung by an older woman with lots of life and years under her belt!
Well said!
Sir, you explained my feeling towards this song so well and I'm only 27. wish you a great life.
If you're watching in 2019, 50... Correct, 50th anniversary of this happening, can you find a thumbs up?
Beautiful
Brilliant
Nice. Have a thumb, UncleJim!
yep this great song is not easy to jam too,, just saying her timing is amazing
Beautiful, so beautiful
Those were the greatest days ever, you will had to be there to understand how golden those days were.
for us gen xers the 80s were our golden days
Joni, You had us at "...moons and June's and Ferris wheels..." Such a voice. Such a great poet. Thank you.
Minor correction Junes, not June's. Means several years.
Three giants of folk/pop on one stage. Music's version of heaven.
Child troll. Go to sleep now and stay off mummy's computer. Nighty night...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
true talent only appears with true talent . jeff i agree with you, none of these artists needed to appear with lesser talents.
childhood memories looking back in time and hearing great songs like this keeps your mind forever Young.
Two giants of folk/pop on one stage, and one giant imposter.
My wife says, you couldn't get better than this. So wonderfully talented women on the stage. This was when we could hear the words of songs, and artists could write, and play a musical instrument !
She looks like an angel singing this beautiful song.
+Thomas Gill i was just thinking exactly the same thing
+Thomas Gill EXACTLY! joni mitchell was thee"angel queen" of california genius
+james knight
lol...Joni was Canadian, born and raised.
+james knight words and music
+Thomas Gill She is stunning. Every word to describe a beautiful woman fits her; stunning, striking, breathtaking, sexy, foxy, babe, cute, pretty, heart breaking, voluptuous, the list goes on. She takes a backseat to my X girlfriend Claudia Schiffer even.
Just saw her beautiful performance of this song tonite on The Grammy's ~ 2024❣️
Me too. Brought me to tears.
He was so dignified and poised and sounded amazing 👏 👏👏👏❤⭐
One of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. What a talented artist.
Look up Sally Barker's performance of this song. It's also really beautiful. :)
@@cirrus8791 Or Randy Scruggs version circle be unbroken.. Quite something..
Starman 2112 I listened to this at different age by Joni, all so different, she grew with this song xx
@@cirrus8791 Judy Collins is too.
Both Sides Now is one of the most perfect songs ever written.
..."and this is singing"....you ain't kiddin' mamma!
I've never seen this clip before so I watched Mama Cass introduce her friend. The goosebumps started instantly the lump in the throat after 30 seconds the tears after a minute. I'm a 57 year old man and not much moves me these days but this did.
Echo. Same here.
I understand, me too. 💕
Ditto buddy....57 too
Ditto again n I’m 60.
Me too, man. Me too.
Who is listening in 2020?😀
I am listening, the memories oh the memories of a much nicer world and life and of course the wonderful Joni Mit hell. Her music was my life and indeed still is.. Wonderful bless Joni...
En Finistère sud France, on écoute encore
im listening
yes.
🌈2020
There is a transcendence and a purity of her form of art. Her voice was angelic and could span registers, she wrote sublime poetry. Music like this elevates the soul and that is what makes it art.
Nicely worded, thank you. I like the word transcendent...
Yep, also, she was in "D" Tuning,, the timing for anybody else would have been a nightmare.
She was also stunningly beautiful...
75350v8 Yes she was! I wonder how tall she is. Google is my friend, right?
I wish I could write like you.
One of those songs where the lyrics grow more powerful the older you get. Beautiful…
Joni wrote it when she was only 25 years old. Such a depth of understanding about life and yet sophisticated maturity.
Great point. She wrote from a depth of understanding and feeling that most people twice her age could not grasp.
So very true. Same thing amazes me about Lennon and McCartney. Writing Eleanor Rigby, Yesterday, Help! at 24/25?? Amazing.
Is it just me or does music like this make you long for days gone by...
Yes it certainly does ❤️
no it doesn't there's still beautiful music being made today. But it does remind me of my youth
You aren't alone in that longing …
Yes indeed Brian, powerfully so...
I'm 45 and cry every time I hear it.
It’s strange how music back in the sixties was just about the song. Mostly performers these days get in the way of their own art by making themselves more important than the songs.
And have to flash their bodies to make up for their lack of talent.
it's not as if this didn't exist back then... glamrock stars definitely weren't JUST about the song ;)
@@Ilma1984 I wrote “back in the sixties” Glam Rock is a seventies phenomenon.
You know it's funny, I was born in the 70s, but I listened to a lot of 60s music as a child, and I was just saying the other day, "the music of that era was about the music, and love, and understanding, and coming together, and community, and ending war. It wasn't about 'me or I' it wasn't about the money or fame. That's why it'll never be replicated, the younger generation is too wrapped up in their ego, their fame.... I call it Kardashian-itis.
@@greywolf393 I agree 100 percent. I don’t think younger people understand the culture of the sixties. How can they? It was a unique time for musical change and political and social engagement. The industry that grew out of the seventies and eighties was very different to the industry that grew out of the folk, skiffle, early rock n roll etc. Frank Zappa sums it up in that interview where he talks about the way the role of record executives changed from facilitating the artist to turning them into cash cows. If you get a chance look up Two or Three Spectres by Peter Hammill. Look up the lyrics too. It sums up the poisonous commercial music industry perfectly.
I absolutely love this human being, she is amazing. A great artist this has true depth, a great voice and something to say to the world. It’s a pleasure to live in the same world has Joni.
How does anything that beautiful ever manage to exist in this old dirt world?
It would struggle now, but that was why some of us adored the 1970s. I lived in California in the mid 70s and it was a magical time to have a childhood there.
This song was on the air in the 1960's. The pilot show was recorded in 1969 but her song came out prior to this recording.
the world is, and always has been beautiful. joni mitchell's music is just that much more beautiful than the rest of it all
Well I guess not all the world is dirt and concrete.
There is love in the world, but it's hard to find.
Just so beautiful....
There is no popular talent played nationwide as sweet sounding in 2020. Hoping some how these talents come back.
@@greghawkman I believe they will.There’s plenty of talented artists we haven’t even heard of yet that will restore some colour in the world again :)
so much music now lacks this authenticity
Took the words out of my mouth. What a singer, musician, songwriter. A poet
Her face is beautiful.
Her voice is a beautiful
Her songs are beautiful
She is one of the most talented songwriters and singers that ever lived but she is so underrated .
She's underrated? Or just not a pop princess?
She’s not underrated. We all acknowledge her brilliance. We’re all in awe of her brilliance. There’s Joni, then there’s everyone else.
As all these years race by, Joni's songwriting is indelible. Just relevant to the heart as ever.
only underrated by [ep[;e who gauges in the temperament of ignorance and lack of knowledge of music.
@@howbalt I would absolutely place Kate Bush right alongside Joni. They are the two pillars.
Oh ! To be young again , when life was free , and innocence was groovy. Thnx for posting.
+bob E D ......your words are so true . . . .
BOBBY D 70s. . going back .
❤️
Yes, I was right there with the rest of you all. This takes me back and tugs the heart. What wonderful music and what beautiful talented women we had in music then. Wasn't it a time?!
Indeed, a time when creative souls were cherished, a time when beauty and sex appeal were two and a time before money took over any and all. Fortunately we still have here the sights and sounds and so many wonderful memories, just close your eyes... and listen, and dream.
Those three women on the same stage, priceless
Someone should find all these old shows and broadcast them on a specialized TV channel. And no more reality shows and other modern rubbish. Youngsters will learn what good music was.
Anton thought Mary Travers would sing, maybe duet on chorus.
yep me too !!😊
I was lucky enough to see Joni sing this song at the Anaheim Convention center in 1973 with someone I love. As we were leaving someone said "this is where she'll go to catch her limo".No one believed them but we stood and waited anyway and sure enough in a few minutes Joni appeared and stopped to greet her faithful fans. A moment I'll never forget.
Oh, how wonderful. 😊
We old geezers, as we are now, weren't wrong about these beautiful ladies. Joni was adorable and so gifted.
We use to be children of the 60s.What great music we were brought up on
Who's the 600-pound whale rolling around on the floor?
She takes a microscope to the human condition and still manages to soothe the furrowed brow. So revealing of her inner self, very brave and out there.
Nice comment
well said
I love my Mom. She was 39 when this song came out. It was her favorite song. God, i miss you Mom. 🙏🙄
I lost my Mom, my Dad, my 3 brothers, 2 sisters, 4 help including the cook, 2 visiting neighbors and 5 different pets - all in a devastating grade fire. They all loved Joni Mitchell.
My god, I love them all...
Back in the early 1960's my parents where returning from a weekend in Wasaga Beach when they stopped for gas near Orillia. The attendant asked if they could give his friend a lift to Toronto. Shy, polite kid with curly hair and a guitar case, A few years ĺatet they where watching the CBC when they saw the very same fellow singing on a variety show. Gordon Lightfoot.
...the GREAT Gordon Lightfoot
Shy and polite?
@@jimzeleny7213 I was at his concert many years, and it started to rain. I was in the open area and he invited us to fill in the covered area. He was very polite. I imagine he could raise hell too though.
Wasaga Beach ... on Georgian Bay. Great place in the summer.
And Gordon too is great.
"This is my friend Joni Mitchell ,This is my friend Mary Travers" I'd cut off my Right Arm just to be able to say that .
Just be calm and love the Lord in your heart and you will be with them soon.
You're so right! Such beautiful women, with such beautiful voices (and beautiful hearts! I got to meet, shake hands, and chat with Mary after one of her Peter, Paul, and Mary concerts, and feel really blessed by that!
I agree iamafan ofall three
Fortunately, through the magic of RUclips, you can keep both of your arms. :-)
What an experience for Mary and Cass just to sit there and take that in.
Beautiful, poetic lyrics and a crystal clear, pleasant voice. Joni is considered a legend for a reason, she is one. Beautiful poetic songwriting and an amazingly nice voice 💛
This song always makes me cry. Every time.
Scott McGillivray I'm with you. Every time. That's because you are listening to one of the true genius musicians of our lifetime. The emotional connection is real because her use of her poetry blends perfectly with her music and of course with her incredible voice. If you lose yourself in her words you find the joy, confusion, pain and mystery of life. Her writing and music are so soulfully raw and transparent. Raw, yet so beautifully refined. And this is just one song. Nobody in popular music in years has come close to writing one song at this level of inspired musicianship. And she's written MANY songs of this greatness. I don't think most people realize just how incredible Joni Mitchell is.
Robert Mayer You said everything about Joni that needs to be said.
Robert Mayer wasn't she special!
Scott McGillivray me too!!! every time
Scott McGillivray me too; you aren't alone Joni was my hero right from the first time I heard that incredibly beautiful voice. Okay, so I was a little envious that she could hit notes I couldn't reach with a ladder.... but Joni just had such a wonderful vocal range & in all these years I've yet to hear a voice I loved as much as hers.
It is hard to imagine that there was a time when music was this beautiful.
kenmtb -- = well said the drug culture has taken the heart of music to a dark place = can we bring it back to a brighter place = i am trying.
@@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm The lack of culture ruined it, so don't blame the substances, blame us people. We just watched it happen and did nothing to stop it. I remember my mother's music collection, Nat King Cole, Johnny Mathis, Sammy Davis Jr., etc. Today's music just isn't very good, especially when compared to my mother's era I remember my parents going to the Latin Casino (South Jersey) to see the Jackson's when Michael was about 6 years old, my mother loved him.
The music was beautiful but times were crazy then, as crazy as now or more.
@@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm - and The Twin Curses of 'Digital Enhancement' and 'Digital Remastering' ... just as video killed the radio star so computer enginners are killing REAL MUSIC !
I for one am so very glad and grateful to have known 'The Real Thing'
I am happy that i was a teenager in the 70ths. They even brought music like this in radio every day.
I remember the hit Judy Collins had with this and always thought she sang it beautifully. Then, I heard Joni sing it on the Johnny Cash Show and was totally blown away. I can't describe how this song makes me feel.
Me, too. Judy did a beautiful job of it, too. I understand Joni wrote it as a reply to Sugar Mountain. I'm not sure its true or not, but it seems as if it could be.
That would make perfect sense.
apparently it is she was friends with fellow Canadian Neil Young who was depressed for turning 20
Tara Greene she wrote "Circle Game for Neil---after he wrote "Sugar Mountain "
james geiger I love both Joni and Judy’s renditions.
Joni's got the voice of an angel. Makes me proud to be Canadian. Timeless song.
@Greg Jacques The world needs more Canada.
And the Tim Horton's coffee is great too... I can watch Joni and put in my TH K-cup and have a mellow time.
Me 2
Beyond words to express my felling for her.❤
Met Anne Murray's parents in Nova Scotia where I lived. Very friendly and wanting to hear other's stories. Canadians are great people. I'm from Mississippi.
Anyone know where i can buy a time machine
in your head good place to be with allthese great songs
Tell everyone it was different then, a generation of people that believed in uniting together toward a better, simpler world.
Man, you have no idea how many times I've wished for one, too!
I wish I could take the kids of today back to those days, so they could see what it was like and how we treated each other then, and how much hope we had for a better future....and, of course, the music.
Carrie Berry Always the music Carrie. I'm with you all the way, the purest thing that invigorates, liberates and unites. We will always have that.
Just lovely. God bless her. Her album Blue is a masterpiece.
Skill Builder peace c70s.johnny from Miami
Skill Builder women are to be loved and cherished as God Jesus Christ himself has made them exalted above all things .
Skill Builder beloved if the living lord God Almighty
Maximus Vetti Why is it always a taste of controversy like God. Why is not a beautiful song, by a beautiful poetic woman. Is that not enough.
James Dolan Amen! (JK!) But seriously, I honestly don't understand why any comment, anywhere, about almost anything, is usually followed almost immediately by JESUS or LIBERALS or CONSERVATIVES, all shouted out as if no one will otherwise notice. It seems to me that unless it is a video about religion or politics, then religion or politics should remain out of the conversation completely. I can understand someone, in their natural exuberance over something good, might type "God bless (so and so)," but other than that, we should be spared from others' religious or political rantings. I think that it is only fair, unless the perpetrators of such nonsense want contrary-minded people to their views doing the same to them, that all such comments should be avoided. Otherwise, those said "contrary-minded people" might go on those opinionated people's videos or postings, just to overwhelm them on their own posted materials with comments that are utterly contrary to what the opinionated people confess to believe. What is that about "turnabout is fair play"? I feel that it is petty and unethical, but there might not be any other way to punish the opinionated people for their unwanted and unwarranted opinions. It's called "fighting fire with fire."
At 76, I grew up listening to the incredible music of Joni. A music track to my life.
Doesn't get much better than this. What a heart song. She had the magic.
+Scott Carlson You're so right. I would loved to have seen her live. I doubt she'll tour again. A flawless artist. XXX
I saw her live in 1974 in South Bend Indiana. She had made a bet with one of her tour men that Notre Dame would beat UCLA and Bill Walton, to support the underdog. ND did beat UCLA ending their 88 game winning streak, which made her even more of a favorite with the crowd, although she had my heart for many years beforehand. She was beautiful, musically perfect, winning, and wonderful and after over 40 years I remember her coming on stage like it was yesterday. Here's to you, Joni, the best of the best.
try hard to not be a dumb moron Tom Dilbert, try hard
He's just an 11 year old troll who grabbed a hold of mummy's iPad. Pay him no heed.
Just so amazing....
Used to like her till she admitted giving her kid away
@@alfching2499 Oh man ! I never heard about that.
I wonder if she likes herself?
I know
@@alfching2499 Bit judgemental don't you think. From what I can gather her daughter found her many years later and Joni is now a grandmother.
Amazing, no effects, no computerized garbage, pure music. thanks Joni..... : )
Simply talent..no need to strip off and act like a porn star.
I loved the record but she seems to sound even better here
Yep so true
Nearly a thousand have recorded negative comments.........what planet are these people on !!??.... Joni is an amazing artist and this song is hers.......
Joni Mitchell. Such a gem. This version of Both Sides Now goes straight to the heart.
This is a woman that wrote her songs with her own blood.
Who did write it then?
I doubt very much that she did, that would have hurt.
@@sarahm2878 What!? Yes she did.
She did it nicotine
Surely ink was never that expensive ?
At 1:15 you see the mark of a brilliant performer; she starts to sing "love's" instead of "clouds", catches it it in the blink of an eye, and then just gives an amazing grin that acknowledges that this is a live performance, and then goes straight on. As a musician this is so inspiring.
She even lengthens the segue to the next verse an extra bar to "catch up" so to speak. Always loved Joni but Neil Diamond's version is my favorite.
She seemed to be having an off night, or was distracted; that was not the only gaffe she made. And yet Joni at 70% is still better than anyone else at 100%. This feels like what it must have been like to see Dowland or Bach or Mozart on an off night, doing something they didn't mean to do and yet still making it work as music, demonstrating that one's mind can slip and yet one can still be committed to the performance and the moment. Inspiring indeed.
Precious
It's so incredibly sweet! Thanks for pointing it out. She corrects the little miss so quickly and elegantly that I probably wouldn't have noticed on my own.
Your right amazing person she is
Came here from the Grammys. This is THE song.
So did I😊
Me too. Just magical.
She's even more talented than she is gorgeous, which is saying something.
I used to listen to this song when I was a kid and it would resonate with me.. even as a child. 40+ years later? its lifes illusions I recall. I really dont know life... at all.
+lambchopxoxo "but life... is for learning." I don't think we get the totality of the answer until we reach for the golden ring at the end of the ride. And even then, the answers are for we alone. Only the chosen few become enlightened and then get the opportunity to return and share that light with those still in the dark.
Has to be one of the finest songs ever written. Always makes me cry.
An angel’s voice, Shakespeare’s word flow, and cheekbones of a Hepburn.
Well said!
Right on❤
It is beyond what I can comprehend how Joni wrote such a intrinsically meaningful song that most people would not understand until their elder years at such a young age...A gift from heaven she is.
And when she sang it at her own tribute it was a thousands times more intense and beautiful. Amazing.
So true, I cry thinking & hearing, feeling this song. So beautiful, so true..
True. It's only really meant anything to me in my 50s, and become so true. She was wise beyond her years .
At 80 I agree.
@@Tallinheels Me too (at 82).
How much I love you Joni Mitchell.. I am 65... you have always been with me...love ladies of the canyons... like me in my hippy days..went to see you many times in concert...💟💟💟💟💟
Amazing to think of the "musical couples" in the canyon at that time. Stephen Stills and Judy Collins, Joni Mitchell and Graham Nash. Joni even hooked up with David Crosby for a time, in south Florida.
Beautiful lyrics and melody..a voice with such a range..The days of singer songwriters like Joni Mitchell John Denver Gordon Lightfoot are gone..But I still get goosebumps listening to them.
Gordon's still alive. He played Massey Hall last month.
Indeed, goosebumps. Still. However, I don't believe the days of singer/songwriters/performers are over, only that they're less likely to break through to a wider audience and at my age I just don't seem to have the motivation to search out unique new talent from obscure sources (kind of like the law of diminishing returns, with all the amazing innovation over prior decades getting harder to equal, and a limit on how much you can keep previous innovations fresh).
The true mark of a singer is the live performance. No flashy add ons. Joni’s voice was a true gift - to us!
live my ass, you are deaf and blind
I don't know how I managed in my almost 53 years on this earth to miss such a truthful, wise beyond measure and utterly beautiful song....I am now just grateful I finally found it....I too really don't know life, at all
Better later than never, it's tricky to keep up with current music when you're still in utero. ;-)
I'm grateful to be able to easily watch recordings of performances such as this that I didn't have access to half a century ago!
Me neither!
Thank you for sharing. This is actually a little difficult to watch for me, as Joni's version is so wistful and introspective, vs. Judy Collins' happy pop version. Absolutely mesmerising.
builttrainer I'm sure you are aware that Joni wrote the song, but I'm adding this comment here in case others reading your comment are not aware. To me, Joni's version expresses the intention of the song.
melanieprice I agree. Check out her most recent performance when she is older. Very introspective and almost zen like. As I get older this song has so much more meaning to me.
builttrainer One of the most gripping versions I've heard of this song was by Dave Van Ronk. That's when I knew that a pretty voice didn't make someone a singer.
+Jim Eddy I'm not sure if you're referring to Joni with the "pretty voice" remark. Maybe I'll listen to van Ronk to try to understand what you mean...but her voice is astonishing - the songs she wrote are astonishing too and putting them together created something truly awesome. It's more than a pretty voice - much more.
+Gerhold Stolz
No, I was referring to Judy Collins who had the "hit" with the song. And I really liked Wildflowers when it came out. Later on I heard Van Ronk's raspy voice singing it in a concert, and it was stunningly alive.
Another instance of this for me was on hearing Joan Baez's cover of The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down. Her version had so much less impact vs. Levon Helm singing it.
I agree with you about Joni--I've been listening to her since Song for a Seagull. I love her 25 year old voice, and I love her 70 year old voice. She knows how to use it.
2022 crying because it was a dream song many yrs ago and I had to ask my cousin. I said the cloud song and sang it. And she said oh. Joni Mitchell. Ohhhh yeah. I don't see any family anymore. My angels guide me instead
I didn't know Mama Cass even had a show. I know some people who prefer Joni's ravaged voice as it sounds today, but it was so "pure" in the good old days.
+gwendolyn2001 -- Exactly. I had no idea there was a Mama Cass show.
Well, there really was not a Mama Cass Show per se. She made a one hour pilot episode and it was shown on TV (ABC) in June 1969. No sponsor picked it up and so there was no series that fall.
Mostly Brenda
Then no wonder I did not remember it! Thanks.
+Mostly Brenda I wasn't here yet (71),but so sad!
Are you referring to the 2000 appreciation concert video in which she sings this song, only with the gut-wrenching perspective of a life lived long and well? Joni is truly a gift from Canada to the rest of humanity!
Joni is a genius. Mary Travers, the strong female lead from Peter Paul and Mary, and the wonderful undeniable Cass. All three women irreplaceable pioneers. Only Joni remains now.
This song makes me cry for some reasons that I dont know. It touches my heart for real!
Not only is the melody incredible but her RHYTHM is literally perfect. What a pleasure to watch X
She perfected phrasing
Magical voice, it’s still mesmerizing to hear again years later. Yes! As a guitar player I love her rhythm. Unique and spot on. Wonderful!
What? No dance moves, no techno light show, no amazing staging? Gosh, just music??? I don't get it.
And imagine....No drums! Oh, beautiful people beautiful times! True art and true talent is like an anointing---it is there without all of the grasping for glitter to disguise the lack of it.
No shitty compulsory cRAP in the middle of it?!
...yeah, plus, she's wearing clothes........
Yes. And what's that weird looking wooden thing in her lap she keeps hitting?
John Perrigo LOL, weird I know? I'm 25 years old, and I ONLY listen to music like this.
Joni Mitchell, Donovan, George Harrison...
She makes it look so effortless, from her playing to her singing, yet she is brilliant beyond words. What a profound talent.
First time I've ever heard this song. It is so beautiful. Her voice is also beautiful. I need to start listening to her music.
Samara Shelp Be prepared for a lifetime love. Like 3 years constantly listening- approximaately ----
I hope you do....she really changed my life....really thoughtful ,wonderful and sad songs that are so true. I started listening her in 1969......so that makes me a younger than Joni.......er i was 14.
Yeah. I'm only 20. But she is great. Defiantly a legend and truly talented. Wish I could write songs like her.
Samara Shelp This song was a hit for another singer named Judy Collins. You might enjoy her recording of it, especially the "hit version" on RUclips. If you watch Mad Men, this song was the closing for "In Care of" - season 6, episode 13. As noted by another commenter below, it's got a "happier" sound, though even as a little kid it made me sad, so I think the melancholy come through in both versions. Love them both.
Tracymmo Nah. The one who wrote it sounds the best. There is a reason for it working that way.
Just hearing the way Mama Cass said "this is my FRIEND" about Mitchell made me tear up
50 years on and still one of the greatest songs ever written.
It was recently named the best Canadian song ever!!! So proud she's my cousin!!🖤🖤
Rows and flows of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
Looked at clouds that way
But now they only block the sun
They rain and they snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way
I've looked at clouds from both sides now
From up and down and still somehow
It's cloud illusions I recall
I really don't know clouds at all
Moons and Junes and Ferris wheels
The dizzy dancing way that you feel
As every fairy tale comes real
I've looked at love that way
But now it's just another show
And you leave 'em laughing when you go
And if you care, don't let them know
Don't give yourself away
I've looked at love from both sides now
From give and take and still somehow
It's love's illusions that I recall
I really don't know love
Really don't know love at all
Tears and fears and feeling proud
To say, "I love you" right out loud
Dreams and schemes and circus crowds
I've looked at life that way
Oh, but now old friends they're acting strange
And they shake their heads and they tell me that I've changed
Well something's lost, but something's gained
In living every day
I've looked at life from both sides now
From win and lose and still somehow
It's life's illusions I recall
I really don't know life at all
It's life's illusions that I recall
I really don't know life
I really don't know life at all
My grade 12 English teacher taught me this song and the underlining meaning of the song. Time flies and I will turn 65 in September....still love this song and certainly hope my English teacher Miss Hung still alive a well.
I'm 65 now and still remember Miss Booth in Freshman English listening to the poetry of Simon and Garfunkel. She was young and so were we........I can feel myself in the classroom with her heartfelt enthusiasm for the words. We were fortunate to have these teachers King Sole.
No auto-tune, no computer-generated crap, and she can keep your attention without taking her clothes off, I miss artists like this.
I always turn away from new-ish singers who rely on skanky behavior, trashy dancing and all that. Often it's to compensate for a mediocre voice and childish lyrics.
A "ME TOO" MOMENT TOM.....STAY WELL
She’s the queen of alternate guitar tuning.
you know there’s a synth playing in the background right 😂 dont be so clouded because passion through music can be protrayed in many ways , yes even auto tune!!
I guess you haven't seen the For the Roses gatefold...