It’s not a Joni Mitchell/Jimi Hendrix collaboration, per se, but the next best thing, or at least the next oddest thing: A recording of a 1968 Mitchell concert that the legendary guitarist captured from a front row seat has been discovered after decades of being considered lost. And it’s among the unreleased material that’s been rounded up for her next boxed set, “Joni Mitchell Archives Vol. 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971),” coming in October.
“The Dawntreader,” a track from the Hendrix-recorded set, was released Wednesday to preview the collection.
The five-CD or 10-LP set also includes a complete rendering of Mitchell’s 1969 Carnegie Hall debut, held shortly before she released her second album, “Clouds”; a live 1970 show from London originally broadcast over the BBC; previously unreleased compositions like “Jesus,” captured in a Chelsea apartment in ’69; and alternate takes from the “Ladies of the Canyon” and “Blue” sessions with extra orchestration or instrumentation that was abandoned for the final release versions.
But the biggest curio by far is the Hendrix recording of her March 19, 1968 show at the Le Hibou Coffee House in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada — 22 tracks in all from both sets Mitchell performed that night.
As with the previous boxed set in the series, Mitchell sat for a liner-notes interview with filmmaker/journalist Cameron Crowe, in which she explained the circumstances of how Hendrix came to be an unlikely recording engineer for that occasion.
“They came and told me, ‘Jimi Hendrix is here, and he’s at the front door.’ I went to meet him,” she told Crowe. “He had a large box. He said to me, ‘My name is Jimi Hendrix. I’m on the same label as you. Reprise Records.’ We were both signed about the same time. He said, ‘I’d like to record your show. Do you mind?’ I said, ‘no, not at all.’ There was a large reel-to-reel tape recorder in the box.”
She continued, “The stage was only about a foot off the ground. He knelt at edge of the stage, with a microphone, at my feet. All during the show, he kept twisting knobs. He was engineering it, I don’t know what he was controlling, volume? He was watching the needles or something, messing with knobs. He beautifully recorded this tape. Of course I played part of the show to him. He was right below me.”
Hendrix had done his own show earlier in the evening a few blocks away. His fascination with the 24-year-old up-and-comer was noted in his diary: “fantastic girl with heaven words.”
The complete track list for the Oct. 29 release:
Disc One
Joni’s home (late 1967/early 1968)1.“Midnight Cowboy” – Version one2.“The Dawntreader” – Demo with vocal overdub3.“Song To A Seagull”4.“Midnight Cowboy” – Version twoJane Lurie’s Apartment, Chelsea, Manhattan, New York City, NY (late 1967/early 1968)5.“The Way It Is”6.“Turn Around” – IncompleteHome Demo, Joni’s home (late 1967/early 1968)7.“I Had A King” – Demo with piano overdub8.“Roses Blue” – Demo with peacock harp overdub9.“The Fiddle And The Drum” – Piano demoSong To A Seagull Session, Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA (January 24, 1968)10.“Jeremy”11.“Conversation”12.“Both Sides Now”13.“The Gift Of The Magi”Jane Lurie’s Apartment, Chelsea, Manhattan, New York City, NY (early 1968)14.“It’s Easy”15.“Another Melody”Live at Canterbury House, Ann Arbor, MI (March 10, 1968)16.Introduction17. “Jeremy”18. “Songs To Aging Children Come”Disc Two
Le Hibou Coffee House, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Recorded by Jimi Hendrix (March 19, 1968)First Set1.“Night In The City”2.“Come To The Sunshine”3.Intro to “The Pirate Of Penance”4.“The Pirate Of Penance”5.“Conversation”6.“The Way It Is”7.Intro to “The Dawntreader”8.“The Dawntreader”Second Set9.“Marcie”10.Intro to “Nathan La Franeer”11.“Nathan La Franeer”12.Intro to “Dr. Junk”13.“Dr. Junk”14.Intro to “Michael From Mountains”15.“Michael From Mountains”16.“Go Tell The Drummer Man”17.Intro to “I Don’t Know Where I Stand”18.“I Don’t Know Where I Stand”19.Intro to “Sisotowbell Lane”20.“Sisotowbell Lane”21.Intro to “Ladies Of The Canyon”22.“Ladies Of The Canyon”Studio Session, Western Recorders, Hollywood, CA (May 31, 1968)23.“Come To The Sunshine”Jane Lurie’s Apartment, Chelsea, Manhattan, New York City, NY (summer 1968)24.“My Second Album”25.“Lambert, Hendricks & Ross”26.“The Pirate Of Penance”Top Gear BBC Radio Broadcast, London, England (recorded September 23, 1968)27.Intro to “Chelsea Morning”28.“Chelsea Morning” – with the John Cameron Group29.Intro to “The Gallery”30.“The Gallery”31. Intro to “Night In The City”32.“Night In The City” – with the John Cameron GroupDisc Three
Live at Carnegie Hall, New York City, NY (February 1, 1969)First Set1.“Chelsea Morning”2.A Valentine for Joni3.“Cactus Tree”4.“Night In The City”5.“I Had A King”6.“Blue Boy”7.My American Skirt8.“The Fiddle And The Drum”9.Spoony’s Wonderful Adventure10.“That Song about The Midway”11.“Both Sides Now”Second Set12.“Marcie”13.“Nathan La Franeer”14.Intro to “The Gallery”15.“The Gallery”16.“Hunter”17.“Morning Morgantown”18.Intro to “Get Together”19.“Get Together”20.Intro to “The Circle Game/Little Green”21. “The Circle Game/Little Green”EncoreDisc Four
Live at Carnegie Hall, New York City, NY (February 1, 1969)1.Intro to “Urge For Going”2.“Urge For Going”Clouds Sessions, A&M Studios, Hollywood, CA (spring 1969)3.“Conversation”4.“Blue Boy”5.“The Priest”Jane Lurie’s Apartment, Chelsea, Manhattan, New York City, NY (mid 1969)6.“Jesus”7.Playing piano and vocalizingThe Dick Cavett Show ABC TV Broadcast, New York City, NY (Recorded August 18, 1969)8.“Chelsea Morning”9.“Willy”10.“For Free”11.Interview12.“The Fiddle And The Drum”Ladies Of The Canyon Demo Session, A&M Studios, Hollywood, CA (late 1969)13.“Woodstock”Live at Centennial Auditorium, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada (November 1, 1969)14.“As I Lie Thinking In My Backyard On August 2nd”15.“Roses Blue”16.“Rainy Night House”Ladies Of The Canyon Sessions, A&M Studios, Hollywood, CA (late 1969)17.“Ladies Of The Canyon” – with cellos18.“Blue Boy” – with recorder codaIn Concert BBC TV Broadcast, (recorded September 3, 1970)19.“All I Want”Blue Demo Sessions, A&M Studios, Hollywood, CA (September 1970)20. “A Case Of You”21.“California”Disc Five
In Concert BBC Radio Broadcast, Paris Theatre, London England (recorded October 29, 1970)1.Introduction2.“That Song about The Midway”3.Intro to “The Gallery”4.“The Gallery”5.“Hunter”6.Intro to “River”7.“River”8.“My Old Man”9.“The Priest”10.This is a mountain dulcimer11.“Carey”12.“A Case Of You” – with James Taylor13.Intro to “California” – with James Taylor14.“California” – with James Taylor15.Intro to “For Free” – with James Taylor16.“For Free” – with James Taylor17.Intro to “The Circle Game” – with James Taylor18.“The Circle Game” – with James Taylor19.Intro to “You Can Close Your Eyes” – with James Taylor20.“You Can Close Your Eyes” – with James Taylor21.“Both Sides Now”22.Intro to “Big Yellow Taxi”23.“Big Yellow Taxi”Blue Sessions, A&M Studios, Hollywood, CA (late 1970/early 1971)24.“Hunter”25.“River” – with French horns26.“Urge For Going” – with strings
