"CAPTAIN BILLY’S MAGIC 8 BALL" -SEASON TWO- EPISODE TWO - JONI MITCHELL- FEATURING THE ALBUM "THE HISSING OF SUMMER LAWNS" IN HIGH DEFINITION - THE ENTIRE ALBUM WITH THE CAPTAIN'S MAGNETIC NARRATIVE -THE CAPTAIN EXPLORES HIS COVE OF 8 TRACK TREASURES!

DIG THIS WITH BILL MESNIK AND RICH BUCKLAND- THE SPLENDID BOHEMIANS

THE HISSING OF SUMMER LAWNS by Joni Mitchell (Asylum, 1975)

Hail, hail Joni Mitchell! A survivor with a roller-coaster history of adventures, both artistic and existential. She’s still standing, albeit with a cane - (Polio couldn’t fell her; an aneurysm? Piffle!) From folkie goddess who pierced her madrigals through with a brutal, autobiographical honesty, through her jazzbo period where challenging experimentations were offered with Amazonian bravado. After Blue, my favorite Joni record was Mingus, wherein she introduced me to an hitherto unknown (to me) bass maestro by way of a seamless collaboration. She was loved by many, but was impossible to control, so her romantic paths were marked with scorched earth, but the genius gentlemen left behind could only carry the torch in her name through the ensuing decades.

The Hissing of Summer Lawns was dissed upon its release, coming, as it did, on the heels of her biggest hit, Court and Spark, but is now recognized as a masterpiece. She’s spreading out here, sonically and vocally. Her fascination with jazz voicing, the impressionist lyrics, a Burundi Drumline, tasty samples and loops - it was all ahead of its time. But, then again, so was Joni.