Ladies of the Canyon

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Ladies of the Canyon

Studio album by Joni Mitchell
Released	1970
Recorded	?
Genre	Folk-rock, Singer-songwriter
Length	44:33
Label	Reprise
Producer(s)	Joni Mitchell
All Music Guide link Rolling Stone (not rated) link Robert Christgau (A-) link
Joni Mitchell chronology
Clouds (1969)	Ladies of the Canyon (1970)	Blue (1971)

Ladies of the Canyon, Joni Mitchell's third album (released in 1970), featured several of Mitchell's most noted songs, including "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock" and "The Circle Game". Notable for its expansion of Mitchell's artistic vision and its varied song topics (ranging from the aesthetic weight of celebrity, to clear-eyed observation of the Woodstock generation, to the complexities of love), Ladies of the Canyon is often viewed as a transition between Mitchell's folky earlier work and the more sophisticated, poignant albums that were to follow. In particular, "For Free" foreshadows the lyrical leitmotif of the isolation triggered by success that would be elaborated upon in For The Roses and Court and Spark. The sparse, alternate-tuning laden sound of later records comes to the forefront on "Ladies of the Canyon".

Of all of Mitchell's work, this album is arguably the most related to her long-standing friendships and relationships with Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young (whose hard rock arrangement of "Woodstock" was one of their three radio hits in 1970). A number of the album's songs, including the aforementioned "Ladies of the Canyon" and "Woodstock", feature densely stacked, wordless harmony overdubs reminiscent of David Crosby's oeuvre; Crosby himself has covered "For Free" for many years. "Willy" is a girlishly infatuating paean to Nash. "The Circle Game", one of the artist's most recognizable songs, features background vocals from all four. "Big Yellow Taxi" has also managed to become a standard over the years, sampled by Janet Jackson and spawning a much-disparaged cover by Bob Dylan.