Both Sides Now (song)

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“Both Sides Now”

Single by Judy Collins
B-side	Who Knows Where the Time Goes
Released	1968
Format	7" single
Writer(s)	Joni Mitchell

"Both Sides Now" is a song by Joni Mitchell. Her recording first appeared on the album Clouds, released in 1969 and later on the album of the same name.

It is one of Joni Mitchell's best known songs (with "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock" and "A Case of You"). It was written in March 1967, inspired by a passage in Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow.^[1]

Judy Collins made the first commercially released recording of the song in 1968 (shortly after Mitchell wrote it); Collins' version reached the top ten on the U.S. pop singles charts and won a 1968 Grammy Award for Best Folk Performance. Fairport Convention recorded the song as a demo in 1967. The band's recording did not become available until 2000, however, when it appeared on The Guv'nor Vol 4 by Ashley Hutchings.

Rolling Stone ranked "Both Sides Now" #170 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

[edit] Cover versions

“Both Sides Now”

Single by Clannad & Paul Young

Released

1991

Recorded

Windmill Studios, Dublin, Ireland

Genre

Pop rock

Length

3:09

Clannad & Paul Young singles chronology

"The Hunter"

"Both Sides Now"

"I Will Find You"

Mitchell's friend Dave Van Ronk covered the song on his album Dave Van Ronk and the Hudson Dusters, entitling the song "Clouds." Mitchell often said that this rendition of her song was the finest ever.

Frank Sinatra recorded the song for his 1968 album Cycles (this was Sinatra's poorly-received attempt at a more "young" and contemporary (for the late 1960s) sound than his usual jazz-flavored Great American Songbook repertoire).

Michael Feinstein covered the song for the 1990 compilation Rubáiyát.

In 1991, the song was covered by Hole on their album Pretty On The Inside, under the name "Clouds."

It was also a minor hit in the UK and Canada for the Irish band Clannad in a duet with British singer Paul Young, recorded for the motion picture Switch. It was the only chart appearance for Clannad in the Canadian RPM 100 Singles Chart.

A cover of this song by the band Dengue Fever appeared on the soundtrack of the 2002 movie City of Ghosts.

Both the 2000 album Both Sides Now and the song are featured in the 2003 movie Love Actually.

Neil Diamond, Anne Murray, Glen Campbell, Engelbert Humperdinck, Leonard Nimoy, Jason Falkner, Catherine MacKinnon, and Robert Goulet have recorded covers of this song as well.

Dolly Parton covered "Both Sides Now" on her 2005 album, Those Were The Days. Parton's version featured vocals by Judy Collins, who, as noted, first recorded the song.

Hayley Westenra also recorded this song in 2005, on her album Odyssey.

A French version of the song, with adapted lyrics by Eddy Marnay, was recorded by Marie Laforêt in 1968 under the title "Je n'ai rien appris."

Davy Graham recorded a version on his 1969 album Large As Life But Twice As Natural. His version included a long Middle Eastern-style introduction.

A version by Doris Day, originally recorded on a television special in 1971, was incorporated in the 2006 reissue of her album The Love Album.

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band performed an instrumental version on their 1972 album Will the Circle Be Unbroken.

A solo version by jazz guitarist Pat Martino was included on his 1974 album Consciousness.

Pete Seeger did a cover on his LP of songs for children and elderly called Young vs. Old. Seeger added a more optimistic fourth verse to the song. The new lyrics are in Seger's book Where Have All the Flowers Gone in the chapter "New Words?"

Swedish singer Håkan Hellström did a cover in Swedish. His version is called "Båda Sidor Nu."

Jazz musician Herbie Hancock and his band performed the song on the 2007 album River: The Joni Letters. Hancock's work on the song was nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Jazz Solo.

Dianne Reeves covered "Both Sides Now" on her album, Quiet Before the Storm (1994).

Allison Moorer in 2008 Album "Mockinbird".

Kyle Rose and Teale Poirier for 07/08 Woodstock Collegiate Institute CD.