I could not miss Bread & Roses, a 3 day benefit music festival for Joan Baez's sister Mimi Farina's Marin County foundation that brings music to those who can't get out, in nursing homes, prisons. Always an amazing lineup in those days. Neil Young with the International Harvesters, Etta James, Baez, Robin Williams, Taj Mahal, and "BB King with Special Guest Appearance by Joni Mitchell". As it turned out, Joni performed 4 times (over 2 days, I think), and the BB King set was the worst of the lot. BB and band did a nice, tight blues set in their tailored matching suits, then Joni came out, wearing Telecaster, and went into "Coyote". The only problem was that the band did not know it, pure and simple. Had probably never heard it (maybe briefly backstage). The bass player blew all the chord changes. Visually it was cool, musically it was a trainwreck. Things did not improve when Joni ditched the guitar to trade verses with King on "The Thrill is Gone". It seemed that every time Joni opened her mouth, King played a loud Lucille lick right over her. WTF! The Thrill, and Joni had come and gone. She was redeemed, however, as surprise appearances dotted the freewheeling schedule. I don't remember the order of them. She came out during a Joan Baez set to duet on Joan's "Dida", their collaboration from "Diamonds and Rust". Joni also did a short solo set in which she introduced songs from the yet-unreleased Wild Things Run Fast album. "Ladies Man" was one of these. I had dragged my friend up fairly close to the stage. As I recall, while Joni sang the line "couldn't you just love me/like you love cocaine", we were passing some of the white dust between us, I think she saw us. Oh, the eighties.... anyway, I don't know what else she did, probably "Man To Man". I so wanted to sneak backstage! Then, I think it was Sunday when she came out again, Herbie Hancock on grand piano in this sunny outdoor venue, and did a mind melting "Sweet Sucker Dance", leaning on the piano like a lounge chanteuse, killing it, better than the "Mingus" version. It wasn't specifically a Joni crowd, but she definitely had their attention. The other thing I would add was an odd mention by Howard Hesseman, a former member of the SF comedy troupe The Committee, and by then a big star on TV's "WKRP Cincinnati". He came out between sets to do some comedy, but wasn't funny at all, just flat-lined it. But at one point he said "I'll tell you a joke that one of the performers told me backstage....I won't say who it was....it was Joni Mitchell" and then he never told the joke! What a dildo.