Library of Articles

  • Library: Articles

'Reckless Daughter' Too 'Weird' Print-ready version

by Bob Longino
High Point Enterprise
January 29, 1978
Original article: PDF

One of Joni Mitchell's most famous trademarks is that she is absolutely weird. And never has she proved it more than with her new double album release entitled DON JUAN'S RECKLESS DAUGHTER.

No doubt, die-hard Joni Mitchell fans will drool over this cut, but from start to finish the LP is tough to like as schizoid Joni balances her several personalities (folk, rock, jazz, classical) in a mish-mash of music and words.

Lyrically, Joni is her ever-genius best, poetically mastering her unusual ideas. But musically, this time she's a downer. Before, albums like COURT AND SPARK mixed beautiful melodies and sounds. But on RECKLESS DAUGHTER, Joni concentrates on a synthesized bass with a hornish sound that is distracting as well as too overly unique.

Most of the songs include a hint of jazz which she first started to develop in COURT AND SPARK with Twisted. She's downright black with Cotton Avenue and the opening section of Talk To Me, with black-faced Joni struttin' on the album sleeve to complete the effect.

The really trying parts of the album come in Paprika Plains — a 16 minute, 19 second excursion through slow melodies that are innovative, but tiresome — and The Tenth World — a six minute, 45 second bongo lesson that repeats itself at least 250 times.

Copyright protected material on this website is used in accordance with 'Fair Use', for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis, and will be removed at the request of the copyright owner(s). Please read Notice and Procedure for Making Claims of Copyright Infringement.

Added to Library on March 22, 2008. (7590)

Comments:

Log in to make a comment