Wonderful, mature and focused work of art that surprisingly came after a decade or so of experiments that basically cooled mainstream audience of this artist, who probably couldn't care less. Joni Mitchell blazed like some Biblical prophet once in early 1970s and her music was hugely influential in spite of being decidedly uncompromising. Hard-core fans followed her later but even with my best intentions I found that my attention slipped once she moved away from confessional to abstract - later music was perhaps brave and admirable statement but it didn't speak to my heart.
"Night Ride Home" is actually my all-time favorite Joni Mitchell album.
Everything that I always loved about her - interesting lyrics, intriguing melodies, that jazzy touches, Wayne Shorter and eye for the details - had blossomed here into confident palette that works like magic for me. That cool, cold and slightly detached voice of Delphi priestess is in fact even more expressive here than in youth, I have no problems with that. And I absolutely love how she handles what are basically strange subjects, ideas and impressions, stories about other people ("Cherokee Louise") or even weaving legit poetry (W. B. Yeats, no less) into her music.
"The Only Joy In Town" and "Two Grey Rooms" are classic Mitchell, such brilliant songs and as I am writing this, they play in the background - they are just a part of the whole incredibly strong collection that inspired me than and still do. That album originally went unnoticed by everybody except cult followers is still a mystery to me, those Grammy awards that were heaped upon her later albums really mystify me. Subsequent albums got much media hype but I have to work hard to get into them, no such problems with this one.
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