Customer Reviews

Misses

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No one made more impact on the sixties folk-rock scene with her deeply personal songs than Joni Mitchell. Certainly with songs like "Woodstock" and "The Circle Game" her albums galvanized our collective consciousness by quite deliberately turning toward both social consciousness and personal intimacy with a fresh, poetic, and unique approach.. Of course, no one as observant and perceptive as Mitchell can help but make shrewd side remarks at the inanity of social circumstance or political happenstance along the way, and we laugh along while accompanying her on this soulful journey through the risky, crater-filled landscape of cultural change and personal adventure in the sixties, seventies and beyond. Here we have her own favorites over the years, as opposed to those particular efforts which were more popular and commercially successful, which she has in another album labeled "Hits". Here then, are the songs she personally considers her best even though they were not commercially successful. Yet that is a terrific album as well.

From the opening "Passion Play", included a wonderful and very successful album made in the early 1990s, to "A Case Of You", from her immensely popular "Blue" album, we find many of her own favorites are much more complex and layered than the hits she is more famous for. Many of these songs take a little getting used to before one appreciates them., In general, they are not as immediately accessible or as apparently wonderful as are her more popular works. Yet, this is an artist who is capable of many moods, flavors of expressions, and abilities to communicate. Here is a sampling of an amazingly talented artist who is willing to share what she thinks is her most accomplished and meaningful work. This is almost a no-brainer, folks. Listen and enjoy! In her own creative way, Joni was the inspiration for a whole generation of iconoclastic feminists then and now, trying to find a sensible and meaningful way to live a meaningful life and still try to deal with all those "love `em and leave `em" men she so often seemed to collide with, sometimes giving them some of their own medicine. This is a great collection of terrific musical works by one of the most captivating, surprising, and articulate talents in modern music. You will find yourself listening to it and shaking your head knowingly as you recognize her wisdom as she sings her way through them all. Enjoy!

A companion to the more popular Hits collection, Misses more thoroughly demonstrates Mitchell's depth, versatility and, yes, genius. This collection surveys, mainly, Joni's post-1980 work (highlights: Sex Kills, Magdalene Laundries, Passion Play), which has been largely overlooked by radio and her early-career fans. Another stand-out is Impossible Dreamer, a dreamy and pretty (yet powerful) cut from Dog Eat Dog. Joni's body of work is deserving of a larger, deeper anthology, but Hits and Misses will do for now. If you're unfamiliar with Joni's work and you wonder why countless musicians and fiercely dedicated fans worship La Mitch, pick up this set and find out.

Hits was simply that: A collection of Joni's greatest hits. This compliation includes cuts from her Jazz experiments of the Seventies (including Wolf in Lindsey from her Mingus album, named after Jazz bassist Charles Mingus who she worked with before his death), her forays into electronic music in the '80s(e.g. Impossible Dreamer, and Chalk Mark In a Rainstorm), and her return to her folk roots in the '90s (e.g. Sex Kills). It's one of the most interesting compilations I've listened to in a long time.

A companion to the Hits collection, Misses gives you 14 songs picked by Joni herself, that she felt missed out on some of the popularity and acclaim she thought they deserved. I picked it up purely out of curiosity. I didn't need Hits, I already had most of those on the original CDs (Court and Spark, Blue, etc.).

Misses makes for a nice sampler, leaning a little more heavily on the post-70s Joni. Great music, imagery, and some biting social commentary (it wouldn't be Joni without it!)

If you are new to Joni Mitchell, or just want the popular stuff, you might want to pass this one up. But if you have more than a causual interest in her music, it's worth getting.

Some of the best are Beat of Black Wings, The Magdeline Laundries, Sex Kills, The Reoccurring Dream.

Joni lobbied against putting this one in a jewel case. It says so right in the liner notes.

Being a huge Joni fan, I already owned "Hits" along with nine other of her albums ranging from the popular ("Blue," "Court and Spark," "Ladies of the Canyon") to her lesser known works ("Song to a Seagull," "Dog Eat Dog," "Night Ride Home"). I decided to buy "Misses" even though I already owned half of the songs from my other albums. It was pretty much what I'd imagined...some of the songs were great, others were real "misses" indeed. "A Case of You," for example, is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. I think it is one of Joni's very best songs. Some of the other songs are a little goofy--I hesitate to say that they are "bad," although many other people not so committed to Joni may not be so kind. "The Beat of Black Wings," for example, is a little strange. I was impressed, though, with "The Wolf that Lives in Lindsey"--a very haunting song. I also really loved "For the Roses" and now want to own that album. If you are a die-hard Joni fan, you should get this one. If you're looking for her more mainstream music, however, go with "Hits"--it really does a nice job of capturing all of her "popular" music. "Misses," on the other hand, is like Joni's dark, evil twin.

It's hard to believe that these are the misses! Such well crafted songwriting is very much underappreciated. This is a collection of Joni's personal favorites, & the companion of "Hits" which was released simutaneously. For the most part she seems to favor her later more politically aimed work such as Passion Play, Sex Kills, Dog Eat Dog, Etc. But there is some of her earlier work such as The Arrangement, A Case Of You, Hejira, Etc. This is probably a collection that will be most appreciated by diehard fans. But I still highly recommend it along with it's sister album, "Hits."

This was the first album of Joni's that I ever bought. I have to say that I wanted to see what an album of her "not-hits" was like. I loved it so much that I went out and bought a lot more of her music. I dislike hearing that this album should have been just a bonus CD to her "Hits" album. I believe that this album stands alone beautifully and is a clever survey of her music. THIS album made me a lifelong, die-hard Joni Mitchell lover.

Only Joni Mitchell can have an album called "Misses" with songs so powerful and meaningful as Hejira, Beat of Black Wings and Dog Eat Dog. If there is any confusion about some of the songs, it may come from a mixing of context. Some of Joni's albums share songs with similar themes. Hejira, about life on the road, is a great example. Mixing songs mixes context and requires a bit more thought when listening. These are fantastic tracks. I have often thought of Joni sitting in a hotel room and writing this passage in the song Hejira, "White flags of winter chimneys...waive truce against the moon...from the mirrors of a modern bank...from the window of a hotel room." This woman sees the beauty of things even when her live style was causing her to see them from artificial places. She is a writer or singular talent and these "Misses" display her ability well. If they were "Misses", it would have been commercial misses. Few radio stations play her music due to length or for being too deep or simply not "pop" enough. That's okay with me. I have nearly every album she has ever done and bought "Misses" to listen to on trips. Joni...keep those hits and misses coming!

I've long been a fan of Ms. Mitchell's more recent music and love the fact that these are her favorites. They're mine as well!!! I was amazed to view what was listed on the "Hits" recording and believe, by far, the "Misses" exceed them. "Magdalena Laundries", "Passion Play" and "Beat of Black Wings" are my all-time favorites. The lyrics are much deeper with greater meaning to me personally. Joni Mitchell is a phenomenal poet, songwriter, and visual artist as well!

I really love her choice of material here. These probably constitute a collection of "hits" for fans who gravitate toward her edgier, more emotionally raw material. These are anything but "misses", more likely great pieces that never quite had the right timing or promotion. Definitely one for your collection.