David Yaffe (1)

I truly enjoyed this gossipy, intimate bio of The Woman We (all the white girls, anyway) All Wanted To Be in the Woodstock era. The author is obviously a massive fanboy, and I have no doubt that Joni's renounced him heartily for writing so much about her moods, her cruelty, her intolerance of everything she couldn't control. And I missed some of the songs he left off as he discussed each album (no "Raised On Robbery"?). But in totality this is the "holy wine - tastes so bitter and so sweet" show more as it both burnishes and tarnishes the legend. Others might abhor the emphasis on her romantic life, but not I - who always wanted to know which song was about which lover. Many musicians were interviewed and their contributions are so valuable in giving such a 360 degree lookback. Short shrifted is her reunion with her daughter "Little Green", too bad, but her jazz life is explored in great depth.

Quotes: "I wasn't vulnerable to her complications" - Leonard Cohen

"Joni took this really potent, popular image that had been building for seven or eight years anyway: the California girl, the Beach Boys girl, the beautiful golden girl with the long blond hair parted in the middle, and Joni not only WAS the girl, she was also the Bob Dylan, the Paul Simon, the Lennon-McCartney, writing it. She was the whole package. She was the subject and she was the painter and that was incredibly powerful for people." - Bill Flanagan show less

Being a big Joni Mitchell fan, I was eager to read this new biography (or "portrait," as it is deemed), and it was an interesting read, but ultimately still short of the definitive study we are looking for. Yaffe organizes the book roughly according to albums, and his analysis of her music is sensitive and intelligent. There is a minimum of gossip. He presents Joni warts-and-all, and her prickly nature as conveyed here will not surprise long time fans, but may surprise casual readers who show more expect to find a sweet hippie princess. Not bloody likely!

My quibbles: although Yaffe interviewed Joni a couple of times and interviewed a lot of her friends and colleagues, there was still a lot of material recycled from secondary sources. Also, the ending was really, really rushed. After giving minute attention to most of her albums, he barely glanced at her material from the 90s and beyond. Early in the book he makes a huge deal over Joni's giving up a daughter for adoption, but when it came time to write about their reunion, again, it was rushed and superficial. Finally, he devoted a few scant pages to the devastating brain trauma that changed Joni's life permanently. It's not a happy topic but it is hardly unimportant. show less

First time I've ever read (or rather, listened to) a book about a musician. This was fascinating. I learned about Joni's musical genius, her relationships, her losses, her joys, and a bit about music composition and recording. The author doesn't hesitate to tell us from the very start what a big fan he has always been, which sets a great tone.

Honestly, I wasn't brought up with the music of Joni Mitchell (just like my father born in 1943). The only notable song was Big Yellow Taxi. And yet, countless artists acknowledged the inspiration drawn from the Canadian singer-songwriter. That was the reason for me to pick up Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell by fellow music critic David Yaffe who followed her life.

By the time Blue was released in 1971, she had survived polio and a bad first marriage. She had given up her show more daughter for adoption and recently fended off a marriage proposal from Graham Nash. The biography shows an endless flow of lovers that come and go, Mitchell being in control almost all of the times. An overwhelming wealth of clever lyrics, open guitar tunings, and chord progressions led to a steep career move in the music industry and ten revealing albums. Once hot and happening, she collaborated with jazz musicians to stay on par, faced Madonna's reign in the 80's, her guitar-based songs versus full bands playing glam rock, post-punk, and cheesy pop songs.

David Yaffe's work is also open about the drug abuse, chain-smoking, and sexual activities of Miss El Lay. The book's composed of the notes taken at dozens of in-person interviews with Joni Mitchell up to her post-2015 recovery from a brain aneurysm, liner notes, and insights in almost every song written by Joni Mitchell. A peek behind the scenes of the music industry, Friends and former lovers like Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Leonard Cohen, David Crosby, and Larry Klein add to the flavor of this extensive (544 pages) retrospective. show less