[arnett]

I just picked up this classic 1974 recording on CD today and am still shaking my head over how good it sounds. Who needs SACD when redbook can be THIS good. I bought the recently remastered HDCD version (although my CDP cannot decode HDCD).

Court and spark is one of the best sounding redbook CDs I’ve ever heard. Soooo warm and smooth sounding. Vocals are really forward and intimate. The recording has absolutely no digital harshness to speak of. Bass is definitely heavy, but that’s perfect for my slightly thin-sounding Beyerdynamic DT-880s. Anyone with a pair of DT-880s must check out this recording.
There IS slight distortion on some of the tracks – similar to the distortion on other recordings I’ve heard from this time period. I’m sure the distortion exists in the original recording and not the fault of the remastering.

The music is great also – although I’ve never been that much of a Joni Mitchell fan. I heard ‘help me’ on the radio a few months ago and it brought back very strong memories of my childhood. That song is the best track on the album, but the others are great too. I’ll have to pick up some more Joni Mitchell albums.
Oh, and the drum sound on ‘court and spark’ is THE drum sound of the mid-1970s: flat, dry, and lifeless.

What other Joni Mitchell albums do you guys recommend?

 

[mkmelt]

Try these:

Joni Mitchell (1968, 1st album, produced by David Crosby of the Byrds and later CS&N, etc.)

Clouds (1969)

Ladies of the Canyon (1970)

Also, a great contemporary LP from way back in 1968 by another female singer is Judy Collins - Who Knows Where the Time Goes. I always thought these two artists had similarly fine voices, if not always styles. It's a killer album.

 

[fractus2]

Great review and recommendation arnett. I've always loved listening to my Joni Mitchell: hits (1996). Every song is a great listen.

1. Urge for Going (Mitchell) - 5:05
2. Chelsea Morning (Mitchell) - 2:31
3. Big Yellow Taxi (Mitchell) - 2:14
4. Woodstock (Mitchell) - 5:27
5. The Circle Game (Mitchell) - 4:51
6. Carey (Mitchell) - 3:02
7. California (Mitchell) - 3:50
8. You Turn Me on I'm a Radio (Mitchell) - 2:39
9. Raised on Robbery (Mitchell) - 3:05
10. Help Me (Mitchell) - 3:22
11. Free Man in Paris (Mitchell) - 3:02
12. River (Mitchell) - 4:03
13. Chinese Cafe/Unchained Melody (Mitchell/North/Zaret) - 5:18
14. Come in from the Cold (Mitchell) - 7:30
15. Both Sides Now (Mitchell) - 4:34

 

[Gergor]

I have several Joni Mitchell's CDs, my favorite is still "Blue".

 

[carlo]

Blue! The DCC pressing of this album is excellent but out of print, the HDCD version is alright.

 

[Newbiez]

Do you consider her blues and country or jazz ??

 

[markl]

Blue, it will make you cry, her best work. Then look at Hejira, Ladies of the canyon.

 

[arnett]

i picked up the hissing of summer lawns (1975) today and it's not as good -- musically or sonically -- as court and spark.

there's something about court and spark's midrange. it compares vary favorably to the warm midrange i've heard on numerous SACDs. in fact, i don't know how the mastering engineer could have achieved such warmth in redbook.

 

[markl]

Yeah, Hissing is one of her most difficult albums. Something is wrong with that remastering or the original tapes are bad. Blue sounds great though.

 

[arnett]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl Something is wrong with that remastering or the original tapes are bad.

do you mean 'hissing' or 'court and spark?'

i'm reluctant to get ‘blue’ because, AFAIK, it's just vocals and piano or guitar. i like things a bit more musically complex.

 

[markl]

arnett,
I was speaking about Hissing. It just doesn't sound good, I have the HDCD remaster. She went off in a weird jazz direction for a few albums. She likes Hissing best of her work from what I understand, but I don't relate to most of the lyrics, and the music just sounds "weird" to me no matter how many times I listen.

Whatever you do, get Blue. This is a sure fire no-brainer, a totally special album. Her guitar playing is a real treat and you get to hear it fully here. She can really make that instrument *emote*. Also, it has the same rich sound of Court and Spark.

 

[Gergor]

Quote:

Originally posted by markl Blue, it will make you cry, her best work.

Yup, the songs touch me deeply in a very special way.