Joni Mitchell – Blue

That cover shot says it all: an intense inner narrative, tinged with the blue of melancholy and regret, on a path of self-analysis that from afar regain what is near, rediscovering what makes us ourselves. This record is one of the most outspoken confessions put together by an artist, in which an unguarded Joni lays bare that troubled time marked by the end of his love story with Graham Nash, the difficult new relationship with James Taylor and her escape vacation through Europe. The instrumentation is kept as usual to a minimum and that combines perfectly with the intimate matter treated in the selection. Appalachian dulcimer, guitar and piano are the solitary tools that weave tunes as introspective as solemn, the result of a musical genius that here pushes as far as possible the folk format before dedicating to more challenging forms and genres that could suit better the continuing development of Joni's boundless talent. "All I want" is a hopelessly romantic insight in her story with Taylor where the author struggles to sustain the love ambition even with all the turbulence she was experiencing. The track works masterfully, how the lyrics are fitted throughout the dulcimer strumming is really able to enhance and elevate the tune's signifiance. Another superb interweaving of words and musical fluency is the Nash dedicated "My old man". A more classic folk number, that brings us back to the past "Clouds" album, is the touching "Little green" that was conceived several years prior in the aftermath of her daughter's adoption process. After the cheerful intermission of "Carey", the pianistic intensity of the outstanding title track dives hard in then boyfriend James Taylor's issues and is the best Joni's performance in this record. "California" is the awareness of herself and the recovery at the end of this analysis record, while the cryptic "This flight tonight" is the elegy about lovers departure from which regret and hope equally spring. Then the albums stucks in a permanent slowness and essentially repeats its authorial formula for still good but weaker material than the aforementioned.

My copy is Canada pressing ,lyrics on the inner sleeve. My problem is that i can't find completely similar version on the list. It´s otherwise similar to ( https://discogs.programascracks.com/release/1924864-Joni-Mitchell-Blue) but the numbers in the matrix do not match. In my copy code is, Side 1: 31218-2C-2HZ: MS2038 SI QU DM. Side 2: 31219-1B-2HZ: MS 2038 SI QU DM.

Did early English issues have a blue inner cover?
Also... After 50years of looking at the cover , I suddenly realized I had no idea what the metallic thing in the bottom right of the picture is. Obviously a microphone is the obvious answer, but I couldn't be sure.

This album changed my life. It really did. It helped me discover the singer-songwriter genre. I used to listen to it through Sony Walkmans on way to school or just strolling outside. It's a very dark album. Very blue. I knew Joni already, but had no idea she does music like this! With her came along James Taylor, Livingston Taylor, Neil Young, Carly Simon, Willie Nelson and others. But Joni was the best. Very much liked her early years but all the stuff is good. Made a big impression on me. 5/5