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The Daily

Joni Mitchell Never Lies

In 2022, seven years after surviving a brain aneurysm that left her unable to sing or even speak, Joni Mitchell appeared onstage at the Newport Folk Festival. Singing alongside her were her supportive — and emotional — musician friends, including Brandi Carlile, Marcus Mumford and Wynonna Judd. Our critic Wesley Morris had his doubts. What was really happening here? Did Joni Mitchell even want this? Or were her younger adoring musician fans propping her up for their own reasons? When he learned this fall that Joni would be appearing onstage again, at the Hollywood Bowl, he bought a ticket to see for himself. On today’s episode, Wesley talks with his editor Sasha Weiss about the concert, and what it’s like to experience an 80-year-old in full command of her meaning.
Duration
36m
Broadcast on
25 Dec 2024
Audio Format
other

In 2022, seven years after surviving a brain aneurysm that left her unable to sing or even speak, Joni Mitchell appeared onstage at the Newport Folk Festival. Singing alongside her were her supportive — and emotional — musician friends, including Brandi Carlile, Marcus Mumford and Wynonna Judd.

Our critic Wesley Morris had his doubts. What was really happening here? Did Joni Mitchell even want this? Or were her younger adoring musician fans propping her up for their own reasons? When he learned this fall that Joni would be appearing onstage again, at the Hollywood Bowl, he bought a ticket to see for himself.

On today’s episode, Wesley talks with his editor Sasha Weiss about the concert, and what it’s like to experience an 80-year-old in full command of her meaning.

Guest: 

  • Wesley Morris, a critic at large for The New York Times.
  • Sasha Weiss, the deputy editor of the The New York Times Magazine.

Background reading: 

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


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This podcast is supported by TikTok. Sometimes the most interesting discoveries are the ones you weren't looking for. That happens every day on TikTok. A science experiment can spark a whole new interest. A recipe you stumble upon can become a meal you make for the people you love. And a restaurant you've never heard of might become your new favorite spot. That's the thing about TikTok. Follow your curiosity and see where it leads. Your next discovery is waiting on TikTok. Hey, it's Michael. For our last few episodes of 2024, we're bringing you something really special. A year of culture in review. We're going to begin with one of our all-time favorite guests talking about one of the year's most astonishing performances and the really improbable story of how it even happened. Today, critic at large Wesley Morris on the comeback of the singer and songwriter, Joni Mitchell. It's Christmas Day, Wednesday, December 25th. I'm Wesley Morris. I'm a critic at the New York Times. And back in 2022, this news broke that this amazing event had taken place at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island. Joni Mitchell had come out and played a concert for the first time in a long time. And it was a big deal. Because Joni Mitchell, the singer, the songwriter, influenced her of generations of musicians, that person had virtually disappeared from public life. She'd sworn off touring. And then in 2015, a brain aneurysm almost killed her. She survived, but her ability to sing or even speak was gone. So you can imagine the shock when she appeared on stage at Newport, surrounded by a bunch of musicians led by Brandy Carlisle and including folks like Winona Judd and Marcus Mumford. Some of these same musicians had been convening at her house in L.A. And somebody started calling those gatherings Joni Jams. And now, here they all were, taking her living room sessions public. The Joni Mitchell fans went crazy! She was back! And I might add back in that signature beret. But honestly, I had my doubts. Like, what was really happening here? Did Joni Mitchell even want this?

Transcription truncated.

In 2022, seven years after surviving a brain aneurysm that left her unable to sing or even speak, Joni Mitchell appeared onstage at the Newport Folk Festival. Singing alongside her were her supportive — and emotional — musician friends, including Brandi Carlile, Marcus Mumford and Wynonna Judd. Our critic Wesley Morris had his doubts. What was really happening here? Did Joni Mitchell even want this? Or were her younger adoring musician fans propping her up for their own reasons? When he learned this fall that Joni would be appearing onstage again, at the Hollywood Bowl, he bought a ticket to see for himself. On today’s episode, Wesley talks with his editor Sasha Weiss about the concert, and what it’s like to experience an 80-year-old in full command of her meaning.