‘Joni Mitchell at Newport’ Is the ‘Photos or It Didn’t Happen’ Proof of a Resurrection: Album Review
variety.comChris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic Joni Mitchell FOMO: it’s a real thing. Or it was a year ago, when she made a surprise appearance at the Newport Folk Festival, and again this summer, when Mitchell booked an appearance as part of a Brandi Carlile mini-festival in Washington state, which was advertised and had tickets sold in advance but instantly sold out.
After the serious health problems that had seemed to put a permanent halt to her singing career, these comeback appearances seem almost mythical to those who wanted to be there and couldn’t, or even to some of us who were for one or the other.
As Patti Smith might say: Renew our subscription to the resurrection. “Joni Mitchell at Newport” is the “photos or it didn’t happen” proof that Mitchell really did battle her way back onto a stage against near-impossible odds, and that, to quote Genesis instead of Patti, it was good.
Yes, there’ve been scores of YouTube clips and such as documentation since July 24, 2022, but it says plenty about the quality of the concert that it’s now out as a live album.
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