Joni Mitchell: Two New Books Arrived This Fall

Two books on the legendary Joni Mitchell are on publisher’s 2017 fall lists: one a biography by an author who had extensive access to the singer and the other an anthology of writings on her life and work.

Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell, by David Yaffe (Sarah Crichton Books, Oct. 17) is described in a press release as “an intimate new biography. According to press materials, the Texas-born Yaffe “has had unprecedented access both to Mitchell and to those who know her, drawing on interviews with childhood friends and the cast of famous characters (Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Leonard Cohen, David Crosby, and more) with whom she has crossed paths and influenced, as well as insightful analyses of her famous lyrics, their imagery and style, and what they say about the woman herself.

Reckless Daughter,” says the release, “tells the story of Mitchell and also of the fertile, exciting musical time of which she was an integral part, one that had a profound effect that can still be felt today on American music and the industry.” Order it here.

Watch Mitchell and an all-star band perform “Free Man in Paris”

Related: Mitchell, who has has been ill in recent years, made a rare public appearance in August 2016

Joni: The Anthology (Picador, Oct. 3) is a hardcover edited by Barney Hoskyns. It includes “album reviews, incisive commentary, and candid conversations,” according to advance press materials. “Joni: The Anthology includes, among other things, a review of Mitchell’s first-ever show at LA’s Troubadour in June of 1968, a 1978 interview by musician Ben Sidran on jazz great Charles Mingus, a personal reminiscence by Ellen Sander, a confidant of the Los Angeles singer-songwriter community, and a long ‘director’s cut’ version of editor Hoskyns’ 1994 MOJO interview. A time capsule of an icon, the anthology spans the entirety of Joni’s career between 1967-2007, as well as thoughtful commentary on her early years,” concludes the release. Order it here.

Watch Joni sing one of her classics, in 1970