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Fin Mail: Dear Joni

Greetings from The Music Bowl! I'm The Wonderfish.

On Wednesday of this week, November 7, Joni Mitchell turned 75 years old.  In honor of one of my favorite songwriters, I thought I would send the second letter of our "fin mail" series to her.  Below is my message of gratitude and, if you are so inclined, you can listen to some of my favorite Joni tunes - there are plenty of links at the end of the post.  As you will read, she had quite an impact on me and my songwriting.  We all have our sparks - the artists and innovators - who inspire us to reach higher.  Joni Mitchell is one of mine.  How about you?  Who are your sparks?   

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Dear Joni,

Happy Birthday to you!  I hope you were able to celebrate in every way that you wanted to.  It's about time that I send you a message of thanks.  Your music has inspired me since I was little girl.  Some of my fondest memories include your songs.  When I was growing up in the 80s and 90s, my mother always talked about you and your record, Blue.  It was one of her absolute favorites, and apparently someone stole it out of her college dorm room.  Even though she no longer had the physical copy, I still heard all about it (and I count myself lucky to keep hearing about it to this day).  When I started developing my own music habit, your hits album was one of the first CDs I purchased with my own money, and I listened to it in its entirety over and over again.  I was teaching myself how to play guitar at the time and I just couldn't get enough of your songs.  Chelsea Morning gave me the nudge to start writing more often and more seriously.  Raised On Robbery showed me the magic of a catchy groove matched with catchy storytelling and Big Yellow Taxi became one of my little garage band's biggest requests whenever we performed.  Knowing that you could craft rock and roll, jazz, folk, and thoughtful lyrics into songs like yours pushed me to learn more about music and I found myself enjoying the writing process on a deeper level.  I took your music with me back and forth across the ocean when I started traveling, and it filled the kitchens of the apartments I moved in and out of over the years.  Your work means the world to me.  Thank you for sharing your gifts with us and for the continued inspiration.  Cheers!!

With thanks and love,
The Wonderfish
_________________________________________

Chelsea Morning


Raised On Robbery


Big Yellow Taxi


http://jonimitchell.com/
NPR's Joni Mitchell Birthday Quiz by Tom Huizenga
Vanity Fair's report of her birthday celebration

Shark's in the water!  See you next time!
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