Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and throughout western Canada, before moving on to the nightclubs of Toronto, Ontario. She moved to the United States and began touring in 1965. Some of her original songs ("Urge for Going", "Chelsea Morning", "Both Sides, Now", "The Circle Game") were recorded by other folk singers, allowing her to sign with Reprise Records and record her debut album, Song to a Seagull, in 1968. Settling in Southern California, Mitchell helped define an era and a generation with popular songs like "Big Yellow Taxi" and "Woodstock". Her 1971 album Blue is often cited as one of the best albums of all time; it was rated the 30th best album ever made in Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", rising to number 3 in the 2020 edition. In 2000, The New York Times chose Blue as one of the 25 albums that represented "turning points and pinnacles in 20th-century popular music". NPR ranked Blue number 1 on a 2017 list of Greatest Albums Made by Women.
Mitchell switched labels and began exploring more jazz-influenced melodic ideas, by way of lush pop textures, on 1974's Court and Spark, which featured the radio hits "Help Me" and "Free Man in Paris" and became her best-selling album. Mitchell's vocal range began to shift from mezzo-soprano to more of a wide-ranging contralto around 1975. Her distinctive piano and open-tuned guitar compositions also grew more harmonically and rhythmically complex as she melded jazz with rock and roll, R&B, classical music and non-Western beats. In the late 1970s, she began working with noted jazz musicians including Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Pat Metheny as well as Charles Mingus, who asked her to collaborate on his final recordings. She later turned to pop and electronic music and engaged in political protest. She was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards in 2002 and became a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2021.
Mitchell produced or co-produced most of her albums. A critic of the music industry, she quit touring and released her 17th and last album of original songs in 2007. Mitchell has designed most of her own album covers, describing herself as a "painter derailed by circumstance".
That Song About The Midway
Joni Mitchell Lyrics
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And you stood out like a ruby in a black man's ear
You were playing on the horses
You were playing on the guitar strings
You were playing like a devil wearing wings, wearing wings
You looked so grand wearing wings
Do you tape them to your shoulders just to sing?
Can you fly?
Like an eagle doin' your hunting from the sky
I followed with the sideshows to another town
And I found you in a trailer on the camping grounds
You were betting on some lover
You were shaking up the dice
And I thought I saw you cheating once or twice, once or twice
I heard your bid once or twice
Were you wondering was the gamble worth the price?
Pack it in
I heard you did pack it in
Was it hard to fold a hand you knew could win?
So lately you've been hiding, it was somewhere in the news
And I'm still at these races with my ticket stubs and my blues
And a voice calls out the numbers, and it sometimes mentions mine
And I feel like I've been working overtime
Over time I've lost my fire, over time
Always playin' one more hand for one more dime
Slowin' down, I'm gettin' tired
Slowin' down
And I envy you the valley that you've found
'Cause I'm midway down the midway
Slowin' down, down, down, down
The song "That Song About The Midway" by Joni Mitchell tells the story of a chance meeting between the singer and a musician at a fair. The musician stands out, "like a ruby in a black man's ear," as he plays on the guitar and horse races. The singer is clearly intrigued by this mysterious figure, even questioning if he can fly, but later they meet again at a trailer where the musician is gambling on love and cheating, causing the singer to question if the gamble is worth the price.
As the song progresses, the musician disappears and the singer finds herself still attending the races with nothing but blues and ticket stubs. Meanwhile, a voice calls out numbers, and the singer feels like she's been working overtime. She's lost her fire over time and is slowing down. While she wishes she was "in the valley that [the musician] found," she is still "midway down the midway," slowing down and down.
The song's central theme is about the passage of time, the ups and downs of life, and the deep longing for something more. It speaks to the idea of love as a gamble and how sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we have to fold a hand that we know could win. Ultimately, the song is about feeling stuck in life, wishing for something more.
Line by Line Meaning
I met you on a midway at a fair last year
I encountered you in a halfway point at the fair last year
And you stood out like a ruby in a black man's ear
You stood out conspicuously and brilliantly to me
You were playing on the horses
You were gambling on the horses at the fair
You were playing on the guitar strings
You were strumming the guitar at the same fair
You were playing like a devil wearing wings, wearing wings
You were playing the guitar with great enthusiasm
You looked so grand wearing wings
You looked phenomenal and impressive
Do you tape them to your shoulders just to sing?
Do you wear wings on your shoulders while playing guitar?
Can you fly?
Are you capable of soaring through the air?
I heard you can, can you fly?
I heard that you have the ability to fly, is that true?
Like an eagle doin' your hunting from the sky
Like an eagle, I imagine you hunting while soaring high in the sky
I followed with the sideshows to another town
I followed the sideshoes and went to another town
And I found you in a trailer on the camping grounds
I discovered you inside a trailer on the campsite
You were betting on some lover
You were gambling on a romantic interest
You were shaking up the dice
You were rolling the dice with great anticipation
And I thought I saw you cheating once or twice, once or twice
I had a feeling that I saw you cheat a few times
I heard your bid once or twice
I picked up on your moves and tendencies
Were you wondering was the gamble worth the price?
Were you considering if the risk was worth the reward?
Pack it in
I heard you give up or quit
I heard you did pack it in
I heard about you quitting altogether
Was it hard to fold a hand you knew could win?
Was it difficult to give up on something you knew you could succeed at?
So lately you've been hiding, it was somewhere in the news
I heard that you've been avoiding attention, as it has been reported in the news
And I'm still at these races with my ticket stubs and my blues
I'm still attending these events and holding onto my regrets and sorrows
And a voice calls out the numbers, and it sometimes mentions mine
Someone calls out the winning numbers and on occasion, I hear mine
And I feel like I've been working overtime
I feel like I've been struggling tirelessly
Over time I've lost my fire, over time
As time passed, I gradually lost my motivation and drive
Always playin' one more hand for one more dime
I keep participating, hope to win a little more with each hand
Slowin' down, I'm gettin' tired
I'm starting to slow down and get fatigued
And I envy you the valley that you've found
I'm jealous of the peaceful, contented state you've managed to achieve
'Cause I'm midway down the midway
Slowin' down, down, down, down
Because I'm at the midway point of my life, losing energy and gradually giving up
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Joni Mitchell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind