I think I followed Joni from 'Songs To a Seagull' and 'Clouds' both of which I bought when they came out on vinyl and still have and I followed her onward to seeing her at Wembley in 74 (?) and curiously while at the time I appreciated the jazz sojourn and flirtation with Tom Scott and then more avant with Jaco and that crew but the songwriting has always been there for me if not now. I found the jazz influenced 'experimentation' essentially soulless bland and MOR. The music for me is the acoustic guitar driven songwriting to which I always return and it is intriguing but for me it is the jazz based work that sounds so dated now.  Yet I think I stopped with The Hissing and didn't buy or listen to anything since . . . . .the claustrophobic sense of this album which I appreciated very much saw me leave her to others  . . . . . I cannot name a single album since I don't think. Never a member of the counter culture despite the tenor of the first few albums and openly and perversely dismissive of her place within it. She likens herself more to Bob Hope than Bob Dylan (of whom she has been more and more critical much of which sounds like she is talking about herself)  and let's face it, it's all show biz! 

On this day in music history: November 7, 1975 - “The Hissing Of Summer Lawns”, the eighth album by Joni Mitchell is released. Produced by Joni Mitchell, it is recorded at A&M Studios in Hollywood, CA from Mid - Late 1975. Her first studio album after the artistic and commercial triumph of “Court And Spark” and the successful double live album “Miles Of Aisles”, Joni Mitchell continues to forge the musical path begun on the previous album. For the recording sessions, she assembles a group of top rock and jazz musicians including Robben Ford, Larry Carlton, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter (guitars), Joe Sample (keyboards), Wilton Felder, Max Bennett (bass), Victor Feldman (keyboards, percussion), Bud Shank (flute) and John Guerin (drums). Graham Nash, David Crosby and James Taylor sing background vocals on the single, “In France They Kiss On Main Street” (#66 Pop,) and the Drummers Of Burundi are featured on the track “The Jungle Line”. The album also features a number of other songs that become among Mitchell’s best known and frequently covered material including “Edith And The Kingpin”, “The Boho Dance”, “Shadows And Light” and the title track. It receives a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female in 1977. The albums’ cover artwork painted and designed by Mitchell features a group of indigenous people carrying a giant anaconda with a cityscape in the background. Original LP pressings feature embossing on the gatefold jacket, that is discontinued on later re-printings. The inside gatefold features a photo of Mitchell in a bikini, floating in her swimming pool on her back taken by photographer Norman Seeff. At the time of its release, it receives highly mixed reviews from critics who are unsure what to make of Mitchell’s musical experimentation on the album. In time, regarded as one of Joni Mitchell’s best albums, with Prince frequently mentioning it as one of his personal favorites. The Mitchell tribute album “A Tribute to Joni Mitchell” released in 2007, features cover versions of “The Boho Dance” (Björk), “Dont Interrupt The Sorrow” (Brad Mehldau) and “Edith And The Kingpin” (Elvis Costello). “Edith” is also covered by George Michael, released on the EP “December Song (I Dreamed Of Christmas)” in 2009. First issued on CD in the late 80’s by Asylum Records, “Hissing” is remastered and reissued in late 90’s with high definition HDCD encoding, also restoring all of the original cover art work not replicated on the previous release. The album is also reissued on 180 gram vinyl by Rhino Records in 2010. “The Hissing Of Summer Lawns” peaks at number four on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.