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  • come in from the cold is a classic too... thanks ms J Mitchel

  • does anybody else find canadian accents the funniest?

  • @TheSexyKidOnTheBlock i love them lol they are funny but great singers neil young, joni mitchell, alanis morissette

  • >_< Linda!

  • I feel so stupid! I thought this was actually by the Counting Crows :O

  • @Anne15062908 That's okay! It was a while before I knew this was the original version, too! So many people have covered it that, being born in my generation, if you weren't specifically told it was originally by Joni Mitchell, you'd hear some other version and think that that was the real one!

  • @Inkblot1218 yeah I know! It's that generation thing again haha

  • @Anne15062908 lol

  • Nothing like raw Joni!

  • Joni Mitchell Excellent!

  • 11/7/11 HAPPY 68th BIRTHDAY JONI.. PEACE

  • We laughed as we sang this cruising down the street... we hugged & hugged again before I left... the next day they told me you were dead. You don't know what you've got... til ...the dream's gone...

    damn all the things never said, confessed, in the end, never will I see those eyes who saw through me.

  • I love you Joni. FG

  • WOW! WHAT A VOICE! I ALWAYS LOVED HER I JUST FOUND OUT

    SHE WAS BOOED AT THE FREEDOM CONCERT AT THE CLINTON

    PRISON FOR WOMEN FOR THE FREEDOM OF HURRICANE WITH

    BOB DYLAN THE REASON THE BLK LADIES DIDNT LIKE HER OMG!

  • I love this! Was this song on t.v?

  • @ufewl In a perfect world every city would have perfect public transport systems and so there would be no need for a parking lot, or cars!

    Besides she says "they paved Paradise, put up a parking lot" so Paradise is gone...but at least you have somewhere to park that damn gas guzzler!!

  • @GetALifeDoofus ha ha I don't know if you have ever seen "I'm Alan Partridge" where I copied that line from?

    Any way fortunately I have managed to find it on youtube so here it is!! v=d0RHAL3-9LU

  • @ufewl dumb comment

  • I've loved this song for thirty odd years now but never actually seen Joni Mitchell - man she sings so cool and soul I thought she was black! Obviously, that hasn't made a darn differtence but just shows how wrong u can be....

  • My music collection spans from death metal to this...

  • @spoblin nobody cares

  • Excellent song and video. To bad it's all tue also.

  • my name is earl :) finally found this version because of it

  • marvellous performace of musical confidence

  • The Crows only did this song because of how great Joni did it.

  • Joni is so beautiful here - she so much enjoys her performance and that she is aware of how good she is - on a good way....

  • @lancopy Yea Counting Crows does do it better, but they couldn't have done it without Joni making this song first.

  • 12 dislikes

     whats wrong with sum people ????

  • she is just amazing

  • counting crows does it better

  • @Iancopy Counting Crows did a different genre, but they did do it very well :)

  • Joni is an artist of rare quality. Her songwriting is absolute genius. Her voice is warm and soothing. Her musical style is ageless. Any of you who cannot appreciate this lady and her music, well don't listen to it. It's not like Joni Mitchell needs your approval or anything else. She is not only loved and respected by her million of fans worldwide, she is also respected greatly among her peers. Bet none of you will ever be able to make that claim!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • i take it for my english book!!!

  • I've been loving this song since i was like 12, now i'm almost 20 ant it keeps making me feel more alive :)

  • Fabulous and live too!

  • The counting crows cover is good but I prefer Joni singing this song. After all, she's the original. I saw her at  IOW '70. Class!

  • This is classic Joni Mitchell doing what she did best--write these amazing songs about the turbulent 60's and early 70's! She has created alot of great music through the years! I,m happy she sung background vocals on Dan Fogelberg's great song, "Nexus"! Peace and Love, BobbyK

  • Yeah $1.50 just to "See" them... SaD!!!

  • @yojohnyyo you know what? you are a fucking moron. you go listen to your justin bieber you cocksucker.

  • @MrAusipitator how am i a moron, her singing it sounds awful i couldn't pour enough bleach in my ears to get rid of that sound. Her pitch is way off and overall sucks. I like the song i just don't like how she sings it

  • @yojohnyyo I weep for the future.

  • @yojohnyyo actually they did it in tribute of joni, and would be appalled at youe post

  • @yojohnyyo You're joking, right?

  • @IridiumNItrate No I'm actually very serious

  • This is good stuff.. I just like the counting crows version better

  • always loved her voice

  • still loving this song sooo much..pitty that i dont have bigger speakers!!!damn...she's too good ..i think shes not real;)

  • pave paradise and put up a parking lot <3

    her voice is so pretty :3

  • she's so free.. just like her singing style and lyrics. freedom

  • Angelic voice.

  • @Baskerville22. Indeed. She sang about flying too didn't she. This flight tonight !

  • Joni Mitchell hates cement, parking lots and all things that change the natural environment. No doubt she has always refused to fly in aeroplanes or travel in cars or trains. Makes one wonder how she travelled all those millions of miles she covered in her 40-year career

  • singing this for choir

  • Joni is my inspiration - I sang as a child, bought this single as a teenager (yeh makes me oldish!) At uni I learnt guitar & now sing & play in a couple of rock bands. I was asked to play solo for a fundraiser for the Royal Melbourne Children's Hospital Good Friday Appeal. So I brushed up this song - it got alot of applause and the crowd were all singing the "shoo, bah bah bap's" I love the warm fuzzy feeling of raising money for children and entertaining at the same time. Thank You Joni :-)

  • :)

    

  • i think it was better when she did it at woodstock

  • @evanbriere69 Joni was not at Woodstock - she had another gig that weekend and to her dismay could not attend... which is why she wrote the song Woodstock...

  • @GetALifeDoofus I was going to point out the same thing, then it occurred to me that he was probably being ironic (as in, "silence would be better than this"--not a fan evidently).

  • @husker222

    She's one of Canada's artistic treasures....along with Neil Young...and Denny Doherty...and kd lang...

  • God...We need protest songs today!

  • @HardWarUK So write some!

  • @Seasass I might! Oceans of grey, that's why we'll pay, rain where it snows, where lights are aglow, spending all the food this Earth has stored away, we're using it all so no rainy day. No rainy day, no rainy day, we've spent it all now so there's no rainy day. - How's that? ;)

  • @HardWarUK I like it--and I'll be looking for the finished version on YouTube :)

  • Amazing performance! Not your typical "chick singer" eh? Wish she'd still perform.

  • The best version I' seen = Top! :)

  • Thank you Saskatoon Saskatchewan..Anymore Diamonds in the ruff

  • Little known fact. Pinhead gunpowder = Billie Joe of Green Day's "other" band did a kick ass cover of this song!

  • why do ppl always make a competition in music between who sings it better or whatever. Just enjoy it.

  • My mum used to always have this playing in our living room as a kid c:

  • Pinhead Gunpowder Cover Is Awesome too XD :)

  • @greendayrocksmuch nice. I made basically this same comment, didn't see yours here already, yah, the gunpowder cover is actually really good! cool beans.

  • this song has nothing to do with the military you silly silly people

  • check out Pinhead Gunpowder's cover. it rocks more (as in speed and agressiveness, you decide about how good it is)

  • It's interesting to see how the original lines were sung by Joni Mitchell, but the Counting Crows version is so much better than this. Joni Mitchell, to her credit, is doing it with just her voice and an acoustic guitar. It's a beautiful song. The words are brilliant. But I love the Counting Crows version. This version is simply interesting because its the original.

  • @paulbiggs

    keep in mind that she did that a thousand ;) years ago - live - unplugged!

    sorry - to me she´s a Godesse :))!!!

  • They paved paradise and they put up a parking lot. I don't mind spots on my apples but save me the birds and the bees please.

  • @frincess123 Big Time thumbs up on that line. put up that DDT now :)

  • Absolutely brilliant! - unlike the plastic, clinical, and commercial version by Amy Grant and counting Crows!

  • Beautiful Joni !

  • they put up a parking lot!!!!!

  • Whenever people sit around and talk about ways to make their millions a young woman I no will always make this suggestion and she will say , "Put up a parking lot". Every time she says this I think of this song. Today I listen to it and today I dedicate this song to my young friend Miss Michelle.

  • "big yellow taxt took my old man away"

    its about the drafting people in the military

  • loved her then, love her now...xxxx thxs Joni

  • 20 years i searched 4 this song,im from a country that was communist and we dont know that much about this great singers...ufff...always when i heard this song on radio nobody knew who sing it or what song it was and i was crazy about it.....this must be my lucky night.....im so freaking happpy....LOVE U JONI MITCHELL----URE A BIG WONDERFUL VOICE

  • @MrBebemicmic

    So pleased you found her in the end!! I have loved this song since I was a teenager. Happy Christmas.x

  • @MyHils tnx....its ajoy to be able to hear this song whenewer i want.merry christmas 2 u 2

  • @MrBebemicmic In Soviet Russia people don't know about Joni Mitchell

  • @parkourmania444 im sure that there are a lot of countryes just like mine that never heard of her...pitty...she is an angel...but..maybe...sometimes this song will enchant theyr ears!!!all my best

  • @MrBebemicmic

    Growing up as I did - in the California of the 1970's - Joni Mitchell was almost like a Movie Soundtrack in my World! Welcome to some of the most beautiful Music ever made, my Friend!

  • @pen64 hope u realize what fortunate you have been to have freedom,little things like this are very important...you miss a lot and u see and u hear things later than others,im feeling that i missed so much...but its still time to recover ....Freedom!!!Music!!Happiness 4 all you out there!!!!

  • @MrBebemicmic Luv it, just feckin luv it when that sort of thing happens.

    I Eureka moment!!

    Crackin wee song, by the way!

  • @susiepussycat yeah...its a mind blower moment...the song its too damn good not to hear it at least one time per week.I love it!!1

  • @MrBebemicmic God Bless You Viva El Frente

  • @hodad52 yup..the best!:))

  • @hodad52 gracias, Viva La Revolucion

  • @MrBebemicmic u gor reason always dicussing but never herad her well ......she s still a gnius ....genius suffers love the people who criticize her maybe was the american with crdit card that have everything material in the life but doesnt feed his soul , i do prefer to give food to my hear and ma^^y brain log life to joni .....sorry 4 mistakes.......david

  • @MrDaveboy73 dunno what ure talking man....really ...

  • @MrBebemicmic what a lovely story!

  • @midnightmilo pure true..it was like this ....still glad every time i hear her...:P

  • Reminds of Pheobe from Friends lol or vice versa rather...

  • @1888JamieD wow i just saw that she is alot like pheobe

  • I just love her voice so much.

  • born in '94 and a proud joni mitchell fan :) 

  • Awesome singer/songwriter

  • reminds me of when I lived in Hawai'i. My Dad was high ranking naval officer(hippiess..back off...I LOVE/D MY DA!)  he didn't want me listening to "hippy"music, but secretly ,i thought he loved it(and JONI was that era)..if you were born after 65 you might not understand(when I played "ten soldiers". he would freak,but would still encourage my music....anyway.....anyone go to HBA at that time?

  • She is a great singer.

  • like thissong....

  • She complains that they " paved paradise to put up a parking lot " . A measure which actually would have alleviated traffic congestion on the outskirts of paradise, something which Joni singularly fails to point out. Perhaps it doesnt quite fir with her blinkered view of the world

  • Comment removed

  • @paulsagisan considering you are taking so much from a hypothetical situation that only she knows the true meaning of, id say youre the one with the blinkered view of the world.

  • man. all of the best and greatest songs seemed to have been written in like the 60's to the 90's. what the heck happened! i mean, i know there are lots of good songs out today, but still. why are they not selling as many of these anymore?! they're awesome!

    (and i'm fourteen.)

  • She has such an amazing and beautiful voice!! Thats a real blessing!!!

  • the lyrics are so smart she is actually talking about hawi resorts being built on an forest.

  • @danceingreirei She is talking about hotels on Waikiki Beach....the "pink hotel" is the Royal Hawaiian.

  • One of the best songs ever written!!! Love!

  • I think I was at this concert! circa 1975 - Thanks Joni for all the joy you brought me.

  • Srry but i like the counting crows version more

  • That was Big Yellow Taxi by Joni Mitchell, a song in which Joni complains they ‘Paved paradise to put up a parking lot’, a measure which actually would have alleviated traffic congestion on the outskirts of paradise, something which Joni singularly fails to point out, perhaps because it doesn’t quite fit in with her blinkered view of the world. Nevertheless, nice song.

  • @elweirdo3rdearl maybe a better measure is to build more public transpo. but yeah, nice song.

  • @husker222 I say all the above.

  • Tarja Merivirta also sings Big Yellow Taxi!

  • The Counting Crows....yeah, they sure left a big imprint in rock history, eh? Good band, couple of good albums, mainly of other people's songs it seems, but as writers and performers they're not fit to shine this genius womans shoes!

  • i think counting crows version is sooooooo much better.

  • SHE SINGS GOOD

  • every time she sings this song, she sings it differently.love that.

  • Joni, just the perfect woman ... a beautiful and blessed with unique talent!!!

  • A classic never dies! And, the message of this song still rings true today.

  • soul.

  • Version? She wrote it, performed it, and owned it before you negative Morons were born.

  • @eskabible wtf? The description says version, not cover.

  • @eskabible I think the user meant that he/she had not seen this particular performance of Joni before.. I'm sure they knew that this is a Joni Mitchell song.............

  • @eskabible I'm the OP knows that, ie it's a different version to the studio version?

  • @eskabible speaking of negative....

  • @eskabible I believe he means this exact video recording of Joni performing it. Ignorant "moron"

  • @eskabible Right on!!!!!!!!!!

  • its so true what she is singing about, love be with her...

  • I feel like 1970!

  • Game on , that is one cool lady.

    Mwaa!

    Peace out.

  • Awesome. Real talent....what a revelation!

  • A classic - appreciate it!!

  • im related to her.

  • Wow, Joni with makeup and her hair done. She's even more breathtaking!

  • go Joni...we love you

  • Roberta de Alberta!! Increible la Joni. Una creativa absoluta!

  • gotta love that joni : )

  • She is Canadian, she has]d a number of top 10 hits here in canada in the seventies. Joni was probably bigger here in Canada than stateside, which is usually the case with Canadian artists...Bryan Adams being the biggest and best example of a Canadian artist that wasn't only big across the 49th but also overseas in Europe and Australia...it's called international stardom, something I don't believe Joni was able to pull off. Thx4 postin'

  • @Ezdduf4kuZ

    You're kidding about not being a star in the U.S. right?  She won 9 Grammy awards and received 16 nominations. She's brilliant.

  • @Ezdduf4kuZ

    Screw Bryan Adams, Rush is the best thing Canada has ever done for the world. Ever.

  • @smithn7790 make that the only thing canada has ever done for the world.

  • Love her hair like that, and the dress... what a beauty to see and hear.

  • formula1greenday@

    you mean bubblegum version :P.

    I soooooooooooo love this song :-) brings back memories ...

  • so good i heard this song thanks to green day, they sing it too but version punk rock or something xD

  • Brilliant

  • She's absolutely gorgeous.

  • Wow! She was great as youngster but has matured into a stunningly fabulous artiste.

  • instant vote - no question <3

  • This will remain a standard. Gold standard:-)

  • Wow she actually sounds good. I used to be an idiot who thought this was a hippie faggot song but then I woke up to reality.

  • Here are some little known facts for you:

    A "pink hotel" is a brothel AKA a red light district.

    The "Big yellow taxi" is a reference to the big yellow buses that took soldiers to Vietnam.

    This song is NOT about her boyfriend breaking up with her.

  • @nirvanariotgrrrl

    Weeeeelll...

    She's said in multiple interviews that she was inspired to write this song during a vacation in Hawaii. The "pink hotel" is the Royal Hawaiian in Honolulu. She saw the mountains in the distance, but beneath her, a parking lot as far as her eyes could see.

    Another interpretation of the "big yellow taxi" is that it's a reference to the Metro Toronto Police, whose cars used to be boxy and yellow, meaning that her boyfriend was taken by the police.

  • @nirvanariotgrrrl right you are my friend going to Nam was quite an experience and the hotel business is unknown to be and all the other GI's who left Frisco for Nam!!

  • wow amazing

  • @cellogirljenn i agree:) I guess what i'm trying to say is i like the counting crows version, but not as much as i like joni mitchell's! Her's is my favorite! I still like the other versions too, but her's is my favorite!

  • Love it this version. Her voice is much huskier and mature. She looks gorgeous too!

  • The big yellow taxi... took away my whole band!

  • I'm workin on this one myself... and when i play it... i think of her.

  • Joni Mitchell was so cute.

  • she looks really pretty inthis video dylan which is good friends joni cid a cover of this which isent as bad

  • we have to sing this for our spring fling sing fest

  • Incredible! I heard the counting crows version and its not nearls as good as this.

  • @allieskater818 but its still good.....right?

  • you mean the counting crows version? Yes ! of course! I love them both. I just enjoy this one more. :)

  • @allieskater818 would you expect the "counting crows" version to be better?!

    There are almost zero examples of cover versions that are even the equal of the original songs....people that gain notoriety for cover versions seem to be popular these days. Really they should be performing at Butlin's.

  • haha is she referring to Royal Hawaiian Hotel in the beginning?

  • yes, she is. I read it somewhere...