i was at summer camp in 1971...and this song was playing when i lost my virginity to a pretty woman who was 32...i was 17. when i hear this song it takes me back to that moment in time...i've often what happened to Wendy...God bless her where-ever she may be.
Joni is the greatest female songwriter of all time. Her astonishing inventiveness, lyrics that are poetry first and then words, voice that is angelic....hard to imagine modern culture ever producing someone better.
@warriordrum Joni was a huge idol of mine back in the day. I've got 14 of her albums of which Blue is my all time favourite. But as to being the GREATEST songwriter of all time, I don't think you can discount Carole King
Read almost every comment, and like the sentiments, for the most part. Like Joni, I love those "rock-n'roll" choir boys that most would write off as sappy. Lady GaGa's great for the dance floor, and she's taken the message of tolerance a little further down the road, so at 54, I have no venom for Lady Gaga, who recently sang at a same-sex union, I believe. Sort of like Marilyn Monroe helping Ella Fitzgerald's early career. Only music worth hating is that which spawns hate and violence.
I was 12 in '69, barefoot in backwoods KY with an "urge for going", and the only thing I'dheard was Big Yellow Taxi, by a pop group on the Am. B. Rate a Record. It's got a good beat..." Buffy Sainte-Mariehelped launch her, withCircle Game, &Geffen loved it! (Buffy was a B. U. girl, I believe.) By the way, I think Marcie is the acme of unrequited love. I have almost all J's albums, and this Joni and Hejira are my 2 faves. My girls then were Joni,Buffy,Joan,Judy, Janis,&Grace. Hippie Hick! LOL!
Thank you for sharing this. I'm sure a whole lot of people can relate to this incredible piece, such a great lyric and performance... beautiful song.."they have laughed inside her laughter"
Joni did some lovely stuff! I love it when her melodies go floating off, and really take flight. Wow. Like a greater force of nature. I bought an old LP of hers the other day, and it's a great listen while working
there still is music like this, is in small underground clubs untainted by the music industry or published by small recording companies. Why? because it's not profitable enough.
so utterly beautiful and wonderful - an angel channeling light and gentleness. yes, our poor world has gone a bit mad! oh for the good old days when things were a bit simpler. she performed this the year i was born - and i seem to remember and miss that era - even though i was so small... what has happened to music?
Brejan, I could not agree more. This is just classic beauty. Not that there isn't great music now...but something seems to be missing. Maybe it's just the turbulent times that ths music was created in. Maybe it's just seeing Joni so young and pure, probably still idealistic, somewhat innocent,open to all triumphs, voice still clear. Great stuff.
I find it sad that people feel the same way about new music (or bilge?) as many felt about Joni's music 40 years ago. I guess some of us either don't know or have forgotten that people hated it when Joni experimented with jazz and other styles. Get in touch with the new generation a little. Their reality is as real as yours.
@Hayduke0 --- I was one of those who were kicking and screaming at "The Hissing..." and those that followed. What a fool I was, but holding on, my eyes were open farther. Let the artist be the artist I'velearned and see where it leads. It's as she said on "Miles of Aisles"...."you wouldn't ask Van Gough "paint Starry, Starry Night again, man". But I still have trouble with the newer artists, I'm just a work in progress also.
@Hayduke0 well said, you can find good music no matter what the era if you look hard enough. I for one love Adele almost as much as Joni and while their voices are different, there's a commonality in the heartfelt lyrics of their songs.
@Hayduke0 Exactly what I was thinking. Joni is my absolute favorite, but I can also appreciate the occasional pop song, like Gaga etc. Joanna Newsom is also amazing, though not as vocally talented. Good music is good music.
There's a lady in the city And she thinks she loves them all There's the one who's thinking of her There's the one who sometimes calls There's the one who writes her letters With his facts and figures scrawl She has brought them to her senses They have laughed inside her laughter Now she rallies her defenses For she fears that one will ask her For eternity And she's so busy being free
I know Joni because I heard a song of her in the italian X-factor. Nathalie, the winner of the 2010 edition sang a song of joni during a contest and so I was interested in her music. What a surprise! What a sweet voice, what a musician. She is awesome.
Where has this song been for the past 40 years of my life? It's pure magic, and i'm bookmarking this page... i don't want to live another 40 years without it, or any other of Joni's miraculous creations.
Cactus tree is from Joni's first album, "Songs to a Seagull". You can get it on amazon.com. Buy it! It's the most hauntingly beautiful thing she ever did. Every song is a gem. My favorite is "Marcy". I heard it on the radio when I was18 years old...that would have been 1969, and I have loved it ever since. I still play the album just about every day. Have it on my mp3 player and on my computer at work, along with just about everything else that she has done. .
@DarisPrayers it depends which artists you choose to look at today.. if you look for good music it can be found.. im sure this will be true of any time period.. unfortunatly today as far as popular or mainstream music is concerned it is rare when one finds a meaningful and beautiful song.
@Tat.-same story, a generation later;-) and we aren't connected any more than to when she vividly stands in my head,filmed on stage in your time, wondering why we choose nitrate groundwater over a spot in our apple. O, yes, and we.... CERTAINLY still don't really know anything about clouds- at all~
Joni is an angel to this earth for her thoughts- given,& probably not-so-easily dished out & placed for us2, to live from @times. Oh and that voice of hers ain't half bad either;-)
The first time I heard this song it was about 3:00 AM on a Sunday morning soon after the acid had down shifted and the world was standing quite still. So long ago..so much has changed, the world grew colder, people got "connected" so they could be apart and 30 years ripped by me way too quick. But even after all that I can still clearly remember that Sunday morning when Joni broke and mended my heart at the same time. Peace.
This song is more moving to me now than it was back then. I understand it better now. I just watched a documentary about her on Netflix and it was awesome!
Dynamics, live on stage. One with her guitar and her song. She IS her song. Chords caress her flute-like voice. And someone, thankfully, caught it on film. This is music, folks -- life-saving, true, tapped into juice of the human experience, the times and all-time, holy shit did-you-hear-that? music!
What happend to us? That's what we used to have, and now? Lady Gaga? Katy Perry? Really? We used to be stardust, we used to be golden... I wasn't even born yet, and still I miss those days. Music meant something back then. People cared about fragile things, intangible stuff. It's as if the soul of popular culture burned so bright back then, it burned out. Tell people about this music, about Joni and Simon & Garfunkel and Donovan and others... the best of humanity is forever in their songs.
@Brejan time has indeed moved on. i see your point, but we should really be grateful that this music was even created. after all, joni mitchell does not really reflect popular culture in america at the present... now is the time for people like lady gaga and katy perry
@Brejan Here's a quote from Neil Young in 1969, a year and a half before this concert: "It's too bad that in the arts, it's the refined people, the beautiful, beautiful talents that are so completely buried by the gaudy, loud "bang-bang" things that are happening that truck drivers and everything else eat up because they're on this hyper thing because of the way the world goes. Everything goes so fast that the people who are really, truly artists are buried by the neon of it." Sound familiar?
@Brejan Hey, now! Don't betray this generation just because you can't see the beauty in our current pop culture. There are many musicians now that burn as brightly as Joni and Simon & Garfunkel. Lady Gaga is golden. So is Joni. Music still means something. You just don't see it.
@Brejan you are so true, I feel the same way as you do, we use to have, the beatles, the stones, hendrix, joplin, the doors, joni, creedence clearwater revival, bob dylan, the temptations, louis armstrong, bb king, muddy waters, john lee hook, chuck berry, bo diddley on top of the charts, now we've got justin bieber, katy perry, selena gomez, miley virus, the jonas brothers, lady gaga, why because this is the emptiest generation ever, hollywood has made idiots out of all the kids today.
@Brejan you are so right I was born but did not know her only 8 in Europe ..... and I wish I was born in the fifties to live through the magical times of the seventies ! your are right about the humanity of Joni'ws humanity and MASSIVE talent !!
Ah, yes, an autobiographical song, portending her future and charting all the adventures along the way; Joni is not meant for marriage or tying down. She has written her life down in song and painted it clearly on canvas to leave us her legacy. She was always busy being free. The Cactus Tree is Life for desert animals like us.
@brianallancobb ---sheesh ! If we believe you, then Joni is a light weight!. Believe me, anyone who knows her entire lyric life through her songs, knows she did not live her life "trying" to get pregnant. Can you see how stupid that sounds? The woman is a world class musician and a wide spectrum philosopher.
I love these videos of people when they are just starting out - they know they have the goods - they just have no idea how big they're going to get....
This is the first song (performed by Joni), that I heard in 1968. I'd heard Tom rush do "Urge for Goin'" before that, not knowing she had written it. I was upstairs working in my studio and heard this song through the floor boards from below. I knew that it wasn't Judy Collins or Joan Baez.... it was better. I don't think that there is another singer/songwiter who can write poetry and sing it like Joni, with the exception of the early Bob Dylan.
@Lyrinda We love your tastes and good sense. However, I am one of the few who believes that she excels Dylan, who is often more clever than poignant. You've probably heard the quip about Joni: "She never told a lie." She not onlly never told a lie; she also told the truth better than anyone else.
@odovicor - I heard Cactus Tree filtered through the floor structure of our converted mill building. I though - "that's not Judy Collins. That's not Joan Baez..... That's far better!" I ran down to find out who it was and immediately bought the album. I was privileged to see her live in concert at Boston University in 1969 (fairly early).
Words are not adequate to describe the beauty of this song and this performance. Just listen, again and again. She is a gift to us all; I will cherish it always.
She is probably the single most innovative rock guitarist as far as acoustic playing goes. I play many Joni songs and let me tell you, they're REALLY intricate and difficult to play, much less to play while singing!
I had always looked down on playing anything except standard tuning but she's made a convert out of me.
Now I just need to buy a few more guitars so I can have one in each tuning!
There's an audio-only recording of her on YouTube playing Cold Blue Steel live in which she's tuning her guitar on stage (no guitar "technician" to help) in open G with the low string turned down to C.
I thought this was very gallant. And she's got a dead-on ear.
She's very underestimated for her guitar work, I agree. It's very rarely picked up on. What's more difficult when yo try to play her songs is singing them over the guitar work. the guitar is very steady, but the lyrics move around the beat so much!
"Surrounded by the best engineers and musicians"?? Huh? Seems obvious that Joni is the one artist capable of playing solo in front of a simple microphone and blowing us all away, without assistance from anyone. These YouTube vids are simply amazing. She got out and toured in the '60s and folks taped it all. What a treasure. Thanks!
No, frennirockin, you're NOT the only one who would like to see this kind of music brought back to television. The song reminds me of my warm, wonderful friends who helped me deal with living in an abusive home as a child/teen. We've all moved away from each other now. I miss them, but this song brings them near again. I, also, make certain, along with my gentle husband, that our two children hear these positive, purposeful tunes. Thank you, Joni!
Britney Spears you self obsessed, talentless twat, take note of this live performance. Joni doesn't need to shave her head, don a top hat and march around on stage badly lipsynching to repetitive lyrics. Joni is just sublime.
It's perfection when there's never a miss as to what and how she expresses her heart and mind's intent coming through every note and inflection of every note. Amazing.
These videos of her during this era are incredibly beautiful even in comparison to the original recordings. She improvs and still puts her heart into every note. I love all these videos of her. Make them never go away!
I totally agree that there can never ever be a replacement for this generation of musicians. But I think Tina Dico from Denmark does a very good job keeping up with this genre, and she is absolutely worth listening to! :)
everyone is unique, some more unique than others - and this is true of her artistic genius. there is no one out there really quite like her. oh sure there are loads of great singer songwriters, but none of them have her soul and ability to write and sing poetry with her special touch.
I don't think the skills are lost. The method of delivery to us is what is in question. As long as the commercial World controls art, it will always be thus.
Wow!!!! No one person should be allowed to have this much talent!!! No one person other than Joni has this much talent.
Singer, songwriter, musician, poet and artist, not to mention timeless beauty and intellect, she stands head and shoulders above all others. A goddess, no less!!
I just love all her music and this song especially.
produced by David Crosby. This is one of my favorites. If you love Joni and don't have a copy of this work, I highly reccomend that you buy a copy. Every song is sheer poetry.
impossible to say the most wonderful singer/songwriter of our time - but she moves my soul every time. Always so beautiful, always so fresh. Thank you.
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
I too love Mitchels works, performances, the guitar skills and the voice. That being said, I could not help but notice, that she seemed to build a career based on confessional tales of an endless stream of pointless "romances". Both self indulgent and self penitent for the child she gave up for adoption at all too early an age. It is hardly ironic that she felt the well had run dry, when she found and reconciled with that child. Good for her. I hope these days she really is "bein free".
I agree fomoto3, but I think that alot of humans have a problem with misguided romances and self indulgence in their lives. Joni put it into poetic lyrics and then revealed them all to us. (plus with great skill) In that way I consider her brave.
i came here after watching the new kimbra vid...very sobering ..joni mitchell 4-ever .
LanceHelmut 1 day ago
i was at summer camp in 1971...and this song was playing when i lost my virginity to a pretty woman who was 32...i was 17. when i hear this song it takes me back to that moment in time...i've often what happened to Wendy...God bless her where-ever she may be.
ChiroQuacker 6 days ago
@ChiroQuacker seriously?
pinkrudy 4 days ago
Joni is the greatest female songwriter of all time. Her astonishing inventiveness, lyrics that are poetry first and then words, voice that is angelic....hard to imagine modern culture ever producing someone better.
warriordrum 1 week ago 2
@warriordrum Joni was a huge idol of mine back in the day. I've got 14 of her albums of which Blue is my all time favourite. But as to being the GREATEST songwriter of all time, I don't think you can discount Carole King
staygulf83 6 days ago
Read almost every comment, and like the sentiments, for the most part. Like Joni, I love those "rock-n'roll" choir boys that most would write off as sappy. Lady GaGa's great for the dance floor, and she's taken the message of tolerance a little further down the road, so at 54, I have no venom for Lady Gaga, who recently sang at a same-sex union, I believe. Sort of like Marilyn Monroe helping Ella Fitzgerald's early career. Only music worth hating is that which spawns hate and violence.
odovicor 2 weeks ago
My last post was a response to Lyrinda's wonderful first experience. Another "woman of heart and mind." Peace to all. Keith in Kentucky
odovicor 2 weeks ago
I was 12 in '69, barefoot in backwoods KY with an "urge for going", and the only thing I'dheard was Big Yellow Taxi, by a pop group on the Am. B. Rate a Record. It's got a good beat..." Buffy Sainte-Mariehelped launch her, withCircle Game, &Geffen loved it! (Buffy was a B. U. girl, I believe.) By the way, I think Marcie is the acme of unrequited love. I have almost all J's albums, and this Joni and Hejira are my 2 faves. My girls then were Joni,Buffy,Joan,Judy, Janis,&Grace. Hippie Hick! LOL!
odovicor 2 weeks ago
Thank you for sharing this. I'm sure a whole lot of people can relate to this incredible piece, such a great lyric and performance... beautiful song.."they have laughed inside her laughter"
pepe10296 2 weeks ago in playlist Liked videos
I don't care how you got here. The important thing is that you're really enjoying this. ;) And if you're not, that's ok too.
Tengent 1 month ago 2
I just discovered this song. I think it's one of the most beautiful I've ever heard. I love old artists who still keep giving. :)
Lissyhead2 1 month ago 2
This sounds a bit influenced by Leonard Cohen - but certainly, a Joni style and original.
Catlovertea4 2 months ago 4
we love u joni
PInk77W1 2 months ago
Viggo Mortenson's naked backside brought me here.
citizenanna 2 months ago 3
Thumbs up If your dad brought you here... x__x
While i was listening to never shout never!!! common dad D:<
iikandikid 2 months ago
Thumbs up if you don't care about what brought you here or anywhere on youtube.
Be glad that music unites us.
mayonaiseizationable 2 months ago 3
Thumbs up if Zach Galifianakis DIDN'T send you here.
TheEnterSkyland 3 months ago in playlist TheEnterSkyland's favorites 10
Best version of this song. I'm crying like a baby now! Totally flood of memories.
9thedreaming9 3 months ago 2
Wow. Haven't heard this in years. Flood of memories, all good. Good times.
drtymrty 3 months ago
Joni got me through a 6-hour study session. Thank God for music like this.
carlinhaml1 4 months ago 2
Wow, so beautiful...
Chouninatte 4 months ago
Shes one of a kind...never be matched
8488bigboy 4 months ago
The one true musical genius of the last 45 years
ricadia 4 months ago in playlist Liked
what's with the 9 deaf people giving this the thumbs down?
garyinsydney 5 months ago
Joni did some lovely stuff! I love it when her melodies go floating off, and really take flight. Wow. Like a greater force of nature. I bought an old LP of hers the other day, and it's a great listen while working
.
muzboz 5 months ago
I am with PJKwatches here, my love of Joni Mitchell brought me here :)
artinmey 5 months ago
Whether you came here because Zach Galifianakis or because you heard Joni on the radio many years ago makes no difference: Experience her.
Tengent 6 months ago
THUMBS UP IF YOUR LOVE OF JONI MITCHELL BROUGHT YOU HERE...
pjkwatches 6 months ago 63
there still is music like this, is in small underground clubs untainted by the music industry or published by small recording companies. Why? because it's not profitable enough.
joezy55 6 months ago
I go to the same high school she did... no big deal.
arleighisntme 6 months ago
@arleighisntme You mentioned it. lol
glimmerman108 6 months ago
so utterly beautiful and wonderful - an angel channeling light and gentleness. yes, our poor world has gone a bit mad! oh for the good old days when things were a bit simpler. she performed this the year i was born - and i seem to remember and miss that era - even though i was so small... what has happened to music?
douglas170270 6 months ago
I don't get it. Where is her visually shocking / distracting hat?
doesntlooklikeJesus 6 months ago
Zach G has some seriously awesome music taste. Love him, this song, and twitter! I wanna hang out with him he seems like sucha cool dude.
anuenuexx 6 months ago
Comment removed
25Ragz 7 months ago
I used to turn girlfriends onto Joni, then i figured i was slicing my own throat eventually.
MrDigitalWorlds 7 months ago 4
Thumbs up if Zach Galifianakis sent you here. :)
AddictedToMescaline 7 months ago 134
@AddictedToMescaline Dude, you're too busy being free...LOL...time is now.
Nonesuchish 6 months ago
@AddictedToMescaline I've been a Joni fan forever Zach. Now I am a Zach Galifianakis fan too.
bonngunk1 6 months ago
Not many can sing a story like Joni
Pomiferous 8 months ago 2
Brejan, I could not agree more. This is just classic beauty. Not that there isn't great music now...but something seems to be missing. Maybe it's just the turbulent times that ths music was created in. Maybe it's just seeing Joni so young and pure, probably still idealistic, somewhat innocent,open to all triumphs, voice still clear. Great stuff.
kenmeyerjr 8 months ago in playlist Joni Mitchell
Brejan, I could not agree more. This is just classic beauty.
kenmeyerjr 8 months ago in playlist Joni Mitchell
How many thousands more love Joni?
MintMickeyDotCom 9 months ago
I am 18 and feel like i am born in the wrong time Era :D
TRASHYgah 9 months ago
I find it sad that people feel the same way about new music (or bilge?) as many felt about Joni's music 40 years ago. I guess some of us either don't know or have forgotten that people hated it when Joni experimented with jazz and other styles. Get in touch with the new generation a little. Their reality is as real as yours.
Hayduke0 10 months ago 5
@Hayduke0 --- I was one of those who were kicking and screaming at "The Hissing..." and those that followed. What a fool I was, but holding on, my eyes were open farther. Let the artist be the artist I'velearned and see where it leads. It's as she said on "Miles of Aisles"...."you wouldn't ask Van Gough "paint Starry, Starry Night again, man". But I still have trouble with the newer artists, I'm just a work in progress also.
origene52 10 months ago
@Hayduke0 well said, you can find good music no matter what the era if you look hard enough. I for one love Adele almost as much as Joni and while their voices are different, there's a commonality in the heartfelt lyrics of their songs.
neilnriley 8 months ago
@Hayduke0 Exactly what I was thinking. Joni is my absolute favorite, but I can also appreciate the occasional pop song, like Gaga etc. Joanna Newsom is also amazing, though not as vocally talented. Good music is good music.
loomofmetals 7 months ago
angelawyz99 10 months ago
I love her special voice <3
idavisje1 11 months ago
I know Joni because I heard a song of her in the italian X-factor. Nathalie, the winner of the 2010 edition sang a song of joni during a contest and so I was interested in her music. What a surprise! What a sweet voice, what a musician. She is awesome.
shabang71 1 year ago
Where has this song been for the past 40 years of my life? It's pure magic, and i'm bookmarking this page... i don't want to live another 40 years without it, or any other of Joni's miraculous creations.
HolyMotherofGrid 1 year ago
@HolyMotherofGrid
Cactus tree is from Joni's first album, "Songs to a Seagull". You can get it on amazon.com. Buy it! It's the most hauntingly beautiful thing she ever did. Every song is a gem. My favorite is "Marcy". I heard it on the radio when I was18 years old...that would have been 1969, and I have loved it ever since. I still play the album just about every day. Have it on my mp3 player and on my computer at work, along with just about everything else that she has done. .
RMAchello 11 months ago
this is such special music...
i was born in the wrong era.
discreetsheep 1 year ago
Do you really need a meat dress, drum machines and background dancers to make a point? Nope. If you do, you're pointless.
verbaud 1 year ago 2
JM - unique, original, a genius.
vtantonelli 1 year ago
So beautifull. Nobody sings like this. So tender, pure and fragile! We love you Joni!
tanja0599 1 year ago
Thanks so much henhen..........
TheNigelr 1 year ago
Such lyrics.Does this woman get under your skin and take polaroids of your soul or what? .
DarisPrayers 1 year ago 14
@DarisPrayers it depends which artists you choose to look at today.. if you look for good music it can be found.. im sure this will be true of any time period.. unfortunatly today as far as popular or mainstream music is concerned it is rare when one finds a meaningful and beautiful song.
MrGraz20 7 months ago
Joni Mitchell songs were some of my earliest memories and I love her to this day.
Thurisaz314159 1 year ago
@Thurisaz314159 Such an important artist, without mentioning her abundance of talent and range of versatility
kenfig 1 year ago
@Tat.-same story, a generation later;-) and we aren't connected any more than to when she vividly stands in my head,filmed on stage in your time, wondering why we choose nitrate groundwater over a spot in our apple. O, yes, and we.... CERTAINLY still don't really know anything about clouds- at all~
Joni is an angel to this earth for her thoughts- given,& probably not-so-easily dished out & placed for us2, to live from @times. Oh and that voice of hers ain't half bad either;-)
Sealilywhale 1 year ago
The first time I heard this song it was about 3:00 AM on a Sunday morning soon after the acid had down shifted and the world was standing quite still. So long ago..so much has changed, the world grew colder, people got "connected" so they could be apart and 30 years ripped by me way too quick. But even after all that I can still clearly remember that Sunday morning when Joni broke and mended my heart at the same time. Peace.
Tatomatic 1 year ago 6
@Tatomatic ...beautiful...just beautiful...i enjoyed those words...just what i needed. peace to you too :)
samira169465 1 year ago
@Tatomatic A lovely sentiment. One I can identify with.
Farkurnell 1 year ago
@Tatomatic Amen.
ErnestWhaley 1 year ago
@Tatomatic Amen.
ErnestWhaley 1 year ago
This song is more moving to me now than it was back then. I understand it better now. I just watched a documentary about her on Netflix and it was awesome!
N89J00X 1 year ago
I think the viruses have taken over my computer.
This is to odivicor, whom YouTube is having trouble connecting with.
Joni was and is a goddess.
I've never been the object of sexual desire Joni was, but I grok Cactus Tree.
brianallancobb 1 year ago
5 dislikes, this is a shamee !!! godd !! just fantastic,beautiful,Unbelievable song !!! my very,very favorite song !!!
tamroluluromtakankav 1 year ago
I wish I could have been your friend.
radicalveg 1 year ago
always loved her... didn't take much notice of this tune until seeing A Walk On the Moon
Can04boi 1 year ago
@Can04boi
My senior (high school) English teacher spent a week on this song. :-)
What is A Walk On The Moon?
brianallancobb 1 year ago
@brianallancobb A Walk on the Moon is a 1999 film with Diane Lane and Liev Schreiber
MrStuckinatimewarp 7 months ago
thank you for these videos henhenstoll, great video and audio quality, they even sound loud and true on my crummy netbook speakers!
sirormadame 1 year ago
thank u Joni, u saved my life sooooo many times, reminding me that people can be beautiful. XXX
TamlinF 1 year ago
Joni always inspired me...she's been a part of my life for decades.
LAwoman1956 1 year ago
Dynamics, live on stage. One with her guitar and her song. She IS her song. Chords caress her flute-like voice. And someone, thankfully, caught it on film. This is music, folks -- life-saving, true, tapped into juice of the human experience, the times and all-time, holy shit did-you-hear-that? music!
danhaas 1 year ago
I believe that this song may just be about Joni herself
tattoofthesun 1 year ago
one of the best written songs ever
collegeri 1 year ago
What happend to us? That's what we used to have, and now? Lady Gaga? Katy Perry? Really? We used to be stardust, we used to be golden... I wasn't even born yet, and still I miss those days. Music meant something back then. People cared about fragile things, intangible stuff. It's as if the soul of popular culture burned so bright back then, it burned out. Tell people about this music, about Joni and Simon & Garfunkel and Donovan and others... the best of humanity is forever in their songs.
Brejan 1 year ago 63
@Brejan well said
amalgamnation 1 year ago
@Brejan
Lady Gag Gag? :-)
brianallancobb 1 year ago
@Brejan We're still here! We're just not in the mainstream anymore. Look around. You will find us!
skwaller 1 year ago
@Brejan Greed, big bucks and evil corporations and their minion politicians
Earthdogbonzo3 1 year ago
@Brejan Amen!
mecsinger 8 months ago
@Brejan I feel the same.
What happened to the beautiful, melancholic pure fucking expressive music that we created in those days?
We are indeed golden but we are being oppressed and starved of our true genius.
steecofarn 8 months ago 2
@Brejan time has indeed moved on. i see your point, but we should really be grateful that this music was even created. after all, joni mitchell does not really reflect popular culture in america at the present... now is the time for people like lady gaga and katy perry
fiberoneplusthree 8 months ago
@Brejan -YES - THANK GOD that there is SOMEONE - out there i the Universe - NOTICING THIS... PEACE and LOVE - Kathleen
kathyblood 7 months ago in playlist Joni Mitchell
@Brejan Here's a quote from Neil Young in 1969, a year and a half before this concert: "It's too bad that in the arts, it's the refined people, the beautiful, beautiful talents that are so completely buried by the gaudy, loud "bang-bang" things that are happening that truck drivers and everything else eat up because they're on this hyper thing because of the way the world goes. Everything goes so fast that the people who are really, truly artists are buried by the neon of it." Sound familiar?
Seasass 7 months ago
@Brejan Hey, now! Don't betray this generation just because you can't see the beauty in our current pop culture. There are many musicians now that burn as brightly as Joni and Simon & Garfunkel. Lady Gaga is golden. So is Joni. Music still means something. You just don't see it.
EmilyViciouss 7 months ago
@Brejan Thank you corporations.
WildWe5 7 months ago
@Brejan you are so true, I feel the same way as you do, we use to have, the beatles, the stones, hendrix, joplin, the doors, joni, creedence clearwater revival, bob dylan, the temptations, louis armstrong, bb king, muddy waters, john lee hook, chuck berry, bo diddley on top of the charts, now we've got justin bieber, katy perry, selena gomez, miley virus, the jonas brothers, lady gaga, why because this is the emptiest generation ever, hollywood has made idiots out of all the kids today.
globalawareness2009 5 months ago
@Brejan you are so right I was born but did not know her only 8 in Europe ..... and I wish I was born in the fifties to live through the magical times of the seventies ! your are right about the humanity of Joni'ws humanity and MASSIVE talent !!
frog222able 4 months ago in playlist YouTube Mix for Joni Mitchell
@Brejan It's out there my friend...just don't look for it in popular culture...the fine balance between Capitalism and culture is way out of wack...
billyscottbrandt 4 months ago 3
@Brejan You are giving musicians too much credit.
moodswyng 4 months ago
A Joni masterpiece! Phenomenal! Thanks for posting this! I love this song!
singasong718 1 year ago
I wonder if she wrote this with Laurette Ott.. in mind.
LibraMantra 1 year ago
This is too beautiful for my clumsy words. I Believe!
Earthdogbonzo3 1 year ago 5
@Earthdogbonzo3 What a lovely comment.
odovicor 1 year ago
This song still gives me goosebumps!
pmurf813 1 year ago
Ah, yes, an autobiographical song, portending her future and charting all the adventures along the way; Joni is not meant for marriage or tying down. She has written her life down in song and painted it clearly on canvas to leave us her legacy. She was always busy being free. The Cactus Tree is Life for desert animals like us.
durgaaa 1 year ago 2
@durgaaa
I think Joni's entire lyric-writing -- her life, actually -- was about trying to fill the hole left by giving her daughter up for adoption.
She went from man to man, trying to find who would make her pregnant.
Little Green moves me to tears every time I hear it.
brianallancobb 1 year ago
@brianallancobb ---sheesh ! If we believe you, then Joni is a light weight!. Believe me, anyone who knows her entire lyric life through her songs, knows she did not live her life "trying" to get pregnant. Can you see how stupid that sounds? The woman is a world class musician and a wide spectrum philosopher.
durgaaa 1 year ago
@durgaaa
Oy.
brianallancobb 1 year ago
~ ~ B E A U T I F U L ~ ~
BoondockWitch 1 year ago
Dare I say this is my favorite song by here, especially the live CD version. Thank You poster.
KoreaMojo 1 year ago
I love these videos of people when they are just starting out - they know they have the goods - they just have no idea how big they're going to get....
whitefeet1 1 year ago
Perfection...
russellilo 1 year ago
This is the first song (performed by Joni), that I heard in 1968. I'd heard Tom rush do "Urge for Goin'" before that, not knowing she had written it. I was upstairs working in my studio and heard this song through the floor boards from below. I knew that it wasn't Judy Collins or Joan Baez.... it was better. I don't think that there is another singer/songwiter who can write poetry and sing it like Joni, with the exception of the early Bob Dylan.
Lyrinda 1 year ago 7
@Lyrinda We love your tastes and good sense. However, I am one of the few who believes that she excels Dylan, who is often more clever than poignant. You've probably heard the quip about Joni: "She never told a lie." She not onlly never told a lie; she also told the truth better than anyone else.
odovicor 1 year ago 2
@odovicor - I heard Cactus Tree filtered through the floor structure of our converted mill building. I though - "that's not Judy Collins. That's not Joan Baez..... That's far better!" I ran down to find out who it was and immediately bought the album. I was privileged to see her live in concert at Boston University in 1969 (fairly early).
Lyrinda 2 weeks ago
ever repetitive and never boring. a wonder.
vcij 1 year ago
We can always count on you for finding Joni-gems, thanks for posting!
smsneath 1 year ago
beauty voice, music, lyrics,...just music. Listen Brooke Fraser, she is the actual Joni M. Seba - Argentina
andrerion 1 year ago
Words are not adequate to describe the beauty of this song and this performance. Just listen, again and again. She is a gift to us all; I will cherish it always.
kjfoehr 1 year ago 3
Cactus wasn't a hit. Rather an album cut which has garnered a cult following. (I'm one of the cult followers.)
Don't know if very many of the viewers know how tough it is to do the stuff she's doing on guitar.
She had exquisite chops. Exhibit B: Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire.
brianallancobb 1 year ago
@brianallancobb
She is probably the single most innovative rock guitarist as far as acoustic playing goes. I play many Joni songs and let me tell you, they're REALLY intricate and difficult to play, much less to play while singing!
musicloveranthony 1 year ago
@musicloveranthony
I had always looked down on playing anything except standard tuning but she's made a convert out of me.
Now I just need to buy a few more guitars so I can have one in each tuning!
There's an audio-only recording of her on YouTube playing Cold Blue Steel live in which she's tuning her guitar on stage (no guitar "technician" to help) in open G with the low string turned down to C.
I thought this was very gallant. And she's got a dead-on ear.
brianallancobb 1 year ago
@brianallancobb
She's very underestimated for her guitar work, I agree. It's very rarely picked up on. What's more difficult when yo try to play her songs is singing them over the guitar work. the guitar is very steady, but the lyrics move around the beat so much!
HouseConcertHub 1 year ago
@brianallancobb "someone's hi-fi drumming Jellyroll." What a song. She does all the "weird minor chords."
I am someone who will buy a CD for one song, but I have never had this happen with a Joni album/cd. She is, as stated above, world class.
odovicor 1 year ago
She is so precious...just so good!
rubyrose456 1 year ago
Sara Rose just shared this with me and I had to pass it on, it's so beautiful.
suzyroach 1 year ago
From the album "Song to a Seagull" methinks. Check it out. She smokes, she drinks, she sings, she survived the music system.
zoop2nuts 1 year ago
One of the most well-written songs I've hard. Real talent.
vintu213 1 year ago 2
One of the most well-written songs I've heard. Real talent.
vintu213 1 year ago
"Surrounded by the best engineers and musicians"?? Huh? Seems obvious that Joni is the one artist capable of playing solo in front of a simple microphone and blowing us all away, without assistance from anyone. These YouTube vids are simply amazing. She got out and toured in the '60s and folks taped it all. What a treasure. Thanks!
sportsmediaamerica 1 year ago 4
gives me chills everytime I hear it. ahhh joni. so much emotion
pandorasun6 1 year ago 2
No, frennirockin, you're NOT the only one who would like to see this kind of music brought back to television. The song reminds me of my warm, wonderful friends who helped me deal with living in an abusive home as a child/teen. We've all moved away from each other now. I miss them, but this song brings them near again. I, also, make certain, along with my gentle husband, that our two children hear these positive, purposeful tunes. Thank you, Joni!
mjcamck71 1 year ago 2
when the bbc was worth watching...am i the only one that wants to see stuff like this brought back to tv, like whistle test and everything
frennirockin 1 year ago
Britney Spears you self obsessed, talentless twat, take note of this live performance. Joni doesn't need to shave her head, don a top hat and march around on stage badly lipsynching to repetitive lyrics. Joni is just sublime.
ozinmanc 1 year ago
It's perfection when there's never a miss as to what and how she expresses her heart and mind's intent coming through every note and inflection of every note. Amazing.
Catlovertea4 1 year ago
She's always been surrounded by the best engineers and musicians. Her live recordings were top notch even during the 70's.
Besides all that...she's just good! Not many folks can walk up to a mic with a guitar and totally captivate an educated audience
drumwraith 1 year ago 2
It seems incredibly even for a live recording - she's moving around the mic quite a bit. Stunning woman, stunning song.
spangleJ 1 year ago
Self preservation was a wise move~
bjbhappy 1 year ago
These videos of her during this era are incredibly beautiful even in comparison to the original recordings. She improvs and still puts her heart into every note. I love all these videos of her. Make them never go away!
Catlovertea4 2 years ago
matchless, amazing , the great song and singer
tamroluluromtakankav 2 years ago
Taylor Swift pales in comparison to this.
jjj1951 2 years ago 3
I love this song <3
I totally agree that there can never ever be a replacement for this generation of musicians. But I think Tina Dico from Denmark does a very good job keeping up with this genre, and she is absolutely worth listening to! :)
ma190887 2 years ago
one word. MATCHLESS!
jacknifevolkswagen 2 years ago
YES!
Catlovertea4 2 years ago
One of the most influential women in the history of 20th century pop music.
westpalmscott 2 years ago 2
@westpalmscott Not just pop music!
fpngan 2 years ago
and it´s a big shame that in our times we don´t call this type of music a POP. Then it was.
littlerainworm550 2 years ago
When she passes, so will a generation that will never be replaced; dear Lord let my time end adjacent
TheNigelr 2 years ago 3
no, it's tuned; DADF#AD
pizzabuddah 2 years ago
aww thsi is such a nice song :)
does anyone know if its standard tuning on guitar for this? thanks
essiemacleod 2 years ago
No, It's open D :) Capo on 4th fret
fpngan 2 years ago
tomorrow, (nov.7th), is her 66th birthday:)!!!
<3 you, Joni!
courtandspark86 2 years ago 15
@courtandspark86 her voice is like a 20 yrs old..
slazzer145 1 year ago
her first albums shows her guitar abitity ,she can rearange keys and guitar ,,she is is great ,but this was back then ,,even now
vaughnsalem 2 years ago 2
Such purity and gentleness in her lyrics, music and appearrance. Music SHOULD be melodious and poetical. Sadly it is just bilge these days.
Trixiekitsch2008 2 years ago 40
Beauty is wide.
Beauty makes you cry, makes you laugh, makes you happy.
Ugliness can be beautifull.
Beauty can be beautifull.
Beauty is wide.
annathrine 2 years ago 7
@Trixiekitsch2008 Lamb Of God . . .Bilge?!
Earthdogbonzo3 9 months ago in playlist Joni
@Trixiekitsch2008 that 's why I also love simon & garfunkel ♥
idavisje1 8 months ago
everyone is unique, some more unique than others - and this is true of her artistic genius. there is no one out there really quite like her. oh sure there are loads of great singer songwriters, but none of them have her soul and ability to write and sing poetry with her special touch.
Agoateeman 2 years ago 4
I couldn't agree more, stacksovids. IMHO there is only Michelle Shocked that is even close to Joni.
nappadang1 2 years ago 3
Can you name any modern so called "musician" that even comes 1% of the way to Joni's talent?
I cant!! All talentless fakers, sadly I doubt if such talent will ever come round again, we have lost the skills now
stacksovids12 2 years ago 7
I don't think the skills are lost. The method of delivery to us is what is in question. As long as the commercial World controls art, it will always be thus.
longordr 2 years ago 2
You're right! Too much talent for one human being!
She's has beautiful face, she has a beautiful voice, she writes beautiful songs and she's a very talented painter.
I hope she can't cook! ;)
BeareTube 2 years ago 3
A very real woman. True and clear, unafraid to put it into words.
woodsprout 2 years ago 3
It's like she's singing the story of Forest Gump
patchbod 2 years ago 2
What a beautiful voice...
ricardoperfetti 2 years ago
Wow!!!! No one person should be allowed to have this much talent!!! No one person other than Joni has this much talent.
Singer, songwriter, musician, poet and artist, not to mention timeless beauty and intellect, she stands head and shoulders above all others. A goddess, no less!!
I just love all her music and this song especially.
nappadang1 2 years ago 4
From her first LP, "Songs to a Seagull"
produced by David Crosby. This is one of my favorites. If you love Joni and don't have a copy of this work, I highly reccomend that you buy a copy. Every song is sheer poetry.
champlain9 2 years ago
'Like a Cactus Tree'...how deep is her well-spring? Her work is monumental in so many ways.
OneHeart75 2 years ago 2
this was in A Walk on the Moon. i officially love this song because of that movie.
darlingnose 2 years ago 2
i love joni-reminds me of my ol' friend manda-we used to sit and smoke and listen to joni on records.......
scratchdanndo 2 years ago 2
impossible to say the most wonderful singer/songwriter of our time - but she moves my soul every time. Always so beautiful, always so fresh. Thank you.
kebower 2 years ago 6
so, so beautiful........ wish i had been there, alas, to young.....joni touches my heart every time...x
TamlinF 2 years ago
he has kissed her with his freedom...
what a wonderful woman..
ranchroper1974 2 years ago 4
One of my fave songs from Joni.
paulusmagirl 2 years ago 2
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I too love Mitchels works, performances, the guitar skills and the voice. That being said, I could not help but notice, that she seemed to build a career based on confessional tales of an endless stream of pointless "romances". Both self indulgent and self penitent for the child she gave up for adoption at all too early an age. It is hardly ironic that she felt the well had run dry, when she found and reconciled with that child. Good for her. I hope these days she really is "bein free".
fomomoto3 2 years ago
I agree fomoto3, but I think that alot of humans have a problem with misguided romances and self indulgence in their lives. Joni put it into poetic lyrics and then revealed them all to us. (plus with great skill) In that way I consider her brave.
woodessence 2 years ago 2