Don Juan's Reckless Daughter

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Joni DJRD.jpg
Studio album by
Joni Mitchell
ReleasedDecember 13, 1977[1]
Recorded1977
StudioA&M Studios, Hollywood; orchestra recorded at Columbia Studio C, New York City; additional recording at Basing Street Studios, London
Genre
Length59:38
LabelAsylum
Producer
  • Joni Mitchell
  • Henry Lewy
  • Steve Katz
Joni Mitchell chronology
Hejira
(1976) 		Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
(1977) 		Mingus
(1979)
Singles from Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
  1. "Off Night Backstreet"/"Jericho"
    Released: 1978
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic2/5 stars[2]
Christgau's Record GuideB–[3]
MusicHound Rock3/5 stars[4]
Pitchfork6.1/10[5]
Rolling Stone(not rated)[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide3/5 stars[7]

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter is a 1977 double album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. Her ninth album, it is unusual for its experimental style, expanding even further on the jazz fusion sound of Mitchell's Hejira from the year before. Mitchell has stated that, close to completing her contract with Asylum Records, she allowed this album to be looser than anything she had done previously.[8]

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter was released in December 1977 to mixed reviews, but reached No. 25 on the Billboard charts and attained gold record status within three months.

Background and content[]

Much of the album is experimental, but especially so are: "Overture", played with six simultaneous guitars, some in different tunings from others, with vocal echo effects; "The Tenth World", an extended-length instrumental of Latin percussion; and "Dreamland", which features only percussion and voices (including Chaka Khan).

Most experimental of all is "Paprika Plains", a 16-minute song played on improvised piano and arranged with a full orchestra; it takes up all of Side 2. In it, Mitchell narrates a first-person description of a late-night gathering in a bar frequented by Indigenous peoples of Canada, touching on themes of hopelessness and alcoholism. At one point in the narrative, the narrator leaves the setting to watch the rain and enters into a dreamstate, and the lyrics – printed in the liner notes but not sung – become a mixture of references to innocent childhood memories, a nuclear explosion and an expressionless tribe gazing upon the dreamer. The narrator returns inside after the rain passes. In speaking to Anthony Fawcett about working on "Paprika Plains", Mitchell said:

The Improvisational, the spontaneous aspect of this creative process – still as a poet – is to set words to the music, which is a hammer and chisel process. Sometimes it flows, but a lot of times it's blocked by concept. And if you're writing free consciousness – which I do once in a while just to remind myself that I can, you know, because I'm fitting little pieces of this puzzle together – the end result must flow as if it was spoken for the first time.[8]

"Off Night Backstreet" was released as a single backed with "Jericho," but did not chart.

Two of the album's songs had previously been released: "Jericho" by Mitchell on her 1974 live album Miles of Aisles and "Dreamland" by Roger McGuinn on his 1976 album Cardiff Rose.

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter featured contributions from prominent jazz musicians, including four members of Weather Report – Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Manolo Badrena, and Alex Acuña.

Artwork[]

The album jacket is a photomontage and includes three photographs of Mitchell. In the foreground she is in blackface as her "reputed alter ego, a black hipster named Art Nouveau".[9][10]

Track listing[]

All tracks are written by Joni Mitchell, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Overture – Cotton Avenue"6:41
2."Talk to Me"3:45
3."Jericho"3:22
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Paprika Plains"16:21
Side three
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Otis and Marlena" 4:09
2."The Tenth World"Joni Mitchell, Don Alias, Manolo Badrena, Alex Acuña, Airto Moreira, Jaco Pastorius6:45
3."Dreamland" 4:38
Side four
No.TitleLength
1."Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"6:36
2."Off Night Backstreet"3:20
3."The Silky Veils of Ardor"4:01

Personnel[]

Musicians

  • Joni Mitchell – vocals, guitars; piano on "Paprika Plains"
  • Jaco Pastorius – bass guitar; bongos on "The Tenth World"; cowbells on "Dreamland"
  • John Guerin – drums
  • Wayne Shorter – soprano saxophone on "Jericho" and "Paprika Plains"
  • Alex Acuña – congas, cowbell, backing vocals on "The Tenth World"; shakers on "Dreamland"; ankle bells on "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"
  • Don Alias – bongos on "Jericho"; congas, claves, backing vocals on "The Tenth World"; snare drum, sandpaper blocks on "Dreamland"; shakers on "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"
  • Manolo Badrena – congas, coffee cans, lead vocal on "The Tenth World"; congas on "Dreamland"; credited "in spirit" on "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"
  • Airto Moreira – surdo on "The Tenth World" and "Dreamland"
  • Larry Carlton – electric guitar on "Otis And Marlena"
  • Michel Colombier – piano on "Otis And Marlena"
  • Chaka Khan – backing vocals on "The Tenth World" and "Dreamland"
  • Glenn Frey, J.D. Souther – backing vocals on "Off Night Backstreet"
  • Michael Gibbs – orchestral arrangements and conductor on "Paprika Plains" and "Off Night Backstreet"
  • Bobbye Hall – credited "in spirit" on "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"
  • El Bwyd – the split-tongued spirit on "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"

Production

  • Henry Lewy, Steve Katz – production, mixing
  • Robert Ash – assistant engineer
  • Frank Laico – orchestra recording
  • Glen Christensen – art direction
  • Les Krims – artwork on Ms. Mitchell's dress
  • Norman Seeff – photography
  • Keith Williamson – photoprints

Charts[]

Chart performance for Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Chart (1977–1978) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[11] 39
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[12] 28
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 20
US Billboard 200[14] 25

References[]

  1. ^ "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter". Rate Your Music. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
  2. ^ Ruhlmann, W. (2011). "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter – Joni Mitchell | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  3. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: M". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 8, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  4. ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 769. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  5. ^ "Joni Mitchell: The Studio Albums 1968–1979 | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. November 9, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  6. ^ Maslin, Janet (2011). "Joni Mitchell: Don Juan's Reckless Daughter : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Archived from the original on January 24, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  7. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). "Joni Mitchell". The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. London: Fireside. pp. 547–548. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved September 8, 2009. Portions posted at "Joni Mitchell > Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on July 31, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Joni Mitchell Biography from jonimitchell.com Archived August 4, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved August 22, 2008
  9. ^ Evelyn White, "Joni Mitchell", Herizons, June 2010. Reproduced on a fair-use basis in Joni Mitchell.com Library. Retrieved March 30, 2011.
  10. ^ Larry David Smith, Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, and the torch song tradition (2004), Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0-275-97392-1. p.64.
  11. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992: 23 years of hit singles & albums from the top 100 charts. St Ives, N.S.W, Australia: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  12. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5539a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  13. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  14. ^ "Joni Mitchell Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
Retrieved from ""