Night Ride Home
Night Ride Home | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 19, 1991 | |||
Recorded | 1989–1990 | |||
Studio | A&M, Hollywood, California; One On One; The Kiva | |||
Genre | Adult alternative | |||
Length | 51:32 | |||
Label | Geffen | |||
Producer | Joni Mitchell, Larry Klein | |||
Joni Mitchell chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Los Angeles Times | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | ![]() |
Night Ride Home is the 14th album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, released in 1991. It was the last of four albums she recorded for Geffen Records.
Songs on the album include "Cherokee Louise" about a childhood friend who suffered sexual abuse, "The Windfall (Everything For Nothing)" about a maid who tried to sue Mitchell, and the retrospective single release "Come in from the Cold" about childhood and middle age. The title song "Night Ride Home" (originally titled "Fourth of July" and first performed during promotion for her previous album in 1988) was inspired by a moonlit night in Hawaii.[1] Though the album contained no charting singles, the track "Come in From the Cold" received airplay on AOR stations.
This was Mitchell's first album not to be distributed by the WEA family of labels. She had been signed to WEA's Asylum and Reprise labels in the past, and Warner Bros. Records had been the distributor for Geffen Records from 1980 to 1990. That year, Geffen was sold to MCA Music (now Universal Music Group), as a result, the album was distributed by Uni Distribution Corp. (the distribution arm of MCA Music), which also took over the rest of the Geffen catalogue.
A home video release, Come In from the Cold, was released the same year and features promo videos for five tracks from the album along with an interview with Mitchell discussing the inspiration behind them.
As of December 2007, the album has sold 238,000 copies in the US.[6]
Track listing[]
All songs, words and music by Joni Mitchell; except where indicated
- "Night Ride Home" – 3:21
- "Passion Play (When All the Slaves Are Free)" – 5:25
- "Cherokee Louise" – 4:32
- "The Windfall (Everything for Nothing)" – 5:15
- "Slouching Towards Bethlehem" – 6:54 (based on a poem – The Second Coming – by W.B. Yeats)
- "Come in from the Cold" – 7:31
- "Nothing Can Be Done" – 4:53 (words by Joni Mitchell, music by Larry Klein)
- "The Only Joy in Town" – 5:11
- "Ray's Dad's Cadillac" – 4:33
- "Two Grey Rooms" – 3:57
Personnel[]
- Joni Mitchell – vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion, Birotron on 6, oboe on 8, Omnichord on 8
- Wayne Shorter – soprano saxophone on 3, 9
- Bill Dillon – guitar on 2, 7; pedal steel guitar on 1
- Michael Landau – guitar on 10
- Larry Klein – bass; percussion on 1, 2, 3, 5, 6; guitar on 6; keyboards on 7
- Vinnie Colaiuta – drums on 4, 5, 6, 10; snare drum on 3
- Alex Acuña – percussion on 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8
- Karen Peris – background vocals on 3
- Brenda Russell – background vocals on 9
- David Baerwald – background vocals on 7
- Jeremy Lubbock – conductor, arranger, string arrangement on 10
Charts[]
Chart (1991) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[7] | 55 |
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[8] | 30 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] | 75 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[10] | 40 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[11] | 43 |
UK Albums (OCC)[12] | 25 |
US Billboard 200[13] | 41 |
References[]
- ^ Chrispell, James (2011). "Night Ride Home – Joni Mitchell | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
- ^ Sanders, L. (1991). "Night Ride Home". ew.com. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
- ^ Willman, Chris (2011). "ALBUM REVIEW : **** JONI MITCHELL 'Night Ride Home', Geffen – Los Angeles Times". articles.latimes.com. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
- ^ "Joni Mitchell". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, R. (2011). "Robert Christgau: CG 90s: Key to Icons". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
(Dud)
- ^ Caulfield, Keith (December 21, 2007). "Ask Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 1509". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Joni Mitchell – Night Ride Home" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Charts.nz – Joni Mitchell – Night Ride Home". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Joni Mitchell – Night Ride Home". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "Joni Mitchell Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
External links[]
- Inspiration for "Two Grey Rooms" and nine other songs
- Discogs listing
- Joni Mitchell albums
- 1991 albums
- Albums produced by Larry Klein
- Geffen Records albums
- Albums produced by Joni Mitchell
- Albums recorded at A&M Studios