River: the Joni Letters

Really good album that I discovered in recent years. And Tina Turner singing "Edith"??? Just listen to it.

Un disque magique!On ne s en lasse pasLes differentes collaborations sont top,A vous de dire quelle est votre piste favorite.

This was always going to be a somewhat controversial project, as some Mitchell “fans” have never embraced her experiments with jazz and this is very much a jazz album.Hancock has put together a fine combo of top musicians for this tribute – and Wayne Shorter can do no wrong as far as I`m concerned. The arrangements (by Hancock and Larry Klein) are often more extended than the original material to accommodate the soloing and there's a very introspective, contemplative feel to most of the tracks.The choice of singers is perhaps the stumbling block for some listeners; there was nothing here that offended my ears; each artist has their own interpretation of what are - after all - modern standards; Mitchell's songs are often covered by a wide variety of singers on other albums as a matter of course; there is no wild improvising or lack of respect for Mitchell's melodies or lyrics here – that Mitchell sanctioned the project and contributes (wonderfully) herself should be endorsement enough.The inclusion of Ellington`s “Solitude” and Shorter`s “Nefertiti” are reminders that the album is a personal note from great artists to one of their own.A good album, just short of greatness but undeserving of some of the negative comments from some reviewers.4 ½ stars, ideally.The CD has a playing time of 67.56 minutes.Amazon have now stopped providing sound samples – a stupid and extremely inconvenient move for all prospective purchasers – I suggest searching YouTube or another music website for tracks from the album.

Gran bel disco; d’altro canto con musicisti di questo calibro.... oltre ad Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Dave Holland..... e poi le vocalist.... Norah Jones, Tina Turner e la stessa Ioni Mitchell....A dispetto di quanto si afferma in altre recensioni, l’incisione del vinile è ottima e la registrazione contribuisce a creare un’atmosfera molto calda e rilassata.

... und ich hoffe auch nicht nur für Herby Fans !