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Ladies of the Canyon is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, released on Reprise Records in 1970. It peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified platinum by the RIAA.[11][12] The title makes reference to Laurel Canyon, a centre of popular music culture in Los Angeles during the 1960s. The album includes several of Mitchell's most noted songs, such as "Big Yellow Taxi", "Woodstock" and "The Circle Game".

Ladies of the Canyon
Studio album by Joni Mitchell
Released	April 1970
Recorded	1969–1970
Studio	A&M, Los Angeles
Genre	Folk rock pop folk[1][2]
Length	45:03
Label	Reprise Warner Bros.
Producer	Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell chronology
Clouds (1969) Ladies of the Canyon (1970) Blue (1971)
Singles from Ladies of the Canyon
"Big Yellow Taxi" Released: July 1970

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Christgau's Record Guide	A−[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[5]
MusicHound Rock	4/5[6]
Music Story	[7]
Pitchfork	7.8/10[8]
Rolling Stone	(not rated)[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]

Album content

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The album is notable for its expansion of Mitchell's artistic vision and its varied song topics (ranging from the aesthetic weight of celebrity, to observation of the Woodstock generation, to the complexities of love). Ladies of the Canyon is often viewed as a transition between Mitchell's folky earlier work and the more sophisticated, poignant albums that were to follow. In particular, "For Free" foreshadows the lyrical leitmotif of the isolation triggered by success that would be elaborated upon in For the Roses and Court and Spark. The sparse, alternative-tuning laden sound of later records comes to the forefront on "Ladies of the Canyon".[13]

Of all of Mitchell's work, this album is the most related to her long-standing friendships and relationships with Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young (whose rock arrangement of "Woodstock" was one of their four radio hits in 1970). A number of the album's songs, including the aforementioned "Ladies of the Canyon" and "Woodstock", feature densely stacked, wordless harmony overdubs reminiscent of David Crosby's oeuvre; Crosby himself has performed "For Free" for many years. "The Circle Game", one of the artist's early signature songs, features background vocals from all four, and is a response to Neil Young's "Sugar Mountain".

Critical reception

Reviewing for The Village Voice in 1970, Robert Christgau found Ladies of the Canyon "superior to her previous work, richer lyrically and more compelling musically." He said the album's second half is "almost perfect, and the arrangements are intelligent throughout", but found Mitchell's voice weak and her wordplay inconsistent.[14] Years later in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), he said that, despite the occasional "laughably high school" wordplay, Mitchell's reliance on piano suggests "a move from the open air to the drawing room ... that's reflected in richer, more sophisticated songs."[4] In 2000 it was voted number 731 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.[15]

Legacy

"Big Yellow Taxi" has become a standard over the years, as well as being sampled by Janet Jackson. In 1995 Annie Lennox performed the song "Ladies of the Canyon" and released it as the B-side of her single "No More I Love You's".

Singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey included a cover of the song "For Free" as part of several dates of her 2019 Norman Fucking Rockwell! Tour. A studio version of the cover featuring Zella Day and Weyes Blood was also included in her 2021 album Chemtrails over the Country Club.

The Young and the Restless star Jess Walton stated that she was the owner of one of the houses featured on the album's cover.[16]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Joni Mitchell.

Side one

Side two

Personnel

• Joni Mitchell – vocals, guitars, keyboards, cover illustration
• Teresa Adams – cello
• Paul Horn – clarinet, flute+
• Jim Horn – baritone saxophone
• Milt Holland – percussion
• The Lookout Mountain United Downstairs Choir – vocal chorus on "The Circle Game" (pseudonym for Crosby, Stills & Nash[17])

Production personnel

• Henry Lewy – engineer, production advice
• Don Bagley – cello arrangement

Charts

Chart performance for Ladies of the Canyon

Chart (1970)	Peak position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[18]	32
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[19]	16
UK Albums (OCC)[20]	8
US Billboard 200[21]	27

See also

• Album era

References

На других языках

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[de] Ladies of the Canyon

Ladies of the Canyon ist Joni Mitchells drittes Album, erschienen 1970 auf Reprise Records. Der Titel bezieht sich auf den Laurel Canyon, eine Wohngegend von Los Angeles, in der damals viele Musiker lebten, darunter Mitchell selbst. Sie hatte dort 1969 einen Bungalow gekauft, 8217 Lookout Mountain Avenue, den sie bis 1974 bewohnte.[1]

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- [en] Ladies of the Canyon (album)

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[it] Ladies of the Canyon

Ladies of the Canyon è il terzo album della cantante canadese Joni Mitchell, pubblicato nell'aprile[9][10] del 1970.

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[ru] Ladies of the Canyon

Ladies of the Canyon (с англ. — «Дамы из каньона»[комм. 1]) — третий студийный альбом канадской певицы Джони Митчелл, выпущенный 2 марта 1970 года на лейбле Reprise Records. Альбом достиг 27-го места в американском чарте Billboard 200 и получил «платиновый» сертификат в этой стране[11][12]. Название пластинки отсылает к Лорел-каньону  (англ.) (рус., центру популярной музыкальной культуры Лос-Анджелеса в 1960-х годах. Альбом включает в себя несколько наиболее известных и популярных песен исполнительницы, таких как «Big Yellow Taxi», «Woodstock» и «The Circle Game».

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