Photography by Jim Wilson
As an avid Joni Mitchell fan and an avid photographer, it just seemed logical to put together a project involving both of those things. I have taken her classic “Blue” album to be the subject of the project.
Joni is more than just a singer, musician and composer. As a lyricist, she is also a poet. In this project, I have chosen a lyric from each of the album’s songs, and I have created a photograph that I feel portrays the feeling of the song.
“I want to have fun, I want to shine like the sun. I want to be the one that you want to see”
-Joni Mitchell
All I Want
“I am on a lonely road,
and I am traveling, traveling,
traveling, traveling.”
My Old Man
“My old man,
He’s a singer in the park.
He’s a walker in the rain.
He’s a dancer in the dark”
Little Green
“Little green, be a gypsy dancer.”
Carey
“And rent me a grand piano
and put some flowers
around my room.”
Blue
“Crown and anchor me,
or let me sail away.”
California
“There were lots of pretty people there
reading Rolling Stone,
reading Vogue.”
This Flight Tonight
“Up there’s a heaven
Down there’s a town.”
River
“Oh I wish I had a river
I could skate away on.”
A Case of You
“Oh, I am a lonely painter,
I live in a box of paints.”
The Last Time I Saw Richard
“All good dreamers pass this way
some day hidin’ behind bottles
in dark cafes.”
For Betsy
“I could drink a case of you
and still be on my feet.”
-Jim