50 Fun Facts About Joni Mitchell

What was Joni Mitchell's name at birth?

Mitchell is the surname of her first husband, folk singer Chuck Mitchell.

In which Canadian province was Mitchell born?

Fort Macleod was an RCAF training base where her father instructed new pilots.

Which city does Mitchell consider her hometown, having moved there at age 11?

Her family had earlier lived in Maidstone and North Battleford, Saskatchewan.

Which illness did Mitchell contract at the age of nine?

It weakened her left hand, which is why she devised alternative guitar tunings.

Which instrument did Mitchell settle for first because her mother thought guitars were 'hillbilly'?

She eventually taught herself guitar from a Pete Seeger songbook.

Which vocal jazz group's album did Mitchell call 'my Beatles'?

She learned every note of The Hottest New Group in Jazz; her later hit Twisted came from it.

Mitchell dropped out of which art school in 1964 after a year?

She left at 20 when she unexpectedly became pregnant.

Mitchell wrote her first song, 'Day After Day', during what journey?

She stopped at the Mariposa Folk Festival on the way to see Buffy Sainte-Marie.

Why did Mitchell resolve to write her own material in Toronto's folk scene?

She was told again and again 'You can't sing that. That's my song.'

What name was Mitchell's daughter given after adoption?

Born Kelly Dale Anderson in 1965, she and her mother were reunited in 1997.

In which US city did Joni and Chuck Mitchell live and play coffee houses in the mid-1960s?

Fellow musician Eric Andersen taught her more alternative tunings there.

Which musician saw Joni Mitchell in a Coconut Grove club in 1967 and took her to Los Angeles?

He persuaded Reprise to let her record a solo acoustic debut and got a producer credit.

Which label released Mitchell's 1968 debut, Song to a Seagull?

Talent scout Andy Wickham signed her; she later called the original mix 'atrocious'.

Whose 1967 recording of 'Both Sides Now' became a top-ten hit before Mitchell released her own version?

It remains her most-covered song, with over 1,200 versions.

Which 1969 album brought Mitchell her first Grammy, for Best Folk Performance?

Its cover was a self-portrait; she painted most of her own sleeves.

Which 1970 album was Mitchell's first to go gold?

It featured Big Yellow Taxi, The Circle Game and her own slower version of Woodstock.

On what instrument did Mitchell perform her own version of 'Woodstock'?

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's faster cover became the better-known hit.

Where did Rolling Stone rank Blue in its 2020 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time?

It had been 30th in the 2003 edition; NPR named it the greatest album made by a woman.

Which track was released as the single from Blue?

The album hit the Billboard top 20 and the British top 3.

Which 1974 album became Mitchell's best-seller and hit No. 1 on the Cashbox chart?

It marked the start of her jazz flirtation, backed by the L.A. Express.

Which song is Mitchell's only US top-ten single?

It peaked at No. 7 in June 1974.

Which jazz-fusion band did Mitchell call her first real backing group?

Their 1974 tour was captured on the live double album Miles of Aisles.

On which 1975 track did Mitchell make an early attempt at sampling African musicians?

It appeared on The Hissing of Summer Lawns.

Mitchell wrote most of Hejira (1976) while doing what?

That is why, she said, the album has no piano songs.

Which virtuoso bassist played on Hejira and Don Juan's Reckless Daughter?

He brought Weather Report bandmates including Wayne Shorter to the double album.

Which jazz giant asked Mitchell to collaborate on his final recordings, released in 1979?

He had heard the orchestrated Paprika Plains; he died before the album was finished.

What was Joni Mitchell's blackface alter ego on the cover of Don Juan's Reckless Daughter called?

The cover was quietly replaced on reissues and streaming services in 2024.

Whom did Mitchell marry in 1982?

The bassist and engineer co-produced her albums until their divorce after 12 years.

Which British synth-pop musician did Mitchell struggle to work with on Dog Eat Dog (1985)?

The album peaked at No. 63, her lowest since her debut.

Which 1994 album, winner of the Best Pop Album Grammy, marked Mitchell's 'startling comeback'?

It coincided with the end of her marriage to Larry Klein, who co-produced it.

What device let Mitchell play her many tunings on one standard-tuned guitar from the mid-1990s?

Fred Walecki of Westwood Music built the Stratocaster-style guitar to work with it.

Roughly how many different guitar tunings has Mitchell written songs in?

She calls the results 'Joni's weird chords'.

Which coffee chain's label released Shine, Mitchell's last album of new songs, in 2007?

It debuted at No. 14, her highest US chart position since Hejira.

Which Herbie Hancock tribute album to Mitchell won the Album of the Year Grammy in 2008?

Norah Jones, Tina Turner and Leonard Cohen guested, and Mitchell sang on one track herself.

What medical emergency did Mitchell suffer in March 2015?

David Crosby reported in 2018 that she was learning to walk again.

Where did Mitchell make her surprise return to live performance in July 2022?

She first played there in 1967; the 2022 set won the Best Folk Album Grammy in 2024.

What are the monthly music sessions at Mitchell's Laurel Canyon home called?

Brandi Carlile organised them; guests included Elton John, Paul McCartney and Harry Styles.

Mitchell's first headline concert in 23 years, in June 2023, took place at which venue?

A capacity crowd of 27,000 saw a nearly three-hour set of 21 songs plus an encore.

Why did Mitchell pull her music from Spotify in January 2022?

Both are childhood polio survivors; she restored her catalogue in March 2024.

How many Grammy Awards had Mitchell won by the end of 2026?

The eleventh came in 2026 for the fourth volume of her Archives series.

What did Mitchell do when inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997?

She was named a Companion of the Order of Canada in 2002.

Which Graham Nash song was written about his two-year relationship with Mitchell?

Led Zeppelin's Going to California is also said to be about her.

Which director was announced in 2025 to be making a Joni Mitchell biopic?

Meryl Streep was confirmed to play the older Mitchell in 2026.

Mitchell describes herself as a painter what?

She designed most of her own album covers and now focuses mainly on visual art.

Which Led Zeppelin song is said to be about Robert Plant and Jimmy Page's infatuation with Mitchell?

In concert Plant would often say 'Joni' after the line about a girl who plays guitar and sings.

'My Secret Place', the first single from Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm (1988), was a duet with whom?

The album's guest list also included Billy Idol, Wendy & Lisa and Benjamin Orr of the Cars; the single reached the Canadian top 50.

Which honour did Mitchell receive in 2020 as its first female recipient?

It was followed by MusiCares Person of the Year in 2022, which she accepted in person.

In 2002 Mitchell was named a Companion of which national honour?

It is Canada's highest civilian honour; she had received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame two years earlier.

About how many recorded versions exist of Mitchell's most-covered song, 'Both Sides, Now'?

Hole even covered it on their 1991 debut Pretty on the Inside; Judy Collins's 1967 hit reached No. 8.

How large was the capacity crowd at Mitchell's 2023 Gorge Amphitheatre headline concert?

Billed as 'Joni Jam 2', it was her first headline show since the Both Sides Now tour of 2000.