Regrets, 'Coyote'?


I love this film beyond a rational point. I just watched it again, and I don't know how many times this makes -- upwards of twelve. Gorgeous cinema. One of the best films ever made about musical performing artists.

One thing, though: I believe Joni Mitchell could have had a stronger set than she did ("Coyote," "Furry Sings The Blues" and "Shadows and Light," only the first in the film). She's very hard-nosed, and it's characteristic that she would want to perform the music she was creating at the time of the concert, rather than crowd-pleasing chestnuts. The albums from which those three songs come, especially Hejira, are very rewarding when listened to at home in a concentrated dose. But...I don't know if those songs were ideal for the occasion here, the way "Caravan," "Further On Down The Road," "Forever Young," and other guest contributions were. They are wintry and wordy and inward, despite the crack job The Band does of fleshing them out in the new arrangements.

I wish she had performed "Raised On Robbery" (which has a Robertson connection, of course; he played on the Court and Spark track), for example. Helm's book says that the momentum seemed to go out of the show halfway through Joni's set, and as much as I love her, I see why. I'm glad to have her performance in the film, even if I don't agree with her choices.

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You are right, it is very typical of Joni to change things up and subvert expectations. However, I think her Coyote ( I haven't heard the others) was a good bit of pacing for the film. It's a really fresh perspective, and if she had done something blusier, she would have been seen as 'competing' with all the other blues players and singers, of which there were many. Also, she sings backup on Neil Young's Helpless, and really adds depth and power to that song. You can hear Neil at the beginning saying to RR "They got it now, Robby" which I think was his way of intimating that he wasn't sure how it was going to come off. Anyway, having Joni and Neil Diamond play in their own styles challenges the Band and shows that the they can move between styles and genres with an ease that great bands like the Beatles and Stones could never dream of.


btw, I love the beatles and stones, don't flame me for that

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I remember reading Levon's autobiography back in the 90s where he said that Joni's songs didn't come off too well because The Band simply did not have enough time to learn the intricacies of Joni's songs prior to the concert. And he totally bagged on Neil Diamond's inclusion in the concert. Levon thought Diamond had no business being part of that concert but claimed that Robbie thought Diamond represented 'Tin Pan
Alley' which Levon seriously scoffed at.

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I've always wondered what the hell Neil Diamond was doing in this.

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I think Joni probably did Coyote due to tying in with the whole "Life on the Road" concept that Robbie mentions in the film,the whole "prisoner of the white lines of the freeway" sentiment in the song,seems to compliment what Robbie expresses in his interview segments.

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I know that there were a lot of reservations by The Band (outside of Robbie at least) about playing Joni's songs. They were concerned b/c Joni's songs are delicate and difficult to play. Very odd tuneings, strange keys etc. Plus, according to Levon, The Band had very little time to actually rehearse her songs. Joni herself was (not surprisingly) very skeptical that they could pull it off. And they didn't. Wasn't awful but the performance on the Joni songs are distinctly lesser than the rest of the performances.

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Today I just read that Joni Mitchell's "Coyote" was written about Sam Shepard a famous Actor and Playwright. Sam Shepard was an actor in "The Right Stuff", "Black Hawk Down" and "The Pelican Brief" and about 60 other movies. Sam Shepard was a famous womanizer. When he "Seduced" Joni Mitchell he was married AND having an extra Marital Affair with his Tour Manager Christine O'Dell. This is what Joni is referencing in Coyote when she sings : "He's got a woman at home, another woman down the hall, but he seems to want me anyway."

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