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Don Juan's Reckless Daughter

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Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Original cover used for all physical releases and streaming services on or before April 29, 2024.
Studio album by
Joni Mitchell
ReleasedDecember 13, 1977
Recorded1977
Studio
Genre
Length59:38
LabelAsylum
Producer
  • Joni Mitchell
  • Henry Lewy
  • Steve Katz
Joni Mitchell chronology
Hejira
(1976) 		Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
(1977) 		Mingus
(1979)
Alternative cover
Alternative cover used for all physical releases and streaming services after April 29, 2024.
Alternative cover used for all physical releases and streaming services after April 29, 2024.
Singles from Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
  1. "The Tenth World"
    Released: 1977 (France)
  2. "Jericho"
    Released: February 1978
  3. "Off Night Backstreet"
    Released: 3 March 1978 (UK)

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter is a 1977 double album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. Her ninth album, it is unusual for its experimental style, expanding even further on the jazz-influenced sound of Mitchell's previous recordings. Mitchell has stated that, close to completing her contract with Asylum Records, she allowed this album to be looser than anything she had done previously.[7]

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter was released in December 1977 to mixed reviews. It reached No. 25 on the Billboard charts and attained gold record status within three months.

Background and content

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Much of the album is experimental: "Overture" is played with six simultaneous guitars, some in different tunings from others, with vocal echo effects; "The Tenth World" is an extended-length instrumental of Latin percussion; "Dreamland" features only percussion and voices (including that of Chaka Khan).

"Paprika Plains" is a 16-minute song played on improvised piano and arranged with a full orchestra; it takes up all of Side 2. In it, Mitchell narrates a first-person description of a late-night gathering in a bar frequented by Indigenous peoples of Canada, touching on themes of hopelessness and alcoholism. At one point in the narrative, the narrator leaves the setting to watch the rain and enters into a dreamstate, and the lyrics – printed in the liner notes but not sung – become a mixture of references to innocent childhood memories, a nuclear explosion and an expressionless tribe gazing upon the dreamer. The narrator returns inside after the rain passes. In speaking to Anthony Fawcett about working on "Paprika Plains", Mitchell said:

The Improvisational, the spontaneous aspect of this creative process – still as a poet – is to set words to the music, which is a hammer and chisel process. Sometimes it flows, but a lot of times it's blocked by concept. And if you're writing free consciousness – which I do once in a while just to remind myself that I can, you know, because I'm fitting little pieces of this puzzle together – the end result must flow as if it was spoken for the first time.[7]

"Off Night Backstreet" was released as a single backed with "Jericho", but did not chart.

Two of the album's songs had previously been released: "Jericho" by Mitchell on her 1974 live album Miles of Aisles and "Dreamland" by Roger McGuinn on his 1976 album Cardiff Rose.

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter featured contributions from prominent jazz musicians, including four members of Weather Report – Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Manolo Badrena, and Alex Acuña.

Artwork

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1977 artwork

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The original album artwork depicted a photomontage of shots taken by Norman Seeff, later arranged by Mitchell with a camera lucida and set on an orange-and-blue colour backdrop selected by Glen Christensen. Most prominently, Mitchell is featured in blackface with a pimp outfit and afro wig. In the inner sleeve, she appears in blackface again with a speech bubble reading "Mooslems, Mooooslems! Heh, Heh, Heh." This reference to Muslims echoes the line "While Muslims stick up Washington" in the song "Otis and Marlena", which itself refers to the 1977 Washington, D.C., attack and hostage taking that involved the Black Muslim Hanafi Movement.[8]

Mitchell is also pictured dancing in a black dress and tophat, a shot she felt captured the album's "magic." The child pictured was photographed during sessions for a previous album, and was apparently looking at his feet due to shyness and the fact he had never danced before. The Mickey Mouse balloons were inspired by the 1968 Les Krims photo, The Static Electric Effect of Minnie Mouse on Mickey Mouse Balloons, Rochester, New York, which Mitchell saw on a postcard.[9][10] The back cover also features a small photo of Mitchell dressed as a Native American as a child. Outtakes from the photo shoot were published in 2018 in the hardcover coffee table book Joni: The Joni Mitchell Sessions.[11]

Blackface controversy

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Mitchell was first inspired to experiment with blackface during the Rolling Thunder Revue tour, in which she spoke to Hurricane Carter on the phone and perceived him as "a bad person... a violent person and an opportunist." When asked to introduce Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden by Joan Baez, Mitchell jokingly suggested referring to both Ali and Carter as "jive-ass niggers" and considered going out in blackface.[12] Later, her dentist told her she had "teeth like a Negro male."[13] After seeing a black man in the street, she then went to a 1976 Halloween party in blackface as a character she named "Art Nouveau":

I was walking down Hollywood Boulevard, in search of a costume for a Halloween party when I saw this black guy with a beautiful spirit walking with a bop... As he went by me he turned around and said, "Ummmm, mmm... looking good sister, lookin' good!" Well I just felt so good after he said that. It was as if this spirit went into me. So I started walking like him. I bought a black wig, I bought sideburns, a moustache. I bought some pancake makeup. It was like 'I'm goin' as him!'[14]

Mitchell later claimed she had successfully passed as a man on that night, and had even been asked if she was at the right party. She then revisited this persona during the Don Juan's Reckless Daughter photo shoot with Seeff, who later said that her decision "caused a lot of consternation."[15][16] "It was great revenge", said Mitchell. "That was all to get (Seeff's) ass. To freak him out."[17] She later claimed she was not recognised by several people on the shoot, who came up to her and asked "Can I help you?"[18]

The resulting shots became one of the most controversial moments of her career, widely criticised as racist in subsequent years.[19] Eric Lott stated that Mitchell "thought she inhibited blackness... That's why she didn't see a problem with her wearing blackface or using the N-word."[20] Scholar Miles Parks Grier criticised Mitchell biographers for their inadequate handling of the topic, writing that "Mitchell in blackface drag acquires a reputation for artistic daring and psychological complexity by impersonating a black pimp figure who accrues neither.... If race and gender cannot be discussed apart, neither can they be rendered equivalent or parallel. Gender may not always be the fundamental problem or prison. Indeed, the experience of gender confinement as an isolated force may be a mixed blessing of membership in a superior racial caste."[21] Charles Mingus reportedly became "curious" about Mitchell after seeing the cover, leading to their collaboration on her subsequent 1979 album Mingus.[22] Chaka Khan, who sang backing vocals on Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, would later say that she "loved" the album cover: "(Mitchell's) into color. She’s a world of person, and she lived that, she sang that, she is that. I am, too. It’s a beautiful thing. It’s a way to go.”[23]

Mitchell publicly wore blackface several more times throughout her life, and has consistently defended her use of it. For many years, she insisted that the opening line of her autobiography would one day be "I was the only black man at the party."[24]

The 1980 concert film Shadows and Light cuts to footage of Mitchell in blackface during the last verse of "Furry Sings the Blues", a song about her meeting with Furry Lewis. The 1982 film Love consisted of six short vignettes written and directed by women, including "The Cat in the Black Mouse Socks", a story in which Mitchell wears blackface to a party.[25] In 1988, Mitchell released the song "The Beat of Black Wings" on her album Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm. The song tells the story of "Killer Kyle", a traumatised soldier she once met in a bar who had just returned from the Vietnam War. In the song's music video, Joni played the soldier herself and once again wore blackface.[26] That same year she referred to "(her) blackness" in an interview with Mojo.[27] In 1994, she told the LA Weekly "I write like a black poet. I frequently write from a black perspective."[28] In 2015, she told The Cut that she tended to "nod like a brother" when she saw black men in the street, adding "I really feel an affinity because I have experienced being a black guy on several occasions.”[29] In 2017, when interviewed by biographer David Yaffe, Mitchell again defended her use of blackface and also that of Al Jolson, calling him "a Jew in blackface (who's) always getting the better end of the deal... I got away with it … I got the greatest reviews for that record in black magazines. They saw the brother, they reviewed it, and they got it." Yaffe added that it was unclear which "black magazines" Mitchell was referring to.[30]

2024 artwork

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On 29 April 2024, Don Juan's Reckless Daughter was given a new album cover on music streaming services. The new cover features a photo of Mitchell with a dog, an outtake from the 1985 photo sessions for the subsequent album Dog Eat Dog. A subsequent box set, The Asylum Albums, and standalone physical reissue also use the new cover.[31][32] No announcement was made about the change nor any official reason given, and Mitchell has not commented on the matter.[33]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[34]
Christgau's Record GuideB−[35]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[36]
The Great Rock Discography5/10[4]
MusicHound Rock[37]
Pitchfork6.1/10[38]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[39]

Rolling Stone opined that "the best that can be said for Don Juan's Reckless Daughter is that it is an instructive failure," writing that "it's sapped of emotion and full of ideas that should have remained whims, melodies that should have been riffs, songs that should have been fragments."[40] The Globe and Mail concluded that "many of the novel sounds that marked her shift to the fully electric, pop-oriented sound have gone bland for lack of detailed attention."[41]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Joni Mitchell, except where noted

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Overture – Cotton Avenue"6:41
2."Talk to Me"3:45
3."Jericho"3:22
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Paprika Plains"16:21
Side three
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Otis and Marlena" 4:09
2."The Tenth World"Joni Mitchell, Don Alias, Manolo Badrena, Alex Acuña, Airto Moreira, Jaco Pastorius6:45
3."Dreamland" 4:38
Side four
No.TitleLength
1."Don Juan's Reckless Daughter"6:36
2."Off Night Backstreet"3:20
3."The Silky Veils of Ardor"4:01

Personnel

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Musicians

Production

Charts

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Chart performance for Don Juan's Reckless Daughter
Chart (1977–1978) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[42] 39
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[43] 28
UK Albums (OCC)[44] 20
US Billboard 200[45] 25
US Cash Box Top 100 Albums[46] 23

References

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  1. ^ Christopher, Currie (March 8, 1998). "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter". Tentative Reviews.
  2. ^ Himes, Geoffrey (April 25, 2019). "Herbie Hancock and Joni Mitchell: Music & Lyrics". Jazz Times. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  3. ^ "Joni Mitchell: The Studio Albums 1968–1979 | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. November 9, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Strong, Martin C. (2006). "Joni Mitchell". The Great Rock Discography. Edinburgh: Canongate Books. p. 712. ISBN 1-84195-860-3.
  5. ^ Hoskyns, Barney (2002). "Back Catalog: Joni Mitchell". Blender. Retrieved August 27, 2023. A double album of oblique, angular jazz-rock, with Joni's cool nuances a underpinned by jungly percussion and Jaco Pastorius's alternately growly/plangent bass lines
  6. ^ Zimmer, Dave (December 3, 1982). "Joni Mitchell: Wild Things Run Fast". BAM. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Joni Mitchell Biography from jonimitchell.com Archived August 4, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved August 22, 2008
  8. ^ "Otis and Marlena". Joni Mitchell.com. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  9. ^ LaGreca, Angela (1985). "The Making of the Don Juan's Reckless Daughter Cover". Rock Photo. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  10. ^ Krims, Les. "The Static Electric Effect of Minnie Mouse on Mickey Mouse Balloons, Rochester, New York". Hood Museum of Art. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  11. ^ Seeff, Norman. "Joni: The Joni Mitchell Sessions". Simon and Schuster.
  12. ^ Sutcliffe, Paul (May 1988). "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" (PDF). Q Magazine. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  13. ^ Clark, Cindy (February 11, 2015). "Joni Mitchell says she identifies with black men". USA Today. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  14. ^ Miller, David H. "Celebrating - and Interrogating - Joni Mitchell's Legacy as Her Masterpiece 'Blue' Turns 45". Albumism. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  15. ^ Hall, James (November 8, 2023). "The strange story behind Joni Mitchell's 'outrageous' blackface experiment". The Telegraph. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  16. ^ Mulvey, John (March 2019). "Joni: The Portraits". MOJO. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  17. ^ Kennedy, John R. (February 10, 2015). "Joni Mitchell reflects on posing in blackface for album cover". Global News Canada. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  18. ^ Echols, Alice (November 25, 1994). "Library: Articles Search articles Search articles Thirty Years With a Portable Lover". LA Weekly. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  19. ^ Resnikoff, Paul (February 3, 2022). "Joni Mitchell Faces Accusations of Racism as Blackface Images Resurface". Digital Music News. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  20. ^ Newman, Meredith (October 10, 2011). "Author discusses race, culture in relation to Joni Mitchell". Daily Orange. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  21. ^ Grier, Miles Parks. "The Only Black Man at the Party". Genders Journal. No. September 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  22. ^ Tate, Greg (December 1998). "Black and Blond". Vibe. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  23. ^ Yaffe, David (2017). Reckless Daughter.
  24. ^ Griffiths, Kris (October 28, 2016). "When Joni Mitchell wore blackface for Halloween". BBC. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  25. ^ Hall, Oliver (February 11, 2017). "Joni Mitchell dons blackface in her oddball short film, 'The Black Cat in the Black Mouse Socks'". Dangerous Minds. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  26. ^ "The Beat of Black Wings". Joni Mitchell.com. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  27. ^ Sutcliffe, Paul (May 1988). "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" (PDF). Q Magazine. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  28. ^ Echols, Alice (November 25, 1994). "Library: Articles Search articles Search articles Thirty Years With a Portable Lover". LA Weekly. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  29. ^ Swanson, Carl (February 8, 2015). "Joni Mitchell, unyielding". The Cut. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  30. ^ Yaffe, David (2017). Reckless Daughter.
  31. ^ "The Asylum Albums (1976-1980) [5CD]". Joni Mitchell.com Store. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  32. ^ "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (2024 Remaster) [2LP]". Joni Mitchell.com Store. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  33. ^ Bond, Nick (June 6, 2024). "Fresh controversy around Joni Mitchell's infamous 'blackface' album cover". News.com.au. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  34. ^ Ruhlmann, W. (2011). "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter – Joni Mitchell | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  35. ^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: M". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 8, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  36. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). "Mitchell, Joni". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-85712-595-8.
  37. ^ Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel, eds. (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 769. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.
  38. ^ "Joni Mitchell: The Studio Albums 1968–1979 | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. November 9, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  39. ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). "Joni Mitchell". The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. London: Fireside. pp. 547–548. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved September 8, 2009. Portions posted at "Joni Mitchell > Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on July 31, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  40. ^ Maslin, Janet (2011). "Joni Mitchell: Don Juan's Reckless Daughter : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 24, 2009. Retrieved July 19, 2011.
  41. ^ McGrath, Paul (January 18, 1978). "Joni's gone bland". The Globe and Mail. p. F2.
  42. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992: 23 years of hit singles & albums from the top 100 charts. St Ives, N.S.W, Australia: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  43. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 5539a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  44. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  45. ^ "Joni Mitchell Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  46. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Cash Box. January 21, 1978. p. 69. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
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