Girl, Put Your Records On

I love music.  Folk, jazz, rock, alternative, Seattle grunge ... 80's rap.  Even some country - but only the western kind ;)

One of my favorite all time artists is Canadian singer songwriter Joni Mitchell. 

I love her.  Just like Emma Thompson in Love, Actually.

Alive, alive, I wanna get up and jive
I wanna wreck my stockings in some jukebox dive (All I Want)

 It's visceral. 

When I think of your kisses
my mind see-saws (All I Want)

A few months ago my family acquired a turn table.  This is a short story that could easily become a long 'Andrea" story - so for once - I'll spare you.  Over time, my husband and I had stashed all of our parent's old vinyl (and some from when we were little - Cindy Lauper's Girls Just Wanna Have Fun) away in our attic hatch waiting for the day when we could enjoy them once again. 

When we were dating, we used to listen to records together in my parent's basement.  Awesome stuff like Cat Stevens, Kris Kristofferson and The Bay City Rollers.  Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, with it's wicked fold open illustrated jacket.  We even had a 45 of Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell.  Plus the inevitable ABBA and Tom Jones records...

Good times.

Shortly after this little delight came into our possession, my husband surprised me with a new copy of Joni Mitchell's Blue album.  The quality is amazing - crystal clear but with a little vinyl static mixed in ... to enhance the nostalgia.

I want to have fun, I want to shine like the sun 

I want to be the one that you want to see

I want to knit you a sweater

want to write you a love letter

I want to make you feel better

I want to make you feel free (All I Want)

Recorded and released in 1971, Blue is arguably Joni Mitchell's best record.  In January 2000, the New York Times chose Blue as one of the 25 albums that represented "turning points and pinnacles in 20th-century popular music" (Wikipedia). 

So what are you waiting for? 

Girl, put your records on, tell me your favorite song
You go ahead, let your hair down
Sapphire and faded jeans, I hope you get your dreams,
Just go ahead, let your hair down (Corrine Bailey Rae, Put Your Records On)