Joni Mitchell was born
Roberta Joan Anderson in Fort McLeod, Saskatchewan on November 7, 1943, and is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter.
She began singing in small nightclubs in Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto. In 1965, she moved to the United States and began touring. Some of her original songs, including "
Urge for Going", "
Chelsea Morning", "
Both Sides, Now", and "
The Circle Game" were covered by notable folk singers, allowing her to sign with
Reprise Records and record her own debut album in 1968.
Settling in Southern California, Mitchell, with popular songs like "
Big Yellow Taxi" and "
Woodstock", helped define an era and a generation. Her 1971 recording
Blue was rated the 30th best album ever made in
Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Next week on
Treasure Island Oldies,
Voice Your Choice presents
Joni Mitchell.
Cast your vote at the Voice Your Choice page for either Help Me or Big Yellow Taxi. I'll play the winner in the 3rd hour of next week's show.
