We are going to a concert celebrating the songs of Joni Mitchell this summer.

I was an early fan from the get-go. I only saw her once, when she performing songs from her very first album at a festival near St. louis. Just her and her guitar, almost shy as she sang those incredible songs.

It wasn’t Both Sides Now that got me hooked, it was Chelsea Morning.

When I bought the album I was quickly struck by another song that is almost never mentioned or covered. Bonnie Raitt did it in those early days but you never hear it.

As I put the album on the turntable she begins “I met you on the midway at a fair last year, you stood out like a ruby in a Black man’s ear.”

Who writes that imagery? That scene setting?

The song is That Song About the Midway and do yourself a favor and listen to it.

She really is a genius.