WASHINTON — Joni Mitchell took the stage near the end of a tribute concert for her as the winner of this year’s Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. Instead of one of her own songs, she sang a cover instead.
On Wednesday, the 79-year-old music legend leaned against the piano and sang a seductive rendition of “Summertime,” the hit song from George Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess.” This was a fitting choice, as the award was named after Gershwin.
In any case, she still needed to finish. As Mitchell began to sing “The Circle Game,” one of her more well-known songs, the other performers crowded the stage and surrounded her. The evening was filled with love and admiration as performers such as Graham Nash, James Taylor, Ledisi, Cyndi Lauper, Herbie Hancock, Marcus Mumford, and Brandi Carlile brought the crowd to their feet.
Nash, who dated Mitchell in the ’70s, recalled how she had an indestructible spirit that allowed her to succeed despite her gender and physical limitations.
When she was young, she contracted polio, which has caused her great difficulty throughout her life. And now, some years later, a brain aneurysm. It’s unbelievable to witness her return and find renewed musical success. Bouncing back from that,” Nash exclaimed.
A case of you,” a song Mitchell wrote after they broke up, was performed later.
James Taylor, another of Mitchell’s former business partners, has called their time together “one of the chapters in my life that I’m fondest of.”
The impact she had on me and my work was substantial. During our time together—roughly a year—we worked together on numerous projects, as mentioned by Taylor.
“Joni is a national treasure,” he continued.
Carlile was one of the night’s busiest performers, contributing background vocals and covering “Shine” by Mitchell. The nine-time Grammy winner said before the show that she learned about Mitchell’s music much later.
“It felt feminine to me, really vulnerable, and it made me uncomfortable, which I think reflects on my ego and my maturing into a bit of a gender non-conforming person or just not understanding the way that she was showing me, and all of us, the world. “I didn’t realize how multifaceted of an artist Joni was until I fell in love and met my wife,” Carlile said.
All-star concert honors Joni Mitchell, winner of the Gershwin Prize.
House Speaker Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Susan Collins (R-Maine), and others surrounded Mitchel as she accepted the award from Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden.
Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, and Carole King have all been honored with the Gershwin Prize since its inception in 2007.
Premiering on PBS stations, PBS.org, the PBS App, and the American Forces Network on March 31, “Joni Mitchell: The Library of Congress, Gershwin Prize for Popular Song”, will also be available on the American Forces Network.
SOURCE – (AP)
