The studio recording of Dry Cleaner from Des Moines is my favorite track of all time. The lyrics, the jazz orchestration, the vocal phrasing… everything is just perfect.
I graduated from Reno High School in 1979, the same year Joni Mitchell released her Mingus album, which contained my favorite cut. During high school, I made a few trips 450 miles south to Las Vegas for sports and band. Even though I grew up around the Reno casinos, Las Vegas seemed off-the-hook crazy for my 18-year-old self. Here was this track that summed up Vegas perfectly:
They keep you tantalized
They keep you reaching for your wallet
Here in fools' paradise
Charles Mingus’s music on the track hooks me every time I listen. The recording introduced me to Jaco Pastorius, that awesome fretless electric bass that somehow moved effortlessly between the rhythm section and the brass ensemble. Wayne Shorter built one of chillest soprano sax solos anywhere, anytime.
But here was Joni: comfortable with jazz’s old guard - mostly male — while mocking Vegas — both the rubes who find it entertaining and the industry that exploits women for profit. (You can see why the Orange One wanted to own casinos in New Jersey. Isn’t it a big mystery why he never obtained a gaming license in Nevada?)
I never really thought about Joni Mitchell as a feminist, though. She was and is a superior musician and poet, and a fine human. I have no way to compare her to Dylan: I could never stand to listen to his … stuff … let alone study it.
If you don’t know this recording, go find it. Devour the entire album. There is a live version on YouTube. It is excellent, but not as crisp as the studio recording.
New best friend, love your note. Oh yeah, on Dry Cleaner. Am playing it for the third time right now and am with you 100%. I'm going to weave this into the piece. Time to explore more of this side of her work.
Joni — not a feminist. Not anything, really, except Joni. That's why I love her.
Hope to hear more from you. You've got my brain in high gear for the day!
Chris, as a songwriter, myself and as someone who is steeped like a tea bag into the rivers of both Joni and Bob, I love your piece and I think it's amazing. I'm working on a piece right now called Joni versus Bob in the Thunder Dome! There's always been this talk of who's the greatest songwriter. While, Bob, is far more than just an out of tune dude... He is a storyteller in the homeric tradition I once met a Vietnamese woman who said her favorite singer was Bob Dylan and I was surprised, why?? She said because no one channels is pain like him. I agree but, However...As far as sophistication of lyrics, Joni is the superior, in terms of harmonic and chordal structure and melodic content. Joni is also the master in terms of channeling pain. Joni is at a completely different level than Bob. Bob has the simplicity and the virtue of being straight forward. He has a Minnesota work ethic and has been a fountain of creativity. I need both of them in my life! I need both. He has a raw thing that people connect with. Joni also has a raw thing and the misogyny is as plain as day. They in real life good friends. I think Bob knows she is his Superior in pure songwriting. He just does his thing and goes his own way as per usual. I really love this piece that you wrote and I'm going to explore this more.! Thank you! Thank you!
Thank you, as always, for the thoughtful commentary. A couple of things, though: Joni and Bob are not really friends, nor have they ever been. Not really. Joni has toned down her rhetoric on him — more like mellowed her dislike. I know, I know... there are a few choice quotes that indicate a wee bit of respect. But mostly, she has expressed disdain for him over the years. Heartfelt disdain.
My point is this: Dylan is a misogynist pig, and this taints everything I hear from him. To me, as a woman, he is downright ugly. His personality, his voice, his lyrics, his attitude toward women. When I hear his music, I think of all of the awful comments he's made about women (many of which he put into writing), and all I can think of is, "what a self-righteous prick." But that's me. As a woman.
I could care less about Dylan's channeling pain when attitudes like his cause great pain to women. Because of his stature, Dylan gives credence to misogynistic views. He elevates them.
There's a bit more commentary below, in response to my good friend, Armand, on this subject (with some pertinent quotes). 👇🏼
Chris, I stand corrected! I was unaware of all of that and shall amend my views going forward. (Your post on this is the masterclass.) I was just sharing my (limited) POV from growing up with both songwriters - and studying their craft. FWIW: I've always disliked/distrusted my gender from childhood -- and I only came to be sensitized to the extent of misogyny (historical and current) after I had my two daughters. I started to see the world differently while raising them and then seeing them collide with the patriarchy as adults was a wake up for me. So, I came late to the party -- but I'm at the punch bowl now, big time.
Joni Mitchell is such a dynamic vocalist. She could play the melody while singing off melody and make the whole thing work. She's in a league of her own - no reference intended to that wonderful movie. Now I'll have her songs in my head for days. 😀
Just saw the Joan Baez documentary on hulu. Love her too ❤️
Early on I became a devoted fan of Judy Collins. Through her albums I discovered Joni Mitchell. I have found that my partiality to women singers has been respected by Tidal. Through Tidal I have discovered many female singers I hadn’t been aware of as it is certainly correct that you have to search for them. As to women having at least an equal role in leading societies, we don’t know if things would be better. I think they would be. But, seriously, how could things be any worse. It is indeed incredibly troubling that so many men disparage and disrespect women. Why I haven’t felt that way I do not know. My male friends never disparage women. But the citizens of the US chose a misogynist as their leader and the fact that women could have voted for a woman and chose a woman hater instead is incredibly disturbing. If there is to be change that needs to be understood. And, of course, it is devastating that men would vote for a man that despises women. Not all men who have attitudes that are not helpful to women are true misogynists. If humans are to advance, men, women and others have to learn to respect one another and understand we humans are pretty messed up. I don’t think men have to be put down in order for women to advance. In fact, while being angry with men is understandable and defensible, I don’t think that approach will, in the end, be helpful to the cause of women and humankind. But it seems we humans may be wired that way. If so, we are truly doomed. It is encouraging to see writing like this. Each of us can only do what we can do. Sadly, the battle is very uphill.
Glad to know a good man — you, Gary. I appreciate all you put out there, and I know, because I have one of these great guys in my life, that there are many men who respect women and who, in turn, deserve our respect.
I agree with this: "Not all men who have attitudes that are not helpful to women are true misogynists," however, these men need to own the damage they have caused by perpetrating negative and inaccurate stereotypes, even when it's just the nudge-nudge-wink-wink at their local pub.
I believe misogynists and those who are complicit/complacent about speaking out deserve to be shunned. We are at a critical time. Our daughters need us to be strong and determined in rejecting negative attitudes about women.
Thank you for reading my (often challenging) material. It says alot.
What a delight to read this article while listening to Joni. Her lyrics and voice evoke something deep within us. She’s not to be blasted from a stereo while driving 70 mph; she’s to be savored when you’re feeling quiet and
contemplative. Thank you for this wonderful article.
Chris Andrews: Women definitely make pure art in music, though I would still give a nod to Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan.
I was reared the old-fashioned Old-World Belgian way (my family is in Charleroi), so I love classical music where from Clara Wieck Schumann through Jacqueline Du Pres, Michiko Uchida, Helene Grimaud, Anne Sophie Mutter, Hilary Hahn, and Marthe Argerich, there are wonderful artists— so many gifted among women.
Good to hear from you, as always, dear friend. I admire your nod to Pete Seeger, who elevated women in all ways: his support of women's voting rights, his activism for gender equality and his challenging of gendered language, and his promotion of songs about strong women. He was surrounded by strong women and admired them.
Dylan, on the other hand — I cannot "give a nod" to him, as a woman. Here is more on this issue from Jody Rosen's review of his book in the Los Angeles Times:
"The women we meet in Dylan’s essays include a “she goat,” a “crazy bitch,” a “gold digging showgirl, full skirted in a cocktail dress” and a “hot-blooded sex starved wench.” Dylan describes women as “pug-nosed, grim faced and short on looks,” “bare breasted, blue veined — short, powerful, and ugly” and “foul-tasting.” Sometimes Dylan sounds like a garden-variety sexist jerk. (“Her voice gets on your nerves — the low drone, the squeaking sounds.”) But he also spews bile from the murkiest depths of the male id. He refers to the labia majora as a “steel trap.” He writes of a woman who “feeds on the entrails of your victims, and if you pull back her skin, you’ll see the head of an animal.”
Dylan’s essay on the Eagles’ “Witchy Woman” occasions a rant about “The woman from the global village of nowhere — destroyer of cultures, traditions, identities, and deities.” Elsewhere he gives voice to what can only be called a psychosexual murder fantasy: “You want to maim and mangle her. You want to see her in agony, and you want to blow this whole thing up until it’s swollen, where you’ll run your hands all over and squeeze it till it collapses.”
Then there’s the chapter on Johnnie Taylor’s “Cheaper to Keep Her,” a funny soul-blues song about divorce that sends Dylan into a diatribe about polygamy: “It’s nobody’s business how many wives a man has. … But the screws already get tightened from all sides — women’s rights crusaders and women’s lib lobbyists take turns putting man back on his heels until he is pinned behind the eight ball dodging the shrapnel from the glass ceiling. … What downtrodden woman with no future, battered around by the whims of a cruel society, wouldn’t be better off as one of a rich man’s wives — taken care of properly, rather than friendless on the street depending on government stamps?”"
All of this is highly offensive to me, and many other women, and there it is in his tome, paired up with his (pardon my French) fucking Nobel Prize. It stings.
Love all your classical women — that piece is coming soon.
Take care, Armand. Thanks for being there through thick and thin.
Very nice. I still remember getting a Dave Van Ronk album in probably 1969, and falling hopelessly in love with two songs on it -- "Both Sides Now" - the title he used for "Clouds" - and "Chelsea Morning." The only information on the record jacket was that both were written by someone named Mitchell....
The studio recording of Dry Cleaner from Des Moines is my favorite track of all time. The lyrics, the jazz orchestration, the vocal phrasing… everything is just perfect.
I graduated from Reno High School in 1979, the same year Joni Mitchell released her Mingus album, which contained my favorite cut. During high school, I made a few trips 450 miles south to Las Vegas for sports and band. Even though I grew up around the Reno casinos, Las Vegas seemed off-the-hook crazy for my 18-year-old self. Here was this track that summed up Vegas perfectly:
They keep you tantalized
They keep you reaching for your wallet
Here in fools' paradise
Charles Mingus’s music on the track hooks me every time I listen. The recording introduced me to Jaco Pastorius, that awesome fretless electric bass that somehow moved effortlessly between the rhythm section and the brass ensemble. Wayne Shorter built one of chillest soprano sax solos anywhere, anytime.
But here was Joni: comfortable with jazz’s old guard - mostly male — while mocking Vegas — both the rubes who find it entertaining and the industry that exploits women for profit. (You can see why the Orange One wanted to own casinos in New Jersey. Isn’t it a big mystery why he never obtained a gaming license in Nevada?)
I never really thought about Joni Mitchell as a feminist, though. She was and is a superior musician and poet, and a fine human. I have no way to compare her to Dylan: I could never stand to listen to his … stuff … let alone study it.
If you don’t know this recording, go find it. Devour the entire album. There is a live version on YouTube. It is excellent, but not as crisp as the studio recording.
New best friend, love your note. Oh yeah, on Dry Cleaner. Am playing it for the third time right now and am with you 100%. I'm going to weave this into the piece. Time to explore more of this side of her work.
Joni — not a feminist. Not anything, really, except Joni. That's why I love her.
Hope to hear more from you. You've got my brain in high gear for the day!
Chris
Chris, as a songwriter, myself and as someone who is steeped like a tea bag into the rivers of both Joni and Bob, I love your piece and I think it's amazing. I'm working on a piece right now called Joni versus Bob in the Thunder Dome! There's always been this talk of who's the greatest songwriter. While, Bob, is far more than just an out of tune dude... He is a storyteller in the homeric tradition I once met a Vietnamese woman who said her favorite singer was Bob Dylan and I was surprised, why?? She said because no one channels is pain like him. I agree but, However...As far as sophistication of lyrics, Joni is the superior, in terms of harmonic and chordal structure and melodic content. Joni is also the master in terms of channeling pain. Joni is at a completely different level than Bob. Bob has the simplicity and the virtue of being straight forward. He has a Minnesota work ethic and has been a fountain of creativity. I need both of them in my life! I need both. He has a raw thing that people connect with. Joni also has a raw thing and the misogyny is as plain as day. They in real life good friends. I think Bob knows she is his Superior in pure songwriting. He just does his thing and goes his own way as per usual. I really love this piece that you wrote and I'm going to explore this more.! Thank you! Thank you!
Charlie,
Thank you, as always, for the thoughtful commentary. A couple of things, though: Joni and Bob are not really friends, nor have they ever been. Not really. Joni has toned down her rhetoric on him — more like mellowed her dislike. I know, I know... there are a few choice quotes that indicate a wee bit of respect. But mostly, she has expressed disdain for him over the years. Heartfelt disdain.
My point is this: Dylan is a misogynist pig, and this taints everything I hear from him. To me, as a woman, he is downright ugly. His personality, his voice, his lyrics, his attitude toward women. When I hear his music, I think of all of the awful comments he's made about women (many of which he put into writing), and all I can think of is, "what a self-righteous prick." But that's me. As a woman.
I could care less about Dylan's channeling pain when attitudes like his cause great pain to women. Because of his stature, Dylan gives credence to misogynistic views. He elevates them.
There's a bit more commentary below, in response to my good friend, Armand, on this subject (with some pertinent quotes). 👇🏼
Chris, I stand corrected! I was unaware of all of that and shall amend my views going forward. (Your post on this is the masterclass.) I was just sharing my (limited) POV from growing up with both songwriters - and studying their craft. FWIW: I've always disliked/distrusted my gender from childhood -- and I only came to be sensitized to the extent of misogyny (historical and current) after I had my two daughters. I started to see the world differently while raising them and then seeing them collide with the patriarchy as adults was a wake up for me. So, I came late to the party -- but I'm at the punch bowl now, big time.
Well, I love you for that Charlie. Pour yourself another cup 😘
Joni Mitchell is such a dynamic vocalist. She could play the melody while singing off melody and make the whole thing work. She's in a league of her own - no reference intended to that wonderful movie. Now I'll have her songs in my head for days. 😀
Just saw the Joan Baez documentary on hulu. Love her too ❤️
Glad this resonated with you. 😘
Early on I became a devoted fan of Judy Collins. Through her albums I discovered Joni Mitchell. I have found that my partiality to women singers has been respected by Tidal. Through Tidal I have discovered many female singers I hadn’t been aware of as it is certainly correct that you have to search for them. As to women having at least an equal role in leading societies, we don’t know if things would be better. I think they would be. But, seriously, how could things be any worse. It is indeed incredibly troubling that so many men disparage and disrespect women. Why I haven’t felt that way I do not know. My male friends never disparage women. But the citizens of the US chose a misogynist as their leader and the fact that women could have voted for a woman and chose a woman hater instead is incredibly disturbing. If there is to be change that needs to be understood. And, of course, it is devastating that men would vote for a man that despises women. Not all men who have attitudes that are not helpful to women are true misogynists. If humans are to advance, men, women and others have to learn to respect one another and understand we humans are pretty messed up. I don’t think men have to be put down in order for women to advance. In fact, while being angry with men is understandable and defensible, I don’t think that approach will, in the end, be helpful to the cause of women and humankind. But it seems we humans may be wired that way. If so, we are truly doomed. It is encouraging to see writing like this. Each of us can only do what we can do. Sadly, the battle is very uphill.
Glad to know a good man — you, Gary. I appreciate all you put out there, and I know, because I have one of these great guys in my life, that there are many men who respect women and who, in turn, deserve our respect.
I agree with this: "Not all men who have attitudes that are not helpful to women are true misogynists," however, these men need to own the damage they have caused by perpetrating negative and inaccurate stereotypes, even when it's just the nudge-nudge-wink-wink at their local pub.
I believe misogynists and those who are complicit/complacent about speaking out deserve to be shunned. We are at a critical time. Our daughters need us to be strong and determined in rejecting negative attitudes about women.
Thank you for reading my (often challenging) material. It says alot.
What a delight to read this article while listening to Joni. Her lyrics and voice evoke something deep within us. She’s not to be blasted from a stereo while driving 70 mph; she’s to be savored when you’re feeling quiet and
contemplative. Thank you for this wonderful article.
I couldn't agree more with all you say. It is a healing balm, her music.
Chris Andrews: Women definitely make pure art in music, though I would still give a nod to Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan.
I was reared the old-fashioned Old-World Belgian way (my family is in Charleroi), so I love classical music where from Clara Wieck Schumann through Jacqueline Du Pres, Michiko Uchida, Helene Grimaud, Anne Sophie Mutter, Hilary Hahn, and Marthe Argerich, there are wonderful artists— so many gifted among women.
Good to hear from you, as always, dear friend. I admire your nod to Pete Seeger, who elevated women in all ways: his support of women's voting rights, his activism for gender equality and his challenging of gendered language, and his promotion of songs about strong women. He was surrounded by strong women and admired them.
Dylan, on the other hand — I cannot "give a nod" to him, as a woman. Here is more on this issue from Jody Rosen's review of his book in the Los Angeles Times:
"The women we meet in Dylan’s essays include a “she goat,” a “crazy bitch,” a “gold digging showgirl, full skirted in a cocktail dress” and a “hot-blooded sex starved wench.” Dylan describes women as “pug-nosed, grim faced and short on looks,” “bare breasted, blue veined — short, powerful, and ugly” and “foul-tasting.” Sometimes Dylan sounds like a garden-variety sexist jerk. (“Her voice gets on your nerves — the low drone, the squeaking sounds.”) But he also spews bile from the murkiest depths of the male id. He refers to the labia majora as a “steel trap.” He writes of a woman who “feeds on the entrails of your victims, and if you pull back her skin, you’ll see the head of an animal.”
Dylan’s essay on the Eagles’ “Witchy Woman” occasions a rant about “The woman from the global village of nowhere — destroyer of cultures, traditions, identities, and deities.” Elsewhere he gives voice to what can only be called a psychosexual murder fantasy: “You want to maim and mangle her. You want to see her in agony, and you want to blow this whole thing up until it’s swollen, where you’ll run your hands all over and squeeze it till it collapses.”
Then there’s the chapter on Johnnie Taylor’s “Cheaper to Keep Her,” a funny soul-blues song about divorce that sends Dylan into a diatribe about polygamy: “It’s nobody’s business how many wives a man has. … But the screws already get tightened from all sides — women’s rights crusaders and women’s lib lobbyists take turns putting man back on his heels until he is pinned behind the eight ball dodging the shrapnel from the glass ceiling. … What downtrodden woman with no future, battered around by the whims of a cruel society, wouldn’t be better off as one of a rich man’s wives — taken care of properly, rather than friendless on the street depending on government stamps?”"
All of this is highly offensive to me, and many other women, and there it is in his tome, paired up with his (pardon my French) fucking Nobel Prize. It stings.
Love all your classical women — that piece is coming soon.
Take care, Armand. Thanks for being there through thick and thin.
Very nice. I still remember getting a Dave Van Ronk album in probably 1969, and falling hopelessly in love with two songs on it -- "Both Sides Now" - the title he used for "Clouds" - and "Chelsea Morning." The only information on the record jacket was that both were written by someone named Mitchell....
Glad this piece brought back some good memories. For me, too. Take care, friend.