Joni Mitchell - Shadows and Light (DVD, 2003)

It is an immense pleasure to be able to view rare footage of Joni Mitchell and Jaco Pastorius weaving their magic together on the same stage partaking in the same music.To see the still fresh Pastorius weave his intricate lines into Joni's music without sacrificing solid foundational bass playing in this 1980 concert , is sublime. Both artists make the most difficult and intricate playing look so easy and effortless.
Pat Metheny was out of his league in the ensemble at this early stage of his career with Joni's style of music, but thankfully it does not really show except in Joni's hypnotic and brilliant rendition of Amelia. Besides using rare guitar tunings, she changed chords and time signatures with the ease of Bob Dylan in the sixties.Metheny did not get the drift of the song when he did his fills and later, when he had to come up with a lead break, but he steered the leadbreak and morphed it into a showcase for his jazz chops, even making wrong notes right on the fly.This segment became "Pat's solo".

This is not a DVD to miss, not only for historical reasons but for the sheer level of musical excellence and mastery of Joni Mitchell and Jaco Pastorius.Two geniuses from different planets, one from Venus and one from Mars, perfectly aligned one summer's night on stage.

Joni Mitchell has an excellent band for this show ( Jaco on bass , Metheny on guitar , Brecker on sax ) . They help bring out the most from her terrific songwriting to her masterful singing . Sounds as good today as it must have then .

This is a must bfor all music loversa great all around musician surrounded by greats one on their climax. Performance and recording a#1 Image quality on DVD better than expected.

OK, If you consider 1979, thats 30 years ago, and the likes of Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra, you might remember that Fusion Jazz really was the sound of frustrated testosterone not knowing how to behave in an era of feminism: Cock Roosters without the razorblades, just blasting throught the modal changes, intensity without a direction.

Buy into This: Fusion Music was a direct, negative reaction to Feminism! Listen to it sometime, in that frame of mind.

Then go listen to Joni Mitchell's "Shadows and Light", watch it on DVD.
Here she has three of monsters of fusion, in their youth, firmly in tow!

Thats Pat Metheny on guitar, not yet so famous that he dosen't have to comb his hair any more.

Thats Jaco Pastorius on Bass, showing the first signs of psychosis, chops intact, wincing to follow the changes.

Thats Michael Brecker on Sax, overly manacured, not a hair or thread out of place, shredding the modalities.

Then there is Joni, with a melody, putting them all in their place. Fifteen tunes from her Jazz Workshop Days.

Its a great concert! The audio is Dolby 5.1 and video is sharp.

You will like it.