Joni Mitchell :: California (BBC 1970)

I went through a time recently where all I listened to was Blue by Joni Mitchell; there was something comforting in the folksy simplicity, and while the music was infused with nostalgia, it was also fairly up tempo at times. Perhaps it's because of where I will be taking my life soon, or perhaps it's my own embrace of nostalgia that longs for some sort of mooring, but the song "California" stayed with me more than anything else on the record.

The song embraces the experiences that created the person that she is (was) while simultaneously longing for the comfort and anchor of the familiar. Obviously I can relate -- though the California that I long for is the optimistic place of my youth and my youthful perception (a place that I've not lived yet); a place where the skies are clear, the ocean blue, and the hills full of gold. My hopes for California are great, my heart is open for something remarkable, and I want to believe that I will accept no less.

Here, right here, you can see Joni singing (and with dulcimer!) on the BBC way back in 1970.