Adventure #22: "Both Sides Now"

In mid-January, something magical happened. I discovered the song “Both Sides Now,” penned by the legendary Joni Mitchell. I came across it while exploring the music of Carly Rae Jepsen, who covers it on her EP Curiosity. I can’t remember when such lyrics have hit me so incredibly, as I have found nearly every cover striking.

Of course, I’m not the only one to have such an impacted experience from the song. The song's themes are universal through many different phases of life, making it connectable for legions of people. To end each chorus with, "I really don't know clouds/love/life at all," reaffirms the natural, stirring fear of what is unknown and unsure. Its destructuring is striking to the listener, as they recognize the misalignment of illusion and reality. My own mother had surreal moments as she watched me obsess over the song. She, too, is deeply touched every time she hears it, but her original craze dates back to when Judy Collins released the first commercial record of it in 1967 (her recording went on to win the Best Folk Recording Grammy). Joni Mitchell released her own version of the song soon after it was a hit for Judy and a seemingly endless list of covers by touched artists followed.

When I discovered this incredible song, I felt astonished that something so wonderful had been kept from me like a secret. And when I realized how many people had covered it, I felt really ignorant for having just found it. (But, come to think of it, I'm not so sure it would have hit me so hard had I discovered it earlier than I did. It was actually PERFECT timing for when I came across it. Had I known it earlier, I would have liked it but not found it so striking, I think.) Joni’s re-recording of her song in 2000 earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Female Vocal Pop Performance. I prefer her original 1969 recording, however. All covers are remarkable, but besides Judy and Carly’s versions, I especially like versions by:

           -Mindy Gledhill                    -Sharon Cuneta

           -Melanie C                          -Unni Wilhemsen

           -Pat Martino                        -The Swingle Singers

           -Hayley Westenra                -The Idea of North

Susan Boyle, Harpers Bizarre, Frank Sinatra, Willie Nelson, and Anne Murray also do notable renditions.

Perhaps, it was the limiting winter snow that made me find even the first verse applicable. Still, I feel like I’ve journeyed the entire song and that it expresses incredibly personal truths in its gorgeous and fitting (octave and a half) melody. Most times, when I sing the song to myself, I weep through the second and third verses. I have been there through each lyric. It is a song of my heart.