The Hissing of Summer Lawns
	No production credits
	Released on November 1975
	US CHART POSITION #4 . . . GOLD RECORD . . . UK CHART POSITION #14
	Find it at GEMM
7E-1051 cover [high resolution photo]

B eginning with Miles of Aisles, Joni’s genius grew a little prickly, her impressive intellect a little intimidating. Court and Spark asked a lot of audiences and gave them twofold payment if they stuck around long enough. The Hissing of Summer Lawns is even smarter, but the returns are a little different this time. There are no sweet treats like (“Twisted” and “Raised on Robbery”). Instead, you get the colliding cultures of “The Jungle Line” (which I’ll get to later) and complex poetry couched in lovely and often languid arrangements (“This Hissing of Summer Lawns,” “Shades of Scarlet Conquering”). It’s a brilliant record, literally if you listen to the sparkling sounds that surround her minor-key melodies. She rarely sings the obvious note, takes chances and nearly never stumbles; if Blue was painting, Hissing is figure skating. Early in the routine, Joni invents a new move that raises the bar for every performer after her: “The Jungle Line.” Fusing her own poetry (and moog) with African music, the two merge in a strange and (sometimes) chilling way that has to be heard to be believed. It’s a fearless moment, but not the only one on The Hissing of Summer Lawns. For example, “Shadows and Light” and “Harry’s House - Centerpiece” capture a dramatic element more akin to stagecraft than music. Joni Mitchell has always followed the beat of a different drummer, but the rhythms were growing increasingly complex for mainstream audiences. Half of Hissing remains in Court, notably “In France They Kiss On Main Street” and “The Boho Dance.” The other half is slightly out of bounds, off the beaten path, well worth following if you would a genius in one.

7E-1051 lyric gatefold	7E-1051 back cover

TRACK LISTING

1. IN FRANCE THEY KISS ON MAIN STREET    3:17
2. THE JUNGLE LINE    4:20
3. EDITH AND THE KINGPIN    3:35
4. DON'T INTERRUPT THE SORROW    4:04
5. SHADES OF SCARLETT CONQUERING    4:57
6. THE HISSING OF SUMMER LAWNS    (John Guerin/Joni Mitchell)    3:00
7. THE BOHO DANCE    3:56
8. HARRY'S HOUSE/CENTERPIECE    ("Centerpiece" by Johnny Mandel/Jon Hendricks)    6:52
9. SWEET BIRD    4:10
10. SHADOWS AND LIGHT    4:15
    
    All songs written by Joni Mitchell unless noted

CREDITS

JONI MITCHELL -- vocals, acoustic guitar, piano, moog, keyboards, Arp-Farsifa, mixing, cover illustration, package design
MAX BENNETT -- bass
JOHN GUERIN -- drums, arrangement, moog
Jeff Baxter -- electric guitar (1)
Larry Carlton -- electric guitar
David Crosby -- background voices (1)
Victor Feldman -- electric piano, vibes, congas, keyboard, percussion
Wilton Felder -- bass
Chuck Findley -- horn, trumpet, flugle horn
Robben Ford -- electric guitar, dobro, guitar
Graham Nash -- background voices (1)
Dale Oehler -- string arrangement (5)
Joe Sample -- electric piano (3), keyboards (8)
Bud Shank -- sax, flute, bass flute
James Taylor -- background voices (1), guitar (6)
Warrior drums of Burundi -- drums and voices (2)
Henry Lewy -- engineer, mixing
Glen Christensen -- art direction
Norman Seeff -- photography

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