Joni Mitchell became an instant cult classic when she released her debut album. With songs such as Both Sides Now and Big Yellow Taxi under her belt, the legendary singer is considered one of the most influential artists of the 1960s and 1970s. Since then, she has continued to inspire others.
At the same time as Mitchell’s place in music history can never be debated, she’s endured a pretty rough time of things in the last decade, including being diagnosed with a mysterious disease that she described as something “from outer space.”
In 2022, she made her first public appearance in a very long time. Suffice to say that at 79, she still looks terrific!
So how did Joni Mitchell grow to fame? And why did she decide to give her daughter up for adoption? This is all you need to know about the legendary singer and songwriter!
Joni Mitchell was born Roberta Joan Anderson on November 7, 1943, in Fort McCloud, Alberta. She was the only child of parents Myrtle and Bill Anderson. It seems that Joni was destined for a music career right from the beginning.
Joni Mitchell – early life
The start of Joni Mitchell’s life wasn’t easy at all. At age nine, she got polio and was put in a wheelchair. She began singing to other children at the hospital, but her first-ever “performances” weren’t well received by the other patients.
When she was young, Joni’s family moved to a small town in Saskatchewan called Maidstone. After that, they moved again to Battleford, and later to Saskatoon. Her mother, Myrtle, always wanted Joni to get involved in music, as her father also worked in the business.
He was involved with marching bands when Joni was young, and played trumpet. Joni had piano lessons as a youngster, but she was more interested in painting, and later went to art college.