Back in the late 70’s, Joni Mitchell put together a band that made any music fan drool.
Shadows and Light was recorded live and released in 1980 as a double album.
Jeanette Leech wrote a great in depth article about this massive music achievement.
‘Shadows And Light’: Behind Joni Mitchell’s Many-Hued Live Album
Recorded on tour with a band of crack jazz musicians, the ‘Shadows And Light’ album found Joni Mitchell pushing her artistry to new heights.
The band, comprising of jazz musicians at the top of their game, was assembled by Jaco Pastorius, the incomparable fretless bassist who had worked with Mitchell since Hejira. “I was on tour in Berlin and Jaco called me,” the guitarist Pat Metheny said. “He said it was going to be a quartet of Joni, he, me, and the drummer Don Alias. I loved those records of Joni’s and so I said to keep me posted on it.” Metheny accepted the gig and soon ended up taking over from Pastorius as musical director, too. This core quartet was augmented by Lyle Mays on keyboards, Michael Brecker on sax, and doo-wop group The Persuasions (also the tour’s opening act) on supporting vocals.
