Nowadays every pop star is so extroverted while Joni belongs to a completely different category. She is an introvert and deep and mysterious and sophisticated and humble and so much more. Very inspiring artist.
My music taste changed after I went blind six years ago; this is now one of my favorite songs and this is definitely the best rendition! You don’t miss something as simple as a cloud until you can’t see them anymore
A timeless singer who highlighted the 66th Grammys. I’m only 15 and have been a fan of her for many years. Kids my age don’t know what they are missing out on. 😢
At 24 when she wrote and sang this first - I was a young closeted gay man …and now at 64 yrs old I’m still deeply listening as a self- freed flawed but grateful man , she stuns and humbles me ….all along as my life , probably many of our lives tell out these profound human truths. We really don’t know life or love but we have the deepest desire to know them. Thanks once again Joni for bringing us back to the gates of the Garden with your poetry , humanity and clarity. With love , Tom Beeton , Los Angeles
Thank you Tom. Fellow gay man here, 40 years old, tired and growing ever cynical. “Self freed, flawed but grateful man” resonated with me, thank you for sharing your truth and your beautiful words. Our path is a challenging one to walk and our journey, a isolating one. We’ll keep ours heads held high and continue to enjoy her genius. X
My son lives in West Hollywood. I adore him! He is living his Best life 💜 and it just makes my heart so happy to see him stand so firmly in his Truth. And unapologetically too! May Everyone stand in their truth ! And be Loved for Exactly who they are! Salute ❤❤
Maybe we are all flawed. I think if you have a flaw it is remaining closeted, but maybe there are good reasons. I'm very flawed and have worked enough out that I can get busy living at 62. The rest of my weaknesses and demons will have to mostly remain, but I'll only address what I can here and there, but I got a life to live. I've wasted so much.
She definitely has stepped into forever with this song, her adaption and harmony to fit this beautiful big band arrangement will go on and on. She also shows us why we need music in our lives.
İ was thinking about ending everything today. Decided to just listen to some tunes first and found myself here yet again. As somber as this song is, it just saved me. Thank you Joni Mitchell.
Please, never let those dark feelings take over your soul again! Soemtimes we just need to learn how to bend so as not to break, cry, meditate, listen to inspiring songs and lectures, watch inspiring movies, etc. Don't let the dark forces take the light from you!
This song perfectly captures the duality of life, moments of pure joy and moments of regret, excitements and disappointments, being grateful of things we gained along the way, and being remorseful of things we have lost. And ironically enough sometimes the thing that made us absolutely miserable in the end is also the thing that brought us the most joy, it wouldn’t have tasted so sweet if there wasn’t a single ounce of bitterness. Life is truly a blessing
@pasteve59 that's what I was thinking! What a great mind! One would expect that a person with the wisdom of seventy years on this earth would have written those lyrics. She's utterly brilliant!
I first heard this at the Isle of Wight pop festival back in 1970 at the age of 17 and I did not think much of it. Now an old man, my eyes are full of tears and just at that crowd was so moved, the words now have so much relevance to me. Even though I look back on my youth, the friends, the changes and vitality of the sixties and the ones I loved with so much affection and fond memories, I also look back in despair and great regret at the mistakes I made due to my youth and my impulsive nature leading to break ups with them. I try not to think of them as it hurts so much but when I do, I cringe and wish I go could back in time and say to a young me "Don't do that, back down, say your sorry to her, winning is not important and go back to her". My tears are mainly summarise by Joni's words "I really don't know life at all" and unfortunately it takes a life time to finally understand how true that is but then it is too late. If you are young, do one thing, listen to old people!!
I was at that festival the audience were so unappreciative of her she was almost in tears rhey wouldn't just shut up and listen to her I was embarrassed to be part of it Sadly it was the only time I ever got to see her live ten years later I had everything she ever recorded but never got chance to see her again. I've seen everyone Stones Beatles,who Zeppelin,Floyd,Bowie,Marley Springsteen you name them but I only saw joni that once and the audience ruined the experience
I am a 63 year old gay man, living happy and proud. I remember the first time I heard this song, it make no sense to me and I thought it was stupid; I was 9 years old at the time. Now, this song is my favorites and I listen to it all the time and there is always waves of emotion in me every time.
Listening to this, almost 50 years after hearing the original version, at first I felt like I couldn't breathe, then like I couldn't swallow...and then at last, like I couldn't stop weeping. How do you thank someone enough for a performance that allows people to feel so much? I hope she somehow knows how deeply she is loved.
How many layers can song have? The 24 year old Joni's composition, the beautiful, sympathetic, swirling canvas painted by the orchestra, and the phenomenal spectrum of Joni Mitchell's 57 year old voice create such a rich emotional tapestry. Vince Mendoza well deserved his Grammy for this stunning and mature creation. There is such poignancy knowng the passage of 33 years between the song's writing and this performance, and Joni's incredible, free performance invites us to join the dots and feel all the feelings of a lifetime. I say performance, but here Joni doesn't project so much as to invite us into her presence and feel the story of the song with her. Such artistry. Simply phenomenal. Thank you Joni Mitchell. Brava!!
@@wmsmale What is the point of a comment like that? Surely e are all here to appreciate the song in our own way and to share our appreciation. There is no need for casting shade like that.
I’m watching this video on repeat at 24 years old, crying every time. I can only imagine watching this again 30 or 40 years from now after more of my life has passed me by. Such beautiful artistry. Joni Mitchell is a poet.
I can't imagine any 24 year old creating this sentiment in what is one of the greatest songs of my 60 plus years. But at that early age Joni Mitchell did. And here many years later, she expresses the ultimate life weathered performance no 24 year old could ever muster. Such a gift for us. Especially now in a world gone completely looney.
Well said:) impressive that she wrote it so young, and that she crossed all life and its experiences till giving such an intense rendition of it. such a piece of art, such a wonderful example of reaching "maturity", with depth and fullness of colors
Apart from Joni's stunning performance the arrangement of this song by Vince Mendoza is beyond words. He is one of the greatest arrangers and orchestrators of our time. A match made in heaven
@@lisaharrison1031 Unfortunately she never made it to the original Woodstock festival. She had been booked but with all the problems they encountered her manager advised her to skip the concert and do a performance/interview on the Dick Cavett show instead. She says today its one of the biggest regrets of her life in that she did not go to Woodstock.
No version of this song tops this one (not even the studio version at this age.) She grew into a voice that's gravelled and tinged by the genuine passage of time. I can relate to it and weep, everytime I listen to it, with memories of both joys and sorrows. Thank you, Joni, for this beautiful gift.
I started playing this song on the piano visiting my parents, there was a piano arrangement in some book at the piano, and I was sightreading. My mom came up behind me and started singing it... and broke down into tears halfway into the second verse. I love you mom.
"So many things I would have done, but clouds got in my way" is going to be my epitaph. So true in so many ways for so many people. I don't think any other song sums up human existence better than this one.
The mature version (this one) breaks me apart every single time. It is just so pure, so stunning. It exudes so much emotion. I genuinely cannot listen to this song without shedding a few tears, it gracfully touches my soul every time
About 50 years ago a group of friends and myself went out on a Friday night to Phil's Steak House located at the Chinook Shopping Centre on MacLeod Trail in Calgary. They had live entertainment every weekend and on that particular night there was a shy young girl (a student at Mount Royal College and the Alberta College of Art ) by the name of Joni Anderson who was our entertainment for the night. She mesmerized us all with her music and she still has that effect upon me today. Although she did not perform this song (I don't think she had written it yet) when it came out on her Clouds album I just fell in love with it. To hear her sing the same song almost half a century later and appreciate the lyrics which now have seriously different meanings is heart rending. I am an old man now and do not feel ashamed at all to cry every time I watch this.
Thank you ... I really don't know why … this song has a such special effect on me… always the exact feeling i had the first time i heard this beautiful voice one night…
The songwriter sings her very own song more than 30 years after she wrote it - when she was barely 21. But what did she know about clouds, about love and, about life then? See the difference what experience can do in the interpretation of her very own composition, 30 years apart (1970 vs 2000). Absolutely AMAZING!!!
I couldn't agree more and the same goes for everyone who has loved this song for years and now having such a different meaning possibly from when they first loved it. And for those just getting to know it..and how it may mean so many different things to them through the years.
Rows and flows of angel hair And ice cream castles in the air And feather canyons everywhere I've looked at clouds that way But now they only block the sun They rain and snow on everyone So many things I would have done But clouds got in my way I've looked at clouds from both sides now From up and down, and still somehow It's cloud illusions I recall I really don't know clouds at all Moons and Junes and Ferris wheels The dizzy dancing way you feel As every fairy tale comes real I've looked at love that way But now it's just another show You leave 'em laughing when you go And if you care, don't let them know Don't give yourself away I've looked at love from both sides now From give and take, and still somehow It's love's illusions I recall I really don't know love at all Tears and fears and feeling proud To say "I love you" right out loud Dreams and schemes and circus crowds I've looked at life that way But now old friends are acting strange They shake their heads, they say I've changed Well something's lost, but something's gained In living every day I've looked at life from both sides now From win and lose and still somehow It's life's illusions I recall I really don't know life at all I've looked at life from both sides now From up and down and still somehow It's life's illusions I recall I really don't know life at all
I want to address the 281 folks who put thumbs down. What are you missing. Should you take the music away, you are left with the most beautiful of prose. Genius like this comes across our paths so infrequently.
OMG, I'm 54 years old and I've love this song since the moment I first heard it. There is so much emotion and passion in this song and I STILL cry like a baby EVERY single time I hear it. It is truly one of the most beautiful songs ever written and really touches my heart. Joni's vocals and performance is simply MAGICAL. Thank you so very much for sharing. Much love xxx
In the June 2021 interview with Cameron Crowe: Q: And yet, when you recorded the symphonic “Both Sides Now” in 2000, you’ve said that all those London Symphony Orchestra players were crying. A: I didn’t expect that. That was really shocking to me, in a beautiful way. It made me sing differently. I mean, it sparked me into a deeper performance. That’s why I think that’s the definitive performance of that song. It’s how it should be.
i'm a 90's kid, born in the wrong era in terms of music. I don't recognise myself in today's music, but poetry like this hits me right in the chest. absolutely breathtaking. enjoy your day everyone, don't forget to look at it from both sides with love and empathy
I can relate to this in more ways than words can describe. I was born in the wrong era. I don’t relate to todays music and I’m not quite certain if I relate to todays people. But this, this I feel in the worst beautiful and painful way.
My generation was indeed quite grateful for the amazing songwriters that came out of that era. Joni, Dylan, Cohen, Simon, Lightfoot and on and on. The live clubs that were incubators of these amazing artists ceased to exist a long time ago. Back then, they could gather after hours and trade ideas and sing songs to each other. They traveled before they were famous and lived in faraway places to soak up different genres. That generation got to meet previous ones and learned from them including the folkies, the country singers, the blues artists, the soul artists. Find live music in your hometown if you can and you may find a gem yet to be discovered.
It's so awe-striking to hear her sing this in different ways, at different stages in her life, with her voice deepening and growing even richer with time.
It’s incredible how Joni puts so much detail into such a simple vocal line. There is so much light and shade and colour and movement, yet it’s so still and calming. The connection between singer and orchestra is phenomenal. They’re so in sync. I don’t know how they did this. This is transcending. I’m blown away.
I am drenched in tears with few questionable regrets in life... I'm only 32 yet this song made me realized how valuable is time, and that it should be spent wisely with the right people as much as possible. I wish we can live for a thousand years. Perhaps it is long enough to understand life and its real meaning. It could be long enough to have plenty of time to heal, to forget, to forgive, to be forgiven, to love, to be love, to be reunited & to make up on our shortcomings. It could be enough time for us to explain ourselves on why did we do it, why we couldn't do it, why did we have to do it & why did we choose to do it. Maybe if we can live that long there will be no more words left unspoken, no questions left hanging & no feelings or emotions left completely unexpressed. I just find our current life time way too short to understand life... Thank you Joni
If not the best song ever written, it has few equals, likewise this extraordinary performance. Few have captured life in a song as remarkably as Joni does here.
Part of what your feeling is your own mortality my friend. Once we hit 50 it seems we spend almost as much time looking back as we do looking ahead. Peace my friend!
@@janalalewicz7385 exactly right Jana because for most of us at this age we have already lived more memories than we have days left on this planet. Perhaps a sobering thought but good reason to enjoy the time that remains for all of us 50+ crowd 🤣🙏❤️
i have had a great time growing old and enjoying each of my decades.Living and Loving in los Angeles was a wonderful place to live during this time. I love the privileges of being old in life and young in heart
I get chills when she sings this song and tears from this song...... Emotional on several of her songs but this one I listen to especially on New Years Eve for 30 years now. I live in Alaska Joni's music has gotten me thru the long very dark winters !!!!!! Love and mad respect for Joni Mitchell 💯
If you've LIVED life-- taken chances, fallen deeply, wrung out every drop of passion that dwells within, dreaded your vulnerability yet flung yourself along the delicate sheet of ice called destiny, met your god in your mistakes and your monarch in your reflection-- then Joni’s performance will pour through you like the smoothest whiskey and set you thrashing emotionally about like a feather in an unexpectedly welcome downpour.
I've been in the studio business for 25 years or more... this is so beautiful I almost cant make it through... How can anything be this powerful? The orchestra arrangement is breath-taking and Joni... well she crushes it! I'd listen to it over and over, if I didn't think I'd go into a life ending depression. This might be the most moving things I've witnessed in my 51 years
I thought it was astounding that a song like this was written by someone when she was in her mid-20s. Sung decades later, with such weight and weather, I can't help crying.
To be honest, I prefer her younger voice and it’s not just because of the natural aging. She completely changed her style. I prefer the light songbird voice over jazz singer voice.
I do think it might have to do that some people; 1) does understand the depth of music & 2) might be young people clicking on "something" on youtube and quickly form and opinion without knowing the context. It´s not just young people (I´m 23) but it can also be old people who thinks they know life, but doesn´t know life at all!
I've just tried the earlier performances and even the original recording, they don't even come close to the beauty and magnificence of this one. This is the perfect pearl.
I'm 39, .. I've been through such heartache, pain, breakups.. like we all have I'm sure.. and this is the most powerful treasured song in my life.. says it all.
This perfomance and arrangement are devastating and beyond moving. Mitchell is one of the best mid/late 20th Century female songstress/composers to have graced the ears and eyes and souls of millions. This version is the older Mitchell with the haunting lyrics and her husky voice lurking still tones of yearning and loss. And the hope is still in this song. It's deliverance assured to us in every line. An overwhelming folk song that speaks to everybody. It is up there with Arlen's Somewhere Over the rainbow as one of the greatest North American songs.
The arrangement is wonderful. However, I think Joni's performance was so-so. She didn't seem to know the lyrics to her own song, as evidenced by her fixating in front and below. I wanted to see her open her eyes upward.....to the audience and really sell it.
@@paulholt2317 I think she pitched it just right. It was melancholic, reflective; she was musing, day-dreaming, selling nothing despite being offered pennies for her thoughts. One of the most beautiful and evocative 'performances' I've ever witnessed :)
@@paulholt2317 God, man, really? This once in a lifetime performance of an iconic song, bringing a whole new dimension to the original, and you're fixated on where she's looking? I feel sorry for you, Paul. Seriously. You must miss out on so much.
If only for the moment and the moment's gone. Singing both sides now living both sides now and facing both sides now. When I can see what Joni Mitchell has accomplished in her life and what I have accomplished in mine I have no right to judge. Today I'm a cancer survivor who gets to listen to Joni sing both sides now. It's a blessing she's a blessing and life's a blessing
For each of who returns here, there’s something gained. All our losses are somehow reconciled, and we find peace. It’s a spiritual moment, even if we hesitate to believe. We make sense of life in its beginnings, it’s middle, and end. We come alone; we leave alone. And yes. So much was in between.
This song seems all the more poignant when sung from the perspective of someone in latter life looking back on their life in reflection of what they've learned and understood about it, love and life in general. Just brilliant and the best version I've ever heard.
This is has to be one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. A majestic arrangement and you can feel the hope and regret of Joni looking back on her life with poignancy. She’s such an important artist and the world is better for her mere presence and timeless contributions.
I will never forget the first time I heard this version on the radio. I couldn't stop the tears, while driving I might add. I had no idea it was Joni Mitchell until the second or third time I'd heard it. It was such an A-Ha moment - it totally made sense, like coming full circle in life. Still one of my all-time faves.
The first time I heard this song I was 10 years old watching love acrually, and was trying to understand heartbreak for the first time. I’m 28 now, and am still trying to understand heartbreak myself. This song makes me feel small, in the way that we are all brought here to love one another. There’s so much to know and figure out, and we may never fully understand it all. In my book, the meaning of life is to love. I’ve had a blanket thrown over me by my dad, have had a warm hug and kiss from mt mom, linked arms and walked in the snow, kissed my grandmother on the head to this song. From both sides, you know nothing but to love and to be. Joni understood
When my 20 yo was hospitalized as a child several times I would sing this to him before and after surgery. Then I would sing to his 21 yo brother too. Every single night at bedtime. When they visit I sing this to them in their ears before they leave as I hold on to them as I SOB. God I love those boys and this song. They will always have this song even after I'm gone
After watching her perform at the Grammys I had to rewatch this...this beautiful song came to life all over again...brought me to tears! Well done, Joni, you are a true inspiration.
This song is an absolute masterpiece. It's just one of those songs that is beyond description. It just needs to be felt. Joni is one of those artists that's makes me curse being born in the late 80s and missing the chance to see their genius for myself. Most certainly I was born in the wrong era, but at least feelings are not bound by time. ❤️❤️
Don't beat yourself up. All that stuff was recorded, and we can all share the music that was made before and after we were born. People can come together on this despite two generations of distance, and that is what art is.
You are lucky that in the age of you tube you can fully appreciate and view such a brilliant artist,I saw Joni play this song in the 70s as good as it was,as a more mature lady this version is breath taking,please don't let clouds get in the way.
Listening to this on a headphone while holding my sleeping infant. The "I really don't know love at all" hits so hard after I've become a mother. It's so strange, the feeling you have for your child. It's so hard and I lost lots of sleep and energy but I love him. Started weeping while trying not to wake him up :)
I just turned 31-life has I know it just seems hazy. My parents have divorced after 30 years of marriage. One sided, my father leaving. Viewing my mother within a melancholy state of mind hurts to its core. Things have gotten better though, not really. Family divided-& I’m not perfect. I really don’t know life at all. This song warms my heart so very much. Especially in the Holiday season. God bless
