SONGWRITERS SERIES

Five songs for the ages

These songs touch on Mitchell's various moods

September 5, 2004

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1. 1976. The music on this song from "Hejira" is slow, unhurried, a bit desolate, but also self-affirming. The image of doomed solo aviator Amelia Earhart suggests a woman's effort to find courage on her own journey.

2. 1971. If you've ever been helplessly in love, this song is for you. It injects in "Blue" the hope that everything can turn out OK, especially for a strong woman.

3. 1972. It's not surprising that Mitchell's first love is painting because many of her tunes are filled with bright colors. Even in this downcast tale about record industry marketing, the music often sparkles. Key line: "In some office sits a poet/ And he trembles as he sings / And he asks some guy / To circulate his soul around."

4. 1970. The smart, perky song is about ecology, yes, but mostly human nature. Key line: "They took all the trees / And put them in a tree museum / And they charged the people / a dollar and a half just to see 'em."

5. 1991. A compelling tale of obsession drawn from something she read: an aristocrat had a lover in his youth he never got over. He rents a shabby apartment overlooking a street so he can watch the man walk to and from work. The mood is, fittingly, grey. Key line: "Tomorrow is Sunday / Now there's only one day left to go / Till you walk by / Below my window."

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