A long-rumored 1968 club performance by Joni Mitchell — recorded by none other than Jimi Hendrix is slated for release. The two-set collection, The Dawntreader, was taped by the guitar legend on March 19th, 1968 at Ottawa, Ontario's Le Hibou Coffee House. The tapes, which were lost only days after Hendrix recorded the show, will be released on October 29th as part of the upcoming box set, Joni Mitchell Archives Vol. 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971).
In the album's liner notes, Mitchell told writer Cameron Crowe: “They came and told me, 'Jimi Hendrix is here, and he’s at the front door.' I went to meet him. He had a large box. He said to me, 'My name is Jimi Hendrix. I'm on the same label as you. Reprise Records.' We were both signed about the same time. He said, 'I'd like to record your show. Do you mind?' I said, 'No, not at all.' There was a large reel-to-reel tape recorder in the box.”
She went on to recall: “The stage was only about a foot off the ground. He knelt at edge of the stage, with a microphone, at my feet. All during the show, he kept twisting knobs. He was engineering it, I don't know what he was controlling, volume? He was watching the needles or something, messing with knobs. He beautifully recorded this tape. Of course I played part of the show to him. He was right below me”
Hendrix himself had famously addressed about the show in his diaries, writing, “talked with Joni Mitchell on the phone. I think I’ll record her tonight with my excellent tape recorder (knock on wood) . . . hmmm . . . can’t find any wood . . . everything’s plastic”
