Big Yellow Taxi

"Big Yellow Taxi"
Single by Joni Mitchell from the album Ladies of the Canyon
Released	1970
Format	7"
Recorded	1970
Genre	Folk rock
Length	2:17
Label	Warner Bros. Records
Writer	Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell singles chronology
"Chelsea Morning" (1969) "Big Yellow Taxi"" (1970) "Carey" (1971)

"Big Yellow Taxi" is a song originally written and performed by Joni Mitchell. Mitchell got the idea for the song during a visit to Hawaii. She looked out of her hotel window at the spectacular Pacific mountain scenery, and then down to a parking lot. Joni said this about writing the song to journalist Alan McDougall in the early 1970's : "Living in Los Angeles, smog-choked L.A. is bad enough but the last straw came when I visited Hawaii for the first time. It was night time when we got there, so I didn't get my first view of the scenery until I got up the next morning. The hotel room was quite high up so in the distance I could see the blue Pacific Ocean. I walked over to the balcony and there was the picture book scenery, palm tree swaying in the breeze and all. Then I looked down and there was this ugly concrete car park in the hotel grounds. I thought "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot" and that's how the song "Big Yellow Taxi" was born." ^[1] The song is known for its environmental statement (as assumed from the lyric "paved paradise to put up a parking lot") and sentimental sound. The line, "Took all the trees, put 'em in a tree museum/And charged the people a dollar and a half just to see 'em" refers to Foster Botanical Garden in downtown Honolulu, which is a living museum of tropical plants, some rare and endangered.^[2] In the song's final verse, the political gives way to the personal, as Mitchell recounts the departure of a father figure in the "big yellow taxi" of the title. (In many covers the departed one may be interpreted as variously a boyfriend, a husband, or a father. Sometimes they are merely walking out on the singer; other times it is implied they are being taken away by authorities. This lends the song an almost dystopian feel.)

The song was first put out as a single and then was put on the album Ladies of the Canyon in 1970; a later live version was released in 1975 and reached #24 on the U.S. charts. Mitchell's playful closing lyrics has made the song the most identifiable in her repertoire, still receiving significant airplay in Canada. In 2005, it was voted #9 on CBC's list of the top 50 essential Canadian tracks. In 2007, Joni Mitchell released the album Shine, which includes a re-work of the song.

"Big Yellow Taxi"
Single by Counting Crows featuring Vanessa Carlton from the album Hard Candy
Released	2003
Format	CD single
Recorded	2002
Genre	Rock
Length	3:47
Label	Geffen
Writer	Joni Mitchell
Producer	Steve Lilywhite
Counting Crows featuring Vanessa Carlton singles chronology
"Miami" (2002) "Big Yellow Taxi" (2003) "If I Could Give All My Love (Richard Manuel Is Dead)" (2003)

Cover versions

Many other artists have covered the song, including; Amy Grant, Counting Crows w/Vanessa Carlton, Sandi Thom, Kaya, Pinhead Gunpowder (featuring Billie Joe Armstrong from Green Day on vocals and guitar), Paul Tillotson, Moya Brennan, Keb Mo, Chris Thomas King, Keren Ann, the acappella quintet Toxic Audio, and Bob Dylan, who slightly rewrote the lyrics on the album Dylan, released in 1973. A single version by the singing group The Neighborhood reached the Billboard Top 40 chart in the summer of 1971. The song's title is referenced by Janet Jackson in her single "The Pleasure Principle," from Jackson's 1986 album Control. It is also sampled in Jackson and Q-Tip's single "Got 'Til It's Gone," from Jackson's 1997 album The Velvet Rope. The Counting Crows featuring Adam Duritz and Vanessa Carlton (on back-up vocals) cover of the song is featured on the soundtrack to the movie Two Weeks Notice this song became a big hit and still remains as one of their most well known and most aired songs. (2002). Also the song has been performed as part of the finale during the 1997 Lilith fair tour with Indigo Girls, Jewel, Sarah McLachlan and Meredith Brooks . In 1996 a Big Yellow Taxi (Traffic Jam Mix) did peak US dance charts at #39 and was part of the soundtrack album (see Joni Mitchell#Singles and External Links).

References

External links

• Joni Mitchell
• Lyrics
• Traffic Jam Mix / Friends Soundtrack allmusic
• Traffic Jam Mix Chart Position Billboard Hot Dance Club Play