Music icon Joni Mitchell delves into archives for new 6CD box set

The Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 4: The Asylum Years (1976-1980) is the latest from the acclaimed singer-songwriter, taking a look back at her remarkable career.

The release traces an important transformational season of her creative evolution in the late 1970s and continues her Grammy-winning, multi-volume journey through her previously unmined archives.

The collection features unreleased studio sessions, alternate versions, live recordings, rarities and a 36-page book with new photos and an extensive conversation between Joni and Cameron Crowe.

Material is sourced from original stereo reels, Nagra Film Recordings, multi-track tapes, radio airchecks and cassette tapes.

Throughout the latter half of the seventies, Joni Mitchell continued to creatively break ground with her fearless and fluid exploration of jazz.

Rather than tread the same path, she challenged and reinvented her style with a folk fusion like no other.

Ascending to an unrivaled sonic peak, this innovative sound took shape across the gold-certified Hejira [1976], the gold-certified double-LP Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter [1977], her collaboration with Charles Mingus entitled Mingus [1979], and live album Shadows and Light [1980].

Channeling the thrill and excitement of these records, she delves even further into this season on Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 4: The Asylum Years (1976-1980), released via Rhino Records.

It stands out as the 12th release by the Joni Mitchell Archives and extends Rhino’s ongoing, GRAMMY-winning series exploring the vast untapped archives of rare Joni Mitchell recordings — a project guided intimately by Mitchell’s own vision and personal touch.

Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 4: The Asylum Years (1976-1980) arrives in multiple configurations.

It is available as either a 6CD/digital version or a 4LP version, Joni Mitchell Archives - Volume 4 Highlights: The Asylum Years (1976-1980).

The 4LP set also specifically consists of Joni’s personal favorites from the 6CD version.

Each version includes a book with never-before-seen photos and liner notes comprising a deep dive discussion between Mitchell and longtime friend Cameron Crowe.

As part of their candid conversation, she shares intimate anecdotes, memories, and stories from that five-year creative run.

This comprehensive and essential set spans one of the most prolific periods of her storied career. It boasts powerful live tracks from her time in Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue during 1975 and 1976 Tour of the United States.

It pulls back the curtain on the music by showcasing early recordings and alternate takes from the respective sessions for Hejira, Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter, and Mingus.

It covers the Bread & Roses Festival as well as the Anti-Nuclear Rally.

Finally, Vol. 4 chronicles her 1979 tour, even showcasing two tracks from that year’s tour rehearsals. Not to mention, it showcases her versatility and adaptability, housing collaborations with everyone from Herbie Hancock and Jaco Pastorious to Wayne Shorter and Pat Metheny.

Vol. 4 culls the previously-unissued material from original stereo reels, cassette tapes, CD-Rs, and even a radio broadcast. Newly mixed tracks came from multi-track tapes, while a handful of hi-res digital tracks have been sourced from the Bob Dylan Archives.

Last year, she shared Joni Mitchell Archives – Vol. 3: The Asylum Years (1972–1975).

Garnering critical acclaim, Pitchfork dubbed it “excellent” in a positive “8.6-out-of-10.0” review, going on to note, “The box set—which also includes the exhilarating live album Miles of Aisles and the impressionistic The Hissing of Summer Lawns—covers a period of Mitchell’s career that already resists linear narrativizing.”

In addition to features from Rolling Stone and more, Folk Alley raved: “Every track on this Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 3: The Asylum Years (1972-1975) reveals more and more of Mitchell’s magic ways with a song.”

No Depression mused: “It is, in many ways, the most vital and interesting of the three collections so far,” and Flood attested, “this third volume is worth digging into as the best of Rhino’s Archives collections. I’m already excited for Vol. 4.”

It followed 2022’s Vol. 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971). She began this journey with Vol. 1: The Early Years (1963-1967), earning a 2022 Grammy Award for Best Historical Album.

Last autumn, Mitchell appeared at the Hollywood Bowl to perform three songs with Brandi Carlile.

Earlier this year, she impressively made her debut on the Grammy Awards stage with a historic rendition of “Both Sides Now” alongside Carlile, Allison Russell, Lucius, Jacob Collier, Blake Mills, and SistaStrings.

She also accepted a Grammy in the category of “Best Folk Album” for Joni Mitchell At Newport [Live] during the ceremony.

This October 19 and 20, Mitchell will be headlining her own ‘Joni Jam’ at the Hollywood Bowl featuring special ‘Joni Jam’ guests.