HEALTH UPDATE

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AFTER A SERIOUS HEALTH CRISIS, THE ICONIC SINGER IS ENJOYING LIFE AGAIN

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Seventeen months are suffering a life-threatening brain aneurysm, Joni Mitchell, 72 made a rare public appearance Aug. 20, showing up for a Chick Corea concert at the Catalina Bar & Grill in LA. Looking elegant in a wide brimmed black hat and dress, Joni socialized with pals Chick and Herbie Hancock and seemed in high spirits. "Joni still loves music," a friend tells Closer. "Being invited out for a night of jazz and seeing old friends was just too good for her to pass up."

It's been a long road to recovery for the BIG YELLOW TAXI singer, who was hospitalized on March 31, 2015, after being found unconscious in her LA home. She was released after three months and has been slowly working her way back to health. Joni's even started painting again, which she'd been focusing on more than her music before the aneurysm left her debilitated. "Doctors told her it can be two years, sometimes more, to come back fully from an aneurysm," her friend shares. "Joni knows she is lucky to be alive."

During her convalescence, Joni's close confidantes — pals like Leslie Morris, who was appointed conservator to help manage the singer's medical decisions — have rallied around her. Joni's speech returned before she left the hospital, her friend explains, "but it took months until she could get around on her own two feet." Now she has aides who take her to medical appointments and she still does physical and occupational therapy four times a week. "She doesn't get around as well as she used to, but Joni says that's age, not her medical condition," her friend reports.

And for the singer, who has also suffered from Morgellons disease — a mysterious condition that causes crawling sensations on the skin — "The most heartening aspect of her recovery is regaining her motor skills that allow her to paint again," says another friend. "It has only helped her state of mind."

So has spending a night out with friends. "Going to the Chick Corea concert was important for her," says the first pal. "Joni is aware she has millions of fans who care for her. So it finally came time, she figured, to show people, 'Hey, I'm doing OK.'"