Discography

Chalk Mark In a Rainstorm

Release date:  March 23, 1988



Album Notes

PRODUCED BY JONI MITCHELL AND LARRY KLEIN

Mixed by MIKE SHIPLEY and DAN MARNIEN
Engineer DAN MARNIEN
Additional engineering DAVID BOTTRILL, HENRY LEWY, JULIE LAST, MIKE SHIPLEY, ALAN SMART

Engineering Assistants JULIE LAST, BILL JENKINS, MIKE ROSS, ROBIN LANE, DAVE STALLBAUMER, CHRIS FUHRMAN, ANGUS DAVIDSON, FRED HOWARD, RICHARD COTTRELL, RICK O’NEIL, JOHN PAYNE.

Recorded at
ASHCOMBE HOUSE Bath, England
THE WOOL HALL Beckington, England
ARTISAN RECORDING STUDIOS Los Angeles
THE VILLAGE Los Angeles
OCEAN WAY RECORDING STUDIOS Los Angeles
A&M RECORDING STUDIOS Los Angeles
GROUND CONTROL Santa Monica, CA
SOUND CASTLE Los Angeles
GALAXY STUDIOS Los Angeles

Mastered by BOB LUDWIG, MASTERDISK, New York City

Keyboard Programming LARRY KLEIN

Side One

MY SECRET PLACE
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
MANU KATCHÉ Drums, talking drum
LARRY KLEIN Bass, Keyboards
PETER GABRIEL Vocals, background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, guitars, keyboards

NUMBER ONE
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
JONI MITCHELL Drum programming
MANU KATCHÉ Snare drum
LARRY KLEIN Bass
STEVEN LINDSEY Organ
BENJAMIN ORR Background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, guitars, keyboards

LAKOTA
WORDS BY JONI MITCHELL
MUSIC BY LARRY KLEIN AND JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music/Dee Klein Music BMI
MANU KATCHÉ Drums and percussion
LARRY KLEIN Basses, keyboard
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitar
IRON EYES CODY Intro Vocal, background vocals
DON HENLEY Background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals

THE TEA LEAF PROPHECY (LAY DOWN YOUR ARMS)
WORDS BY JONI MITCHELL
MUSIC BY LARRY KLEIN AND JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music/Dee Klein Music BMI
MANU KATCHÉ Drums and percussion
LARRY KLEIN Bass, keyboard
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitar
WENDY MELVOIN, LISA COLEMAN Background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals

DANCIN’ CLOWN
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
THOMAS DOLBY Fairlight Marimba
MANU KATCHÉ Drums, percussion
LARRY KLEIN Bass
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitar
STEVE STEVENS Guitar
BILLY IDOL & TOM PETTY Vocals, background vocals
MANU KATCHÉ, JULIE LAST, LARRY KLEIN, MICHAEL LANDAU Cherchez la femme chorus
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, guitars, keyboards

COOL WATER
WORDS AND MUSIC BY BOB NOLAN
REVISED LYRICS BY JONI MITCHELL
Copyright © 1936 Valley Publishers, Inc. and American Music Inc. BMI
Copyright renewed. Assigned to Elvis Presley Music and Unichappell Music, Inc. (Rightsong Music, Publisher). All rights for the world controlled by Unichappell Music, Inc. International Copyright secured. All rights reserved. Revised lyrics copyright ©1988 by Elvis Presley Music and Unichappell Music, Inc.
MANU KATCHÉ Drums, percussion
LARRY KLEIN Bass, 808 congas
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitar
WILLIE NELSON Vocals, background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, guitars, keyboards

THE BEAT OF BLACK WINGS
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
JONI MITCHELL Drum programming
MANU KATCHÉ Talking drum, percussion
LARRY KLEIN Bass
BENJAMIN ORR Background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, keyboards

SNAKES AND LADDERS
WORDS BY JONI MITCHELL
MUSIC BY LARRY KLEIN AND JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music/Dee Klein Music BMI
JONI MITCHELL Drum programming
LARRY KLEIN Bass, keyboards
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitar
DON HENLEY Vocals, background vocals
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, keyboards

THE REOCCURRING DREAM
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
MANU KATCHÉ Drums
LARRY KLEIN Bass
MICHAEL LANDAU Guitars
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, background vocals, keyboards, collage

A BIRD THAT WHISTLES
(Arrangement of the traditional work Corrina, Corrina)
WORDS AND MUSIC BY JONI MITCHELL
©1988 Crazy Crow Music BMI
LARRY KLEIN Bass
WAYNE SHORTER Saxophones
JONI MITCHELL Vocals, guitar

Lyrics Reprinted by Permission. All Rights Reserved.

Thomas Dolby appears courtesy of EMI-Manhatten Records, a Division of Capitol Records, Inc.
Billy Idol appears courtesy of Chrysalis Records
Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman appear courtesy of Columbia Records
Willie Nelson appears courtesy of Columbia Records
Benjamin Orr appears courtesy of Elektra Records
Tom Petty appears courtesy of MCA Records, Inc.
Wayne Shorter appears courtesy of Columbia Records
Steve Stevens appears courtesy of Warner Bros. Records Inc.

Special thanks to Bob Bradshawe, Andy Brauer Doug Buttleman and Yamaha International, Lon Cohen, Manny Elias, Peter Gabriel, William Greider, Amanda Harcourt, Federico Jimenez, Juan Jimenez, Julie Last, Thom Moore, Paul and the gang at Ground Control, Hilary Prusser, Walter Rice, Patsy Smith, Dave Stallbaumer, Dave Taraskevics, Fred Walecki.

GLEN CHRISTENSEN Art Direction
JONI MITCHELL Design
LARRY KLEIN Photography
ASHER/KROST MANAGEMENT Management
GLORIA BOYCE Production Assistant

Reviews of the album from the Library:

Transcriptions of songs from the album:

Comments:

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1angels on

One of my favorite songs over the years has been "Cool Water" played by such notables as Burl Ives, Riders in the Sky, Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers amongst others. But this version of that song is the most incredible I have ever heard...

Jonemone on

I remember when I first heard this album in '88. After almost a decade of awful 80's big hair and cheap pop on the radio this album was a relief and refreshing return to quality music. My Secret Place is one of my favorite duets. Being a Peter Gabriel fan and a Ladies of the Canyon fan I was in heaven. After almost 20 years I still don't know what my favorite song is on this album. The arrangement is such that it just flows from one song to the next. I recently pulled this cd off the shelf after several years and again I just love, love, love every note. This world is truly a better place with Joni Mitchell in it.

charliebu on

That's so interesting Stimpy, thanks for letting us know! The most Joni has said about this song is that it was based on a conversation she had in her early years as a singer, after she'd played to an audience of GIs and one of them came up to her and said something like 'You've got some cheek to stand up there and sing about love', and went on to tell her his story. But obviously she's drawn inspiration from that film - it can't be a coincidence. In any case many of her songs are cinematic, in their style of story-telling, and also sometimes based on films (Hana, and Night of the Iguana in her last album, for example).

'Chalkmark' has never been a favourite album of mine, but it has some powerful songs. One of the best I now think, is Lakota - having heard a pared down version (Joni on guitar with Larry Klein on bass, at the San Remo festival, Italy) - incredibly soulful and powerful. Most of that power was lost on the album, in my opinion, through overproduction.

Anyway, must look up The Looking-Glass War. Thanks!

stimpy on

Just a quick comment on "The Beat of Black Wings," which I think is the best track on the record.
This song is actually about (watching) the film version of John Le Carre's "The Lokking Glass War," which was made in 1969 in England and features a young Anthony Hopkins in a supporting role.
The film is, in fact, about a "young soldier," (played by Christopher Jones) who is (forcibly) recruited by the British Secret Service to infiltrate East germany during the Cold war and photograph a missile site.

About 45 minutes into the film there is scene where Leiser (the soldier) breaks out of the training school visits his girl friend/fiance who tells him, after he literally "put's his hand on her belly" to feel his unborn son, that she has ended the pregnancy without telling him.

He becomes violent and storms out,with Anthony Hopkins in tow, to go get blind drunk in a pub in London.
Many drinks later, he tries to start up a conversation with 2 "mod" girls in the bar seated at a nearby table.

Blowing him off, one of the girls asks him for his zodiak sign, and then tells him, dismisssively, that she "sees black wings beating all around him."

He and Hopkins leave the pub into a rainstorm, where Leiser its on the curb next to a bohemian street artist who is drawing pictures (you guessed it) "on the sidewalk with chalk."

Too much to be a coincidence IMO.
Rent it from Netflix and check it out for yourself. Its not a bad film either, BTW.

Stimpy