How Joni Mitchell tried to beat the system and secure a chart hit: “DJs have to like it”
Few songwriters can look at Joni Mitchell’s career without a twinge of envy. Through a string of profoundly important and beloved albums, Mitchell has crafted a legacy that is remarkably dual-edged. Her work is not only widely celebrated and recognised as some of the finest singer-songwriter material ever produced, but it also holds a special place in the hearts of fellow artists. Mitchell’s music resonates with both the general public and the artistic community, giving her a rare combination of widespread and singular appeal.
But while songs like ‘A Case of You’, ‘River’ and ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ are anthemic and adored, they weren’t chart hits. The latter is her highest charting single of all time, and it only broke the top ten. Considering in the UK, she only achieved this feat once, despite having some of the greatest albums of all time like Court and Spark, Blue, and Hejira, it’s no surprise that at one point in her career, she decided to turn her attention to making headway up the charts.
Though she may have found fame during the peak of single sales, with records featuring only two songs were often picked up by fans in record shops, Mitchell rarely hit huge numbers with her releases. In 1972, as Mitchell’s fame began to hit new heights and the need for a few more dollars in the bank to match her widespread appeal grew, Mitchell set out to write a chart-topper.
Featured on her record For The Roses, the 1972 release of ‘You Turn Me On I’m a Radio’ was nothing much more than a secret ploy to hit number one. As well as inviting David Crosby, Graham Nash and Neil Young to the recording session—though Nash’s harmonica was the only part used in the final release—the conception of the track was also a conceived plot for the big time.
It’s hard to imagine from the 21st century just how influential radio DJs could be in the 1970s. But when you remember that almost every music lover’s first interaction with a song was either via a friend or a radio station, then the power held by those who picked the tracks to hit the airwaves becomes all too clear. Mitchell knew this and set about writing herself a song for disc jockeys across the country.
“I decided there were some ways to make a hit, increase the chances,” Mitchell said in Sounds about the under-three-minute tune. “DJs have to like it,” she mused, “So you put a long part at the beginning and the end so the DJs can talk over it. Take a tender situation and translate it into commonly appealing songs for the DJs. It’d have to be a bit corny, so I wrote this little song called ‘Oh Honey, You Turn Me On, I’m A Radio.'”
Unfortunately for Mitchell, the track didn’t hit the heights she had hoped. It failed to break the top 20 in the US and only hit the top ten in Canada. While Mitchell had been canny in her assertions of what makes sure a song gets played, she forgot to include the two vital ingredients of a chorus and a hook, which helps to bed it into the minds of the audience at home or in their car. Without those two additions, Mitchell’s chart hopes were always likely to be left in tatters.
