“The most beautiful album in the world”: why Jennifer Lawrence loves Joni Mitchell’s ‘Blue’
We’ve all got that one record we fall in love with when we’re young and never let go of. When you stumble upon it, you know you’ve come across something so deeply special, something that will never leave you.
I remember being 14 or 15 and coming across Leonard Cohen’s New Skin for the Old Ceremony for the first time. As soon as I pressed play on ‘Is This What You Wanted’, with its cheeky lyrics, I was instantly drawn in, only to be emotionally battered by the melodies of ‘Chelsea Hotel #2’ straight after. I knew I’d love the record forever, and now, a decade on, the artwork – a painting of two winged naked bodies – sits pride of place on my wall as a reminder. Not just a reminder of how much I love the album, but also that moment of discovery which would come to shape so much of my taste.
No matter who you are, you’ve certainly got an album whose words drive a spear through your heart, its rhythms and melodies as familiar as your own heartbeat. For Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence, it’s another folkie ‘70s album she cites as a favourite.
Talking to Spin back in 2012, the actor, who was in the midst of her Hunger Games success, revealed the music that shaped her. While everything from Spice Girls, Skrillex, and The Black Keys have had an impact on her (she’s got broad taste, it seems), it’s Joni Mitchell who really stands out.
“I love Joni Mitchell. I heard Blue when I was 19 or 20 and I thought it was the most beautiful album in the world,” she explained. It’s a classic, that’s for sure. Released in 1971, the record is widely considered one of the greatest of all time, although proper Mitchell aficionados will often tell you that she’s made better records. You can’t deny how good Blue is, though, which features one of her most iconic songs, ‘A Case of You’.
“I could drink a case of you, darling, and I would still be on my feet,” she sings, perfectly encapsulating that feeling of being addicted to someone, although the track arrives after Mitchell and her subject have parted ways. “Just before our love got lost you said/ ‘I am as constant as a northern star’” are her opening lines; it’s pretty unforgettable.
Lawrence added that she’d love to portray the singer in a biopic, “She’s an interesting character. I hear she’s not very nice, which would be really fun to play.”
After years of speculation regarding a biopic about the singer, Cameron Crowe is finally cooking something up, although Lawrence will not be fulfilling her dream of playing Mitchell. Instead, Anya Taylor-Joy is in talks to play the iconic folk singer, while Meryl Streep is reportedly playing an older version of the star.
With Mitchell working with Crowe to bring the movie to life, I doubt it’ll show the fact that she is “not very nice,” at least according to Lawrence. Perhaps her interpretation of the singer, despite her love for her music, would be rather different – and slightly unforgiving.
