Fri 7/10 @ 5:30PM
Note: Due to illness and injury of some band members, the Joni Mitchell tribute has been postponed. Instead Tracey Thomas and Tim Longfellow will perform a set of torch songs and standards.
Legendary singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell has been in the news lately, sadly for her health issues. Now 71, she was once the willowy blonde folksinger and muse to many musicians in the Los Angeles music scene, who broke through in a male-dominated era in the traditional role of the girl wielding acoustic guitar and singing about her heartbreak. But she quickly broke the mold and skyrocketed past her peers with adventurous music that reached as far afield as cutting-edge jazz.
She hit her commercial peak in the early-mid ’70s when she began shedding her folkie identity and started to explore new territory with albums like Blue, For the Roses, Court and Spark and The Hissing of Summer Lawns. While she hasn’t released anything since 2007’s shine, her recent brain aneurysm (she’s said to be recovering well) has caused many to reflect on her music and its influence
One of those is Akron’s Tracey Thomas, who has journeyed from her early days with new wave pop/rock ensemble Unit 5 in the late ’70s and early ’80s, through a singer-songwriter period to a period of reaching out to encompass bluegrass and jazz today. She’ll be performing a tribute to Mitchell at an early dinner-hour show at Jilly’s Music Room in Akron, accompanied by her band — Tim Longfellow, Bob Ethington and Toussaint English — plus special guest Cory Thomas. It’s also her birthday weekend so stop in and wish her a happy one.
And stick around and hear Kent’s legendary Numbers Band who start at 8. Jilly’s has a full menu so you can stay for dinner.
There’s no cover.
Akron, OH 44308