River - a podcast by BBC Radio 4

Soul Music with stories of the lasting impact of Joni Mitchell's song 'River', from her iconic 1971 album Blue.

A song about the breakdown of a relationship and of a longing to be elsewhere that has become a melancholy Christmas anthem.

It's coming on Christmas
They're cutting down trees
They're putting up reindeer
And singing songs of joy and peace
Oh I wish I had a river
I could skate away on....

Emotional true stories of what the song means to different people, including:

* Comedian Chris Forbes, who lost his father on Christmas Day
* Isobel, who fell sick far from home and understands the longing to be elsewhere captured in the song
* Laura, who heard the song while pregnant at Christmastime
* Writer Rob Crossan, who will forever associate the song with his first love
* Canadian poet Lorna Crozier who describes the frozen rivers of her and Joni's Saskatchewan childhood

Plus thoughts from Joni Mitchell's biographer, David Yaffe.

Includes a rare live recording of 'River' from a BBC Concert in 1970, hosted by John Peel.

The other versions of the song are by (in order of appearance):

Joni Mitchell (Blue, 1971)
Scott Matthews (Live Session for BBC 6 Music, 2011)
Béla Fleck and the Flecktones (Jingle All the Way, 2008)
The Belgian indie choir Scala & Kolacny Brothers (Live Session for BBC 6 Music, 2011).

Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.

Producer: Mair Bosworth

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2018.

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Website of BBC Radio 4