In 1968, Judy Collins had her first Top 10 single, with “Both Sides Now”. Part of her Wildflowers album, “Both Sides Now” was written by Joni Mitchell, who later recorded the song herself. But it’s Collins who first released “Both Sides Now”, a song that went on to be recorded more than a thousand times.
“Both Sides, Now” says in part, “I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now / From up and down and still somehow / It’s clouds’ illusions I recall / I really don’t know clouds at all.“
Collins has a close friend, Al Kooper, to thank for her even getting this song. Collins, who had yet to have a successful single, was a big fan of Mitchell. Kooper reportedly met Mitchell in a bar and followed her home. He subsequently called Collins from Mitchell’s place, so Mitchell could sing “Both Sides Now” to Collins over the phone.
“I had never heard a song that I felt was so beautiful,” Collins said.
Mitchell went on to record “Both Sides Now” as part of her sophomore Clouds album, out in 1969. Over 1000 artsits later recorded ‘Both Sides Now”, including Neil Diamond, Frank Sinatra, Willie Nelson, and Ronan Keating, among others. Still, Collins says the song was always meant to be hers.
“Some people are bound to sing certain songs,” Collins told Grammy.com. “It was instantly obvious to me that ‘Both Sides Now’ was my song.”
The Story Behind “Both Sides Now” by Joni Mitchell
Mitchell later revealed that it was a 1959 novel that inspired her to write “Both Sides Now”.
“I was reading Saul Bellow’s Henderson the Rain King on a plane, and early in the book Henderson the Rain King is also up in a plane,” Mitchell told the Los Angeles Times. “He’s on his way to Africa, and he looks down and sees these clouds. I put down the book, looked out the window and saw clouds too, and I immediately started writing the song. I had no idea that the song would become as popular as it did.”
In 2000, Mitchell released an album called Both Sides Now. That record earned Mitchell a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. Although Collins was nominated seven times throughout her career, the only Grammy Award she ever won was for this song, for Best Folk Performance.
In 2005, Parton released Those Were The Days, a record of covers, which includes this song. Parton sings “Both Sides Now” on Those Were The Days with Collins and Rhonda Vincent.
Photo by Jack Robinson/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
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