Kate wrote: "when i tell people about the jonifest i say we are going to a small festival where musicians who have been heavily influenced by joni come from all over the world to play with each other...
i put it on my gig page as a private event..." And I say: interesting, the different ways musicians and non-musicians look at this! I tell people, when I get that far, that Jonifest is a time when people from all over the world who enjoy Joni's music come together to hang out. And, oh, yeah, listen to some in our midst who are far more talented than I make really great music. ;-) As to partners liking, or not liking, Joni: my long-time partner has never made a secret of the fact that Joni is not his cup of tea. I think that's less a reflection on Joni than the fact that his musical tastes lie in different directions: mainly, classical Western music and "classical jazz," with perhaps some well-done show tunes sprinkled in. And Joni's music means too much to me to try to force it on anyone as a sort of apologist, so that's an area of my life that I've continued to enjoy and develop in private, outside our relationship. I suppose I feel little or nothing of a "lack" there, because the JMDL has been part of my life for nearly as long as he has! Interestingly enough, though, my partner has developed a healthy appreciation for the JMDL. We travel a lot, and he has come to expect that, almost literally, I will have a "Joni friend" in every port who we can meet and have a drink or dinner with. He was with me in Saskatoon two years ago, and, to this day, asks me about the well-being and current endeavors of the JMDLers he met there. (Hi, Ranger and Coyote Rick!) Finally, although I suspect that my partner will never voluntarily go to a Joni concert or sit through a tribute, he commented several times in Saskatoon and thereafter that he really enjoyed Joni's PAINTINGS. I think he'd definitely go to another Joni *art exhibit*! Mary P. P.S. It has occurred to me that the best point of introduction for J. of Joni's music, if in many ways the least representative, would be _Both Sides Now_. Maybe I'll slip it into the CD player during our next Sunday dinner. ;-)
