Herbie Hancock Pays Tribute To Joni Mitchell

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Pianist Herbie Hancock, along with a band comprised of saxophonist Wayne Shorter, bassist Dave Holland, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and guitarist Lionel Loueke, will release a Joni Mitchell tribute album Sept. 25 on Verve Records.

River: The Joni Letters is a collection of songs, vocal and instrumental, composed by or influential to the singer-songwriter. Produced and arranged by Mitchell’s longtime producer Larry Klein and Hancock, it features guest vocalists Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Tina Turner, Norah Jones, Corinne Bailey Rae and Luciana Souza.

Hancock first worked with Mitchell on the singer-songwriter’s Mingus, an album of collaborations between Mitchell and the great bassist and composer Charles Mingus . Together with Shorter, Hancock was part of a small group with which Mitchell tried to craft a new “conversational” approach to coupling lyrics with instrumental jazz.

River will be released on the same day as Mitchell’s own Shine, which is her debut for Hear Music, the new Starbucks Entertainment/Concord Music label.



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