Joni Mitchell Plays Surprise Newport Folk Festival Set

Joni Mitchell surprised the audience with a performance at Newport Folk Festival this past Sunday, July 24. The iconic singer/songwriter had not performed live since 2013 until earlier this year. She joined Brandi Carlile, who has covered Mitchell’s 1971 record Blue in full and has voiced her adoration for the icon in the past.

The pair played multiple Mitchell classics, including “A Case of You,” “Big Yellow Taxi” and “Both Sides Now.” The show marked Mitchell’s first full-length set in over 20 years, and the first time she had played Newport Folk Festival since 1969.

The event was tagged as the “Joni Jam,” and featured guests including Blake Mills, Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Marcus Mumford, Wynonna Judd, Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig (Lucius), and others.

Mitchell also appeared on CBS Mornings today (July 25) to discuss the performance.

Check out fan-recorded footage of Mitchell’s Newport Folk performance below, along with audio from her last appearance at the festival from the Paste archives, and revisit our ranking of her 19 studio albums here.