Was “Big Yellow Taxi” The First Song About Climate Change?

[raymondbullock]

This was not about Climate change but about environmental damage. The story goes Mitchell flew into Hawaii at night and in the morning pulling back the curtains from her penthouse suite of her hotel and expecting to see the spectacular beauty of Waikili beach she says all she could see was concrete. It seemed the whole area appeared to be concreted over with car parks and shopping malls etc.

[Robodude_]

A marvelous talent. This song is timeless. Simultaneously catchy, deep, and poignant. Bravo 👏

[nllleonard]

She has always been ahead of her time, an oracle and a prophet. Love and blessings to the great lady.

[kathleenmacfarland]

The system won’t let me give a Thumbs You Ms. Joni Mitchell♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

[troutfisher]

Marvin Gaye's Mercy Mercy came out in 1971, and John Prine's Paradise also came out in 1971, the environmental movement was already strong and lots of people were writing songs about it. Those songs shaped environmental policy. We got the clean water, and clean air acts.

[carpenterbluechicken]

Way to go her and she said it right she knew what she was doing and we are all living in a parking lot of our own crap. You be my biggest fan, love you Joni

[merrittmontgomery]

Those words written in the ‘70’s so prophetic today! I love hearing Joni sing! It reminds of my whole life! ❤

[kevinbwillson]

Joni is the best ever Thank you for your loving art

[anonymousposs]

What a magnificent instrument is this voice. Thank you Joni.

[bendjlyfe]

7:01 they paved paradise, put up a parking lot 🎶
14:28 😂😂

[Jimi_Lee]

There's nothing in the song about climate. It's about pollution and the over development of the world's most beautiful natural environments. Not all pollution is CO2 in the atmosphere. Most of it is plain to see, undeniable, tangible and can be dealt with using common sense practices.

[BlankPictures-]

Big difference between climate change and environment damage, please don't group the two.

[fatimaacosta]

Me hace acordar tanto de Harry Styles bellooo💚😍😍

[mindheartspeak]

love this song. as always. joni's songs are.

[peterrolsted]

the climate and the environment are two different things and, here, Joni sings about the environment not really the climate

[Daveable]

It is a break up song. "A big yellow taxi took away my old man."

[John-vxlt]

It was about big cooperation destroying beauty for a simple buck

[elizabethmarzluf]

I love Joni, played many of her songs and what she says still rings true today

[KevinB-pdme]

No, she was actually complaining about the huge urban heat islands we creaste by paving over everything. Then we locate our regional weather stations at the worst heat islands of them all, the regional airports, with their square miles of solar-heated tarmac. Then we scream about "global warming" ignoring that the typical urban area is 5-10F hotter than the surrounding rural areas.

[michaelmanus]

The song is about a very real place that once existed in Hollywood on Sunset Blvd near Laurel Canyon. There were bungalow style buildings that were part of a hotel. It was called the Garden of Allah after a movie reference by one if its actors (silent). She would have movie star guests and later other types of stars would go there. Sadly, it was razed and a bank and strip mall was put there with a large parking lot. The yellow taxi reference may be about Robert Benchley who would stay there but was afraid to cross Sunset Blvd. He would flag down a taxi to simply get across the street.