His latest project is River: The Joni Letters (Verve, 2007), a tribute to the music of an old friend and colleague, Joni Mitchell. Hancock recorded with Mitchell on her 1979 Asylum album, Mingus, which was done in collaboration with jazz great Charles Mingus, stricken at the time with the Multiple Sclerosis that would take his life before long. Hancock later appeared on Mitchell's 2000 orchestral collection for Reprise, Both Sides Now. Hancock's new project is produced by Mitchell's former collaborator and husband, Larry Klein. It's a docket of almost all Mitchell-penned music, but reworked through different sensibilities.
Hancock took time out of a busy schedule recently to discuss the new record with AAJ contributor R.J. DeLuke.
Check out Herbie Hancock: Inspired By the Written Word of a Friend at AAJ today!
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