Posted October 04, 2015
JoniMitchell.com is sad to announce the passing of Arthur Kratzmann, an early and powerful influence on Joni's life. Joni dedicated her first album to him, writing a single line as the liner notes to the album - "This album is dedicated to Mr. Kratzmann, who taught me to love words." Joni speaks about him in this interview from the American Master Series entitled Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and Mind.
Mr Kratzmann told Joni early in her life "if you can paint with a brush you can paint with words", a phrase Joni has repeated many times throughout her life - even using a version of it as a title for her special concert event from 1998. More on Arthur's life is in this interview from 2002.
Arthur is being honored with a special ceremony on October 10th. Our condolences and thoughts go out to his family at this time.