Not to Blame

This song was obviously directly addressed at Jackson Browne since it refers to two incidents that involved him. But it appears from what I can tell that Joni has an incorrect take on the primary incident mentioned in the song; the assertion that Jackson B beat his former girlfriend, actress Daryl Hannah, on the occasion of their breakup in the early '90s. With a little internet research it's pretty apparent that that's not really what happened. As to the other matter, the death of Jackson's wife (Phyllis) by suicide (in the mid '70s), the circumstances involved there have never been made public as far as I know (it might not be fully understood by anyone), and Joni's depiction may or may not be valid. Obviously it was a sad event in any case. When the song was released Jackson was questioned about it and said Joni should focus on her art and that maybe she still had some residual feelings to resolve from their (brief, I think) liaison many years earlier. I know nothing about that but in the mid 70s I went to a Jackson Browne concert at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles and after it started a small group of people arrived and took seats about 10 rows from the front. When intermission came and the house lights went up a buzz started in the crowd and grew as more and more people gathered around the people who had arrived late. Eventually word worked its way back to where I was sitting that Joni was among those people -- the crowd had gathered around her. So she had gone out into public to see Jackson perform. A couple of songs before the concert ended, she and her entourage left. Take that for whatever it's worth; it's not necessarily relevant to this song, just thought I'd note that it happened. Good concert, by the way -- it was in the period when JB was introducing his listening public to the music of Warren Zevon, before he produced Zevon's first album.

Not to Blame' is widely believed to be Joni Mitchell's condemnation of Browne as a wife-beater who drove his first wife to suicide and a coward who always says he's not to blame.

Mitchell released this attack on Browne not long after rumours circulated suggesting that Browne had beaten Daryl Hannah. Browne denied the rumour. He's said he tried to talk to Mitchell about her song, but wasn't able to.

Hannah sustained injuries during the incident, but she's never directly accused Browne. Her press release on the day of the incident said, 'She received serious injuries incurred during a domestic dispute with Browne for which she sought medical treatment'.

Hannah's uncle attended the clinic and publicly confirmed the injuries. Browne has always denied assaulting Hannah but has never explained how she got those injuries. No charges were made against Browne, and there was no proper police investigation.

Having carried out my own investigation, my opinion - for what it's worth - is that Browne almost certainly didn't assault Hannah. I think that Hannah might have had an autistic rage episode* during which either she inflicted the injuries on herself, or she attacked Browne and was injured when he defended himself.

David Yaffe's 2017 biography of Mitchell, 'Reckless Daughter', based on extensive recorded conversations with her, shows that, 45 years after her brief relationship with Browne, she carries an intense and bitter hatred for him. Yaffe described 'Not to Blame' as 'a violent and personal attack'.

See also my comment (if it's still there) under Hejira's 'Song For Susan'. That song includes a coded implication that Browne caused the suicide of his first wife, Phyllis Major.

Major suffered extreme postnatal depression. She took an overdose of barbiturate sleeping pills. There's no corroboration whatsoever for Mitchell's suggestion in both 'Not to Blame' and 'Song For Sharon' that Browne drove her to it.

See, if you will, my blogpost about the rumour that Jackson Browne assaulted Daryl Hannah. It includes a detailed account of Mitchell's brief relationship with Browne, and its bitter aftermath.

My detailed analysisof 'Not to Blame': soothfairy.com/2015/03/29/jackson-browne-and-daryl-hannah/

• theneurotypical.com/rage-cycle-in-hfa.html