A homage to Joni Mitchell’s Circle Game. Please share with others.
Full Circle
Would you like to hear a song that speaks to the joy’s and challenges of midlife? A song that describes the transitions women go through as they navigate their way through motherhood, menopause and the empty nest? ‘Full Circle’ highlights and honours these life-changing experiences.
You can listen and download opposite - or scroll down to listen on Spotify, iTunes and other platforms. Downloads are free if you set the price to £0, but you can also choose to make a contribution, half of which I will pass on to Oxfam.
The song was inspired by Joni Mitchell’s ‘Circle Game’, Find out more about the story of the song as well as the lyrics and liner notes below.
The Story Behind the song
I was sitting in a cafe with Joni Mitchell’s “Circle Game’ playing in my mind. There is usually a song playing in my mind at any moment in time. I thought - what a profound and wise commentary on life - the way the years cycle round and round, and yet at the same time the delights and challenges of our lives evolve as new life stages unfold.
And yet Joni was only 23 when she wrote it. She hadn’t really experienced very many ‘revolving years’ herself. And the song only charts the early part of life’s journey - we leave the protagonist at thirty - which probably seemed very old to Joni at the time. What would it be like to write a song that followed the character right through their life? And what would it be like if the character was a woman rather than a man? And so the concept for the song was born.
After that the ideas and words flowed very easily - and of course I had a clear song framework to work to because I followed Joni’s four verse and chorus structure. I started with the lyrics and then added a melody later. I wanted a different melody to Circle Game - but one that echoed the ‘up and down’ quality of the painted ponies on Circle Game’s ‘carousel of time’. The key in Full Circle modulates between verse and chorus adding another dimension of difference.
When it came to arranging, there were lots of possible inspirations to choose from because many artists have covered the Circle Game and approached it in different ways. In the end I decided to stick with Joni’s original as my starting point. That meant having the guitar as the main instrument even though I had written and performed the song on the piano. I discussed possibilities with producer Jake Skinner and although we opted for something that is quite simple and stripped back, we added strings and harmonies which Joni’s recording doesn’t have.
I really wanted the song to come round full circle to where it had begun - hence repeating that theme at the end of the song - thanks to Dan Whitehouse who suggested this simple but effective cycle of chords and to Andy Stuart Buttle for his beautiful strings, guitar and harmonies.
Lyrics and liner notes
Verse 1
Yesterday a girl went out to wonder
Chased a dragonfly beside a stream
Playful in the dawn light’s glowing colours
And faithful to the calling of her dreams
Chorus
And the wheels of life they spin round and round,
the racing pedals go up and down
We’re driven by an urgency inside
Ride so fast but when we get to where we’re going we will come
Full circle back to where we have begun
Verse 2
Girlhood yields to womanhood triumphant
Now marriage, work and children turn the wheels
Arms so full she hardly has a moment
To feel the joy that chases at her heels
Chorus
Verse 3
Children grow and find their own new orbit
The end of the monthly circle time draws near
Empty spaces fill her home and haunt her nights now
And she asks “why did I race my way to here?”
Chorus
Verse 4
Now she takes her time to watch the moments spinning
Emptiness and fullness merge to one
And she wonders at the beauty of the dusk light
And the dragonflies shimmer in the evening sun
Chorus
Lyrics and melody by Joy Jefford
Copyright: Joy MacKeith
Producer, sound recording, mixing and mastering: Jake Skinner (Echopine Music)
Lead vocals and piano: Joy Jefford
Acoustic guitar, bass guitar, violin, viola, cello, backing vocals: Andrew Stuart-Buttle
joy performs 'full circle' at ep launch
“This song gave me chills! .... such amazing lyrics! The melody is so beautiful! You just painted such a gorgeous imagery and a heartfelt feeling in my soul. Thank you! ”
— Talent is Timeless judge's comments 2025