Watch Joni Mitchell's amazing performance in the famous post-Woodstock episode of the Dick Cavett Show

On this day (August 19) in 1969, Joni Mitchell made her first US television appearance on The Dick Cavett ShowThe memorable episode also featured some of Mitchell's musical friends and contemporaries, Jefferson Airplane and Crosby, Stills, David Crosby and Stephen Stills of Nash & Young, who had just performed at the historic Woodstock festival in the days before.

Mitchell herself was scheduled to perform at Woodstock on Sunday, August 17, but her agent David Geffen cancelled her appearance because he was worried about how he would get her from the chaotic festival grounds to her planned performance at the Cavett Show punctual.

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The program included a lively panel discussion in which moderator Dick Cavett chatted with the musicians about their experiences at the festival, the political and social climate in the US at the time, and much more. The show also featured excellent performances by Mitchell, Jefferson Airplane, and Stills.

Mitchell, at the peak of her vocal abilities, offered renditions of four of her songs. These included flawless versions of two previously unreleased songs, “Willy” and “For Free.” Both would appear on the Canadian singer/songwriter’s next studio album, Ladies of the Canyonwhich was published in 1970.

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Mitchell's performance of “Willy” and “For Free”

For her performances of “Willy” and “For Free,” Mitchell stood up from a raised circular stage area where Cavett was interviewing the musicians and sat at a piano.

Jefferson Airplane singer Grace Slick and several of her bandmates jumped up and gave Joni a big round of applause as the crowd joined in.

Mitchell introduced “Willy” as “a song for my husband and a song for the moon.” Joni wrote the tune for her then-boyfriend, Graham Nash of CSNY, whose nickname was Willy. In the song, Mitchell sings of her deep affection for Graham while also admitting his fears about marriage.

Mitchell's beautifully sung and performed version of “Willy” was followed by an equally powerful and emotional performance of “For Free.” As she explains in her introduction, Joni was inspired to write “For Free” by a busker she saw playing on the corner of 6th Avenue and 8th Street in New York City.

In the song, Joni observes the musicians playing great music for free on the street as people walk by without paying him any attention. She contrasts this with her own privileged life as a music star, where she gets paid a lot of money to sing for people.