# This Flight Tonight

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1971 song by Joni Mitchell; a hit for Nazareth

"This Flight Tonight" Song by Joni Mitchell from the album Blue Released 22 June 1971 Genre Folk Length 2:51 Label Reprise Songwriter Joni Mitchell Producer Joni Mitchell Official audio "This Flight Tonight" on YouTube

"**This Flight Tonight**" is a song originally by [Joni Mitchell](/source/Joni_Mitchell), from her 1971 album *[Blue](/source/Blue_(Joni_Mitchell_album))*. Scottish [hard rock](/source/Hard_rock) band [Nazareth](/source/Nazareth_(band)) released the song as a single in 1973 that charted internationally.

## Original recording

[Joni Mitchell](/source/Joni_Mitchell) wrote and released the song on her 1971 album *[Blue](/source/Blue_(Joni_Mitchell_album))*. The song tells of Mitchell's regrets as she leaves her lover on a flight and wishes to return. The track was also released as the [B-side](/source/B-side) of "[Carey](/source/Carey_(song))".[1]

Mitchell plays guitar and sings, and was the [producer](/source/Record_producer), [pedal steel guitar](/source/Pedal_steel_guitar) is by [Sneaky Pete Kleinow](/source/Sneaky_Pete_Kleinow) and [Henry Lewy](/source/Henry_Lewy) was the [engineer](/source/Audio_engineer).[2]

## Nazareth cover

"This Flight Tonight" Cover of the 1973 German single Single by Nazareth from the album Loud 'n' Proud B-side "Called Her Name" Released October 1973 Genre Hard rock[3] Label Mooncrest Songwriter Joni Mitchell Producer Roger Glover Nazareth singles chronology "Broken Down Angel" (1973) "This Flight Tonight" (1973) "Love Hurts" (1974) Video "This Flight Tonight" (Austrian TV, 1975) on YouTube

Scottish [hard rock](/source/Hard_rock) band [Nazareth](/source/Nazareth_(band)) reworked the song in 1973. Their version, a driving hard-rock arrangement, was a hit in Canada, West Germany (where it reached number one) and the UK.[4][5] It was produced by [Roger Glover](/source/Roger_Glover).[6] The single reached number 11 in the [UK Singles Chart](/source/UK_Singles_Chart) in November 1973. The band re-recorded the song in 1991 for the album *[No Jive](/source/No_Jive)*.

Writing in *[The Independent](/source/The_Independent)* in 2012, [Robert Webb](/source/Robert_Webb) said:

The Dunfermline hard-rockers [Nazareth](/source/Nazareth_(band)) loved *Blue*. You remember them: the gap-toothed vocalist, [Dan McCafferty](/source/Dan_McCafferty), had hair like a kitchen scourer and a voice to match. They were bad, bad boys. Among the tracks on their 1973 album *[Loud 'n' Proud](/source/Loud_'n'_Proud)*, produced by the former [Deep Purple](/source/Deep_Purple) bassist [Roger Glover](/source/Roger_Glover), is a taut version of "This Flight". "We used to listen to Joni as we were travelling round in the van," recalls Nazareth's bass-player, Pete Agnew. "'This Flight Tonight' was a big favourite."

Mitchell was impressed with the makeover: "When she was recording at [A&M](/source/A%26M_Records), we were just starting an American tour," explains Agnew. "We all happened to be in the studio the day the single was released, so we were introduced to her and told her what we had done. She said, 'What, with a rock band?'" Joni paid the Scottish band the greatest compliment after "This Flight Tonight" became a worldwide hit for them, touching down at No 11 in the UK. "She was playing a gig in London and told the audience: 'I'd like to open with a Nazareth song'!".[7]

[Nancy Wilson](/source/Nancy_Wilson_(rock_musician)) revealed that the guitar riff for Nazareth's version of "This Flight Tonight" inspired the riff for the [Heart](/source/Heart_(band)) song "[Barracuda](/source/Barracuda_(song))".[8]

### Charts

#### Weekly charts

Chart (1973–1974) Peak position Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[9] 2 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[10] 27 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] 5 UK Singles (OCC)[12] 11 West Germany (GfK)[13] 1

#### Year-end charts

Chart (1974) Position Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[14] 4 West Germany (Der Musikmarkt)[15] 11

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Joni Mitchell – Carey"](http://www.discogs.com/Joni-Mitchell-Carey/master/344603). [Discogs](/source/Discogs). 1971. Retrieved 10 January 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** *Blue* (LP liner notes). Joni Mitchell. US: Reprise Records. 1971. MS 2038.{{[cite AV media notes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_AV_media_notes)}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_others_in_cite_AV_media_(notes)))

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Song Review by Donald A. Guarisco. ["This Flight Tonight – Nazareth | Listen, Appearances, Song Review"](http://www.allmusic.com/song/this-flight-tonight-mt0033935355). AllMusic. Retrieved 4 July 2015.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** M. C. Strong (1998), [*The great rock discography*](https://books.google.com/books?id=2C6I4KfgJ1kC&pg=RA1-PA565), p. 565, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-88-09-21522-1](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-88-09-21522-1)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Dave Thompson (2004), [*Smoke on the Water: The Deep Purple Story*](https://books.google.com/books?id=LzzCw6xs9roC&pg=PA201), pp. 201–202, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-55022-618-8](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-55022-618-8)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Nazareth (2) – This Flight Tonight"](http://www.discogs.com/Nazareth-This-Flight-Tonight-Called-Her-Name/release/1336123). [Discogs](/source/Discogs). October 1973. Retrieved 27 May 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** [Robert Webb](/source/Robert_Webb) (13 September 2002). ["Double Take: 'This Flight Tonight' – Joni Mitchell / Nazareth"](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/double-take-this-flight-tonight--joni-mitchell--nazareth-138472.html). *[The Independent](/source/The_Independent)*. [Archived](https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220507/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/double-take-this-flight-tonight--joni-mitchell--nazareth-138472.html) from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2015.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** ["Heart's Nancy Wilson: We Took 'Barracuda' Riff From Legendary Band"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MR28NW1sLM). *YouTube*. 5 March 2019. [Archived](https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211220/7MR28NW1sLM) from the original on 20 December 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-sc_Austria_Nazareth_9-0)** "[Nazareth – This Flight Tonight](https://austriancharts.at/showitem.asp?interpret=Nazareth&titel=This+Flight+Tonight&cat=s)" (in German). [Ö3 Austria Top 40](/source/%C3%963_Austria_Top_40). Retrieved 16 February 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-can_10-0)** "[Top RPM Singles: Image 3850a](https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/films-videos-sound-recordings/rpm/Pages/image.aspx?Image=nlc008388.3850a&URLjpg=http%3a%2f%2fwww.collectionscanada.gc.ca%2fobj%2f028020%2ff4%2fnlc008388.3850a.gif&Ecopy=nlc008388.3850a)". *[RPM](/source/RPM_(magazine))*. [Library and Archives Canada](/source/Library_and_Archives_Canada). Retrieved 16 February 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-sc_Switzerland_Nazareth_11-0)** "[Nazareth – This Flight Tonight](http://swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Nazareth&titel=This+Flight+Tonight&cat=s)". [Swiss Singles Chart](/source/Swiss_Hitparade). Retrieved 16 February 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-uk_12-0)** "[Official Singles Chart on 4/11/1973 – Top 100](https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/19731104/7501/)". [Official Charts Company](/source/Official_Charts_Company). Retrieved 16 February 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-sc_West_Germany_Nazareth_13-0)** "[Offizielle Deutsche Charts (West Germany)](https://www.offiziellecharts.de/titel-details-309)" (in German). [GfK Entertainment charts](/source/GfK_Entertainment_charts). To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 16 February 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** ["Jahreshitparade Singles 1974"](https://austriancharts.at/year.asp?cat=s&id=1974) (in German). Retrieved 23 June 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** ["Top 100 Single–Jahrescharts 1974"](https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/single-jahr/for-date-1974) (in German). [GfK Entertainment](/source/GfK_Entertainment). Retrieved 23 June 2025.

v t e Joni Mitchell Discography Studio albums Song to a Seagull (1968) Clouds (1969) Ladies of the Canyon (1970) Blue (1971) For the Roses (1972) Court and Spark (1974) The Hissing of Summer Lawns (1975) Hejira (1976) Don Juan's Reckless Daughter (1977) Mingus (1979) Wild Things Run Fast (1982) Dog Eat Dog (1985) Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm (1988) Night Ride Home (1991) Turbulent Indigo (1994) Taming the Tiger (1998) Both Sides Now (2000) Travelogue (2002) Shine (2007) Live albums Miles of Aisles Shadows and Light Amchitka, The 1970 Concert That Launched Greenpeace Joni Mitchell at Newport Compilation albums Hits Misses The Beginning of Survival Dreamland Songs of a Prairie Girl Love Has Many Faces: A Quartet, a Ballet, Waiting to Be Danced Joni's Jazz Archives series Box sets Volume 1: The Early Years (1963–1967) The Reprise Albums (1968–1971) Volume 2: The Reprise Years (1968–1971) The Asylum Albums (1972–1975) Volume 3: The Asylum Years (1972–1975) The Asylum Albums (1976–1980) Volume 4: The Asylum Years (1976–1980) Auxiliary releases Early Joni – 1963 Blue 50 (Demos & Outtakes) Live albums Live at Canterbury House – 1967 Live at Carnegie Hall – 1969 Singles "Chelsea Morning" "Big Yellow Taxi" "Carey" "California" "You Turn Me On, I'm a Radio" "Raised on Robbery" "Help Me" "Free Man in Paris" "In France They Kiss on Main Street" "Coyote" "My Secret Place" Notable songs "Both Sides, Now" "The Fiddle and the Drum" "Woodstock" "The Circle Game" "Little Green" "Blue" "This Flight Tonight" "River" "A Case of You" "The Last Time I Saw Richard" "Down to You" "Twisted" "Two Grey Rooms" Tribute albums Back to the Garden River: The Joni Letters A Tribute to Joni Mitchell Joni 75: A Birthday Celebration Related articles L.A. Express Blackface controversy Category

v t e Nazareth Pete Agnew Jimmy Murrison Lee Agnew Gianni Pontillo Dan McCafferty Manny Charlton Darrell Sweet Zal Cleminson Billy Rankin John Locke Ronnie Leahy Linton Osborne Carl Sentance Studio albums Nazareth Exercises Razamanaz Loud 'n' Proud Rampant Hair of the Dog Close Enough for Rock 'n' Roll Play 'n' the Game Expect No Mercy No Mean City Malice in Wonderland The Fool Circle 2XS Sound Elixir The Catch Cinema Snakes 'n' Ladders No Jive Move Me Boogaloo The Newz Big Dogz Rock 'n' Roll Telephone Tattooed on My Brain Surviving the Law Live albums BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert 'Snaz Live at the Beeb Homecoming Back to the Trenches Alive & Kicking Compilations Greatest Hits Hot Tracks From the Vaults Greatest Hits Volume II Maximum XS Songs "Broken Down Angel" "Bad Bad Boy" "My White Bicycle" "Morning Dew" The Ballad of Hollis Brown" "Hair of the Dog" "Love Hurts" "This Flight Tonight" "Holiday" "Dream On" "Shanghai'd in Shanghai" Other Discography

Authority control databases MusicBrainz work

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [This Flight Tonight](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Flight_Tonight) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Flight_Tonight?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.