NEW YORK — Posters adorning the walls of

the Hammerstein Ballroom on Thursday said it all:

"Pop, Rock, Jazz and Soul: One Woman Changed Them All."

A tribute to Joni Mitchell there honored the

singer/songwriter with a musical celebration featuring

piano-rocker Elton John, folk-rocker

COLOR="#003163">James Taylor, recent jazz

Grammy Award winner Diana Krall and others.

The artists spoke of Mitchell's influences on music

over the last 30 years and sang some of her best-known

songs before the stage was cleared for an orchestra to

back Mitchell on her late-'60s signature song, "Both Sides Now" (

HREF="http://media.addict.com/music/Mitchell,_Joni/Both_Sides_Now.ram">RealAudio

excerpt). Dressed in a gray, willowy dress

with a regal auburn jacket over her shoulders,

Mitchell sang the tune in the torch-singer mode she

employs on her latest LP, Both Sides Now, on

which the 56-year-old Canadian covers pop/jazz standards.

"She played guitar and was a singer/songwriter, ... and

I was a little girl, and there wasn't too many of

them," pop singer Cyndi

Lauper said backstage about how Mitchell

had influenced her. "I hoped that someday I could be a

great artist like her. It's a privilege for me to be here."

Country singer Wynonna and pop-rocker

Bryan Adams opened

the tribute — produced by and scheduled to air on

the TNT cable network on April 16 — with a

rollicking duet on Mitchell's "Raised on Robbery."

Lauper delivered a slow, moody version of "Carey,"

from Mitchell's seminal Blue (1971). Wearing a

shiny green top with a black jacket and pants, Lauper

thrust her hands up at the sides of her face and

swayed back and forth as she emoted. The cameras

caught Mitchell in the audience tapping her toes to

the singer's performance. Lauper was one of the

night's few singers to reach the high-octave range

that Mitchell had in her heyday. Musical director/bassist

COLOR="#003163">Larry Klein, who is

Mitchell's ex-husband, led a team of musicians equally

suited to rock, folk, soul and jazz numbers. Jazz

singer Cassandra

Wilson offered a take on "The Dry Cleaner

From Des Moines," off Mitchell's controversial

Mingus, which put her words to the music of

jazz great Charles Mingus.

'Woodstock' Revisited

Before Wilson, British folk rocker and former

COLOR="#003163">Fairport Convention member

Richard Thompson

sang a faithful version of the song Mitchell wrote

about the epochal 1969 music festival, "Woodstock"(

HREF="http://media.addict.com/music/Mitchell,_Joni/Woodstock.ram">RealAudio

excerpt). Wearing a black beret, Thompson

delivered the line "We've got to get ourselves back to the garden" with gravity.

Celebrity baby boomers in the audience, including talk

show host Rosie O'Donnell and actress Goldie Hawn,

were visibly moved. Rock group

COLOR="#003163">Stone Temple Pilots had

been scheduled to perform the song, but they pulled out at the last minute.

Thompson later performed the most rock-oriented song

of the night, "Black Crow," from the classic

Hejira (1976), highlighting his blazing electric guitar.

John performed "Free Man in Paris," Mitchell's 1974

ode to record mogul and DreamWorks co-founder David

Geffen. "I've played before the Queen of England," the

bespectacled veteran said as he gestured toward

Mitchell from his piano. "It's not so intimidating as

having such a great musician there."

John introduced a beaming Krall, who captivated the

audience with "A Case of You."

Far-Reaching Inspiration

First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, via videotape,

discussed President Clinton's and her decision to name

their daughter after Mitchell's "Chelsea Morning,"

before introducing pop/folk rocker

COLOR="#003163">Shawn Colvin and

country/folk singer Mary

Chapin Carpenter to sing that song, as well

as perhaps Mitchell's most famous tune, "Big Yellow Taxi" (

HREF="http://media.addict.com/music/Mitchell,_Joni/Big_Yellow_Taxi.ram">RealAudio

excerpt). Colvin addressed Mitchell: "Joni, it's such an honor

to be here. ... I don't know what I would have done

without you." Colvin returned later with Chapin

Carpenter for "Amelia," the song inspired by aviator

Amelia Earhart that had Mitchell, with eyes closed, swaying in her seat.

Taylor sang Mitchell's sad Christmastime song "River,"

before country siren k.d.

lang received loud applause for her take on

Mitchell's jazzy "Help Me," from Court and Spark.

"She's a deep well," Taylor said backstage about

Mitchell, his early-'70s girlfriend.

Lang said, "A very sturdy standard has been set by

Joni. It's a very proud thing to be a Canadian songwriter."

Lang said she would be participating in an upcoming

tribute LP to Mitchell, along with such artists as

Stevie Wonder and

Sarah McLachlan.

After Mitchell sang, she remained onstage as most of

the evening's performers were led by female a cappella

blues/soul/jazz ensemble

COLOR="#003163">Sweet Honey in the Rock

through "The Circle Game," Mitchell's early sing-along song.

"It's such a surrealistic event, you can imagine,"

Mitchell told the audience at the sold-out show.

The tribute, hosted by Wynonna's sister, actress

Ashley Judd, also featured spoken tributes to

Mitchell's music and paintings by actors Susan

Sarandon and Laurence Fishburne as well as crooner

Tony Bennett.