Janis Ian: At Seventeen

A valentine I never sent: reflections of a ten-year-old on Janis Ian's 1975 classic

At Seventeen was the summit of confessional songwriting. For months after its release, Janis Ian could only face an audience by singing it with her eyes closed. The lyrics were dangerously revealing, an artist’s Rubicon.

But eyes open or closed, in pride or in shame, she must have known her words were going to find their way into the world. There are fe…