In my last Joni post – For Free, Polly at SilverAppleQueen spoke highly of Court and Spark and I can see why. While I haven’t immersed myself in the whole album, I liked the title track a lot! It effortlessly fuses folk, jazz, country, and Joni’s haunting voice. Her sixth album which many argue was her best album, Court and Spark was released in the month I was born – January, 1974 – so it had to be pretty good… Prettaaay, Prettaaay Good. It reached number 2 on the Billboard 200 and was the top seller in the US. Last year the Guardian did a retrospective review of it (pulled up an archive) and noted ‘it (Court and Spark) is both too solemn and too good‘ for it’s success.
The title track hints back to For Free (on the Ladies of the Canyon album) in its concern for the ideals of a street musician who has the freedom that she has lost, stuck in Los Angeles “the city of the fallen angels.”
Polly did mention how she loved the jazz groove of it and that’s exactly what Joni was going for in the recording of this album (according to Wikipedia below).
The following was mostly abridged from the Wikipedia article below:
Court and Spark as alluded to above was an immediate commercial and critical success – and remains her most successful album. It also eventually received a double platinum certification by the RIAA, the highest of Mitchell’s career. In 2020, it was ranked at number 110 in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In 2004, Court and Spark was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
In 1973 Mitchell didn’t release a new album – the first year she had not done so in her professional career. She decided to spend the year writing and recording a new album that revealed her growing interest in new sounds – particularly jazz. Mitchell and engineer Henry Lewy called in a number of top L.A. musicians to perform on the album including Robbie Robertson, David Crosby and Graham Nash.
In a July 1979 interview with Cameron Crowe for Rolling Stone, Mitchell recounted playing the newly completed Court and Spark to Bob Dylan, during which he fell asleep. She later suggested that Dylan was probably trying to be “cute” in front of label boss David Geffen, who was also present.
Fleetwood Mac singer Stevie Nicks recalled taking LSD to the album: “I was with my producer, at his house, with a set of speakers that were taller than that fireplace, and I was in a safe place. And I sat there on the floor and listened to that record… That was a pretty dynamic experience.“
[Verse 1]
Love came to my door with a sleeping roll and a madman’s soul
He thought for sure I’d seen him
Dancing up a river in the dark
Looking for a woman to court and spark
[Verse 2]
He was playing on the sidewalk for passing change
When something strange happened, glory train passed through him
So he buried the coins he made in People’s Park
And went looking for a woman to court and spark
[Chorus 1]
It seemed like he read my mind
He saw me mistrusting him and still acting kind
He saw how I worried sometimes
I worry sometimes
[Verse 3]
“All the guilty people,” he said, “they’ve all seen the stain
On their daily bread, on their Christian names
I cleared myself, I sacrificed my blues
And you could complete me, I’d complete you.”
[Verse 4]
His eyes were the color of the sand and the sea
And the more he talked to me, you know, the more he reached me
But I couldn’t let go of L.A
City of the fallen angels
References:
1. Joni Mitchell’s Court and Spark reviewed – archive, 1974 – The Guardian
2. Court and Spark – Wikipedia
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
Observation Blogger 
Without a doubt, my favorite Joni Mitchell album.
I was 14 in 1974. It was a time of FABULOUS music.
I’ve got to dive into this album quick smart if the title track is anything to go by. Thanks for putting it on my radar, Polly.
Great song, Matt! Joni Mitchell, especially her earlier folky phase with her sometimes very high vocals, were a bit of an acquired taste for me. I’ve since come around. Plus, “Court and Spark” obviously falls into a phase where her music already had evolved. Of the albums I’ve heard I think my favorite is 1976’s “Hejira.”
I know what you mean about that off-key, high-note thing she does with her voice — trying to sound original for originality’s sake — but does it actually sound good? In this case, it does. The melodic sequence and instrumentals are so unique yet excellent. I’m glad you think so highly of Court and Spark too. Once I’ve checked out this album, I’ll move on to Hejira.