Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and throughout western Canada, before moving on to the nightclubs of Toronto, Ontario. She moved to the United States and began touring in 1965. Some of her original songs ("Urge for Going", "Chelsea Morning", "Both Sides, Now", "The Circle Game") were recorded by other folk singers, allowing her to sign with Reprise Records and record her debut album, Song to a Seagull, in 1968. Settling in Southern California, Mitchell helped define an era and a generation with popular songs like "Big Yellow Taxi" and "Woodstock". Her 1971 album Blue is often cited as one of the best albums of all time; it was rated the 30th best album ever made in Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", rising to number 3 in the 2020 edition. In 2000, The New York Times chose Blue as one of the 25 albums that represented "turning points and pinnacles in 20th-century popular music". NPR ranked Blue number 1 on a 2017 list of Greatest Albums Made by Women.
Mitchell switched labels and began exploring more jazz-influenced melodic ideas, by way of lush pop textures, on 1974's Court and Spark, which featured the radio hits "Help Me" and "Free Man in Paris" and became her best-selling album. Mitchell's vocal range began to shift from mezzo-soprano to more of a wide-ranging contralto around 1975. Her distinctive piano and open-tuned guitar compositions also grew more harmonically and rhythmically complex as she melded jazz with rock and roll, R&B, classical music and non-Western beats. In the late 1970s, she began working with noted jazz musicians including Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Pat Metheny as well as Charles Mingus, who asked her to collaborate on his final recordings. She later turned to pop and electronic music and engaged in political protest. She was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards in 2002 and became a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2021.
Mitchell produced or co-produced most of her albums. A critic of the music industry, she quit touring and released her 17th and last album of original songs in 2007. Mitchell has designed most of her own album covers, describing herself as a "painter derailed by circumstance".
Court and Spark
Joni Mitchell Lyrics
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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
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
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
"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
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
The song Court and Spark by Joni Mitchell tells the story of a man with a madman's soul who comes to a woman's doorstep with a sleeping roll, looking for a woman to court and spark. She encountered him playing on the sidewalk for passing change when something strange happens, and a Glory train passed through him. He then buried the coins he made in People's Park and went looking for a woman to court and spark. The woman narrating the story has trust issues, and the man seems to understand this as he mentions how he can be there for her and complete each other. However, she couldn't let go of LA, the city of fallen angels.
The lyrics suggest that the man is looking to court and spark, meaning he's searching for a woman who can inspire him creatively and romantically. The woman narrating the story was mistrustful of him, but he read her thoughts and showed her that he could complete her. The chorus of the song talks about how love came knocking at her door with a madman's soul and no promises. It's a beautiful depiction of someone falling in love unexpectedly and how that can change one's perspective on life.
Line by Line Meaning
Love came to my door
A stranger came to my doorstep
With a sleeping roll
Carrying his belongings with him
And a madman's soul
Appeared lost or troubled
He thought for sure I'd seen him
Assumed I had noticed him before
Dancing up a river in the dark
Moving along a watercourse in the absence of light
Looking for a woman
Seeking a female companion
To court and spark
To charm and inspire
He was playing on the sidewalk
Busking on the pavement
For passing change
Soliciting coins from strangers
When something strange happened
Experienced an unusual occurrence
Glory train passed through him
A metaphorical reference to a religious revelation
So he buried the coins he made
He buried the money he earned
In People's Park
In a public space
And went looking for a woman
Started his search again for a female companion
To court and spark
To charm and inspire
It seemed like he read my mind
It appeared as if he knew what I was thinking
He saw me mistrusting him
He observed my lack of trust in him
And still acting kind
Despite my reaction, he continued to be gracious
He saw how I worried, sometimes
He noticed my occasional anxiety
I worry sometimes
I experience concern periodically
"All the guilty people," he said
He began to speak about culpability
They've all seen the stain
They are all aware of the blemish
On their daily bread
On their sustenance and livelihood
On their christian names
On their religious reputation
I cleared myself
I absolved myself from wrongdoing
I sacrificed my blues
I gave up my troubles
And you could complete me
You could make me whole
I'd complete you
I would do the same for you
His eyes were the color of the sand
His eyes resembled the beach
And the sea
And the ocean
And the more he talked to me, you know
As our conversation continued
The more he reached me
The more he won me over
But I couldn't let go of L.A.
However, I was unable to forget Los Angeles
City of the fallen angels
The city that is sometimes portrayed as having a sense of decay or darkness
Lyrics © Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Written by: Joni Mitchell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind