Court and Spark

Court and Spark
Studio album by Joni Mitchell
Released	January 1, 1974
Recorded	1973
Genre	Folk jazz, folk rock
Length	36:58
Label	Asylum
Producer	Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell chronology
For the Roses (1972) Court and Spark (1974) Miles of Aisles (1974)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Pitchfork Media	(10/10)[2]
Robert Christgau	A[3]
Rolling Stone	[4]
Slant	[5]
Martin C. Strong	(9/10)[6]
Paul Roland	[7]
Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[8]
Piero Scaruffi	(7/10)[9]

Court and Spark is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell.

Released in January 1974, the album saw Mitchell infusing her folk-rock style, which she developed throughout her previous five albums, with jazz inflections. A very accessible and commercially appealing album, Court and Spark was Mitchell's commercial and popular triumph—it was not only praised by critics, but was also very warmly received by the public, becoming her most successful album.

It reached No. 2 in the United States and No. 1 in Canada and eventually received a Double Platinum certification by the RIAA, the highest of Mitchell's career.^[10] It was voted the best album of the year for 1974 in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.^[11] In 2003 it was listed at No. 113 in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.^[12]

History

1973 was the first year since she began recording that Mitchell did not release a new album. Her previous offering, For the Roses, was released in November 1972 to critical and commercial success, and Mitchell decided to spend the whole of the next year writing and recording a new album that revealed her growing interest in new sounds—particularly jazz. During 1973, her stage appearances were fewer than in previous years. She performed in April in a benefit concert at the Sir George Williams University Auditorium and then appeared live again in August, twice at The Corral Club, accompanied by Neil Young. She spent most of the year in the recording studio, creating Court and Spark. Finally, in December, Reprise released a new single, her first in over a year, "Raised on Robbery". The single reached No. 65 on the Billboard Singles Chart.

Reception

Court and Spark was released in January 1974. Critics and the public enthusiastically embraced the album, and its success was reaffirmed when the follow-up single "Help Me" was released in March. It received heavy radio airplay and became Mitchell's first and only Top 10 single in the Billboard charts, peaking at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the first week of June, and reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary charts. Court and Spark went on to be a big seller that year, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard album charts^[13] and staying there for four weeks. The album became the pinnacle of Mitchell's commercial success. The album was kept from the top spot by three No. 1 albums—in order Bob Dylan's Planet Waves, Barbra Streisand's The Way We Were and John Denver's Greatest Hits.^[14]

In a July 1979 interview with Cameron Crowe for Rolling Stone, Mitchell recounted an anecdote in which she played a copy of the then-just completed Court & Spark to Bob Dylan, during which Dylan fell asleep.^[15] Mitchell later suggested that Dylan was probably trying to be "cute" in front of label boss David Geffen, who was also present.^[15]

Honors

• February 27, 1974 Court and Spark certified Gold.^[16]
• In 1974, Court and Spark was voted the 'Best Album of the Year' in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll.^[11]
• In 2003, Court and Spark was ranked No. 111 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.^[12]
• In 2006, Court and Spark was included in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.^{[citation needed]}

Track listing

All tracks composed and arranged by Joni Mitchell; except where indicated.

Side one

1. "Court and Spark" – 2:46
2. "Help Me" – 3:22
3. "Free Man in Paris" – 3:02
4. "People's Parties" – 2:15
5. "Same Situation" – 2:57

Side two

6. "Car on a Hill" – 3:02
7. "Down to You" – 5:38
8. "Just Like This Train" – 4:24
9. "Raised on Robbery" – 3:06
10. "Trouble Child" – 4:00
11. "Twisted" – 2:21 (Annie Ross/Wardell Gray)

Personnel

• Joni Mitchell – vocals, including background; acoustic guitar; piano; clavinet on "Down to You"
• John Guerin – drums and percussion
• Wilton Felder – bass
• Max Bennett – bass on "Trouble Child"
• Jim Hughart – bass on "People's Parties" and "Free Man in Paris"
• Milt Holland – chimes on "Court and Spark"
• Tom Scott – woodwinds and reeds
• Chuck Findley – trumpet on "Twisted" and "Trouble Child"
• Joe Sample – electric piano, clavinet on "Raised on Robbery"
• David Crosby – background vocals on "Free Man in Paris" and "Down to You"
• Graham Nash – background vocals on "Free Man in Paris"
• Susan Webb – background vocals on "Down to You"
• Larry Carlton – electric guitar
• Wayne Perkins – electric guitar on "Car on a Hill"
• Dennis Budimir – electric guitar on "Trouble Child"
• Robbie Robertson – electric guitar on "Raised on Robbery"
• José Feliciano – electric guitar on "Free Man in Paris"
• Cheech Marin – background voice on "Twisted"
• Tommy Chong – background voice on "Twisted"
• Joni Mitchell and Henry Lewy - producers
• Henry Lewy and Ellis Sorkin - engineers

References