Court And Spark

Got bored with this album.

I have a friend who owned a bar in Brooklyn called Court & Spark. I asked him about the name and he told me it was a Joni Mitchell album. I didn't know if that was cool or not because I was unfamiliar with this album. Now I know. The answer is a resounding no. But at least this album is 10x better than The Hissing Of Summer Lawns. But I gave that zero stars. And 10 x 0... (Raised on Robbery is aight though)

I love Joni Mitchell

Buttery voice over folksy, adult contemporary and dated songs. It's good for a mellow vibe, I guess, but meh.

This album is OK. Some songs are nice, most of it is folk, too soft for me, but some have a bit of blues, or jazz, and it makes the album more interesting. Nice to have on the background, not particularly interested in listening to it again, although it made me curious to listen more about her.

Ziemlich langweilig 2/5

Pleasant but unexciting. Mostly, the music just faded into the background. People's Parties and Twisted were the standouts for me and the reason this is getting a 3 rather than a 2.

Not a lot of standouts, but easy listening the whole way through.

This was actually pretty good. The last album I listened to from her was decent, but I couldn’t get around the sound of her voice. As for this one, the music aspect was really good, and I enjoyed the sound of her voice better on this one as well.

Looking forward to this, because I love Joni Mitchell. Court and Spark - 7/10. Very solid, typical of Ms. Mitchell's work, rich vocals, simple harmonies. Help Me - 10/10. Rich, velvety sound. This song is one of the reasons I love Joni Mitchell. Free Man in Paris - 8/10. Very pure vocals, simple melody and harmony. People's Parties - 8/10. Nice bass work, excellent guitar, vocals use a lot of nice changes of pace. The Same Situation - 7/10. I would have liked this song better if it had stayed nothing more than Joni Mitchell and a piano (like the beginning). Car on a Hill - 7/10. Very much the same as the other songs on the album. Down to You - 8/10. Captures the feeling of being lonely well. A little over-instrumented in places. Just Like This Train - 8/10. Very similar to the rest of this album. Raised on Robbery - 8/10. More upbeat than I'm used to from Joni. Feels very 1950s rock to me. Trouble Child - 7/10. Good, but not great. Twisted - 10/10. Jazz feel. Not at all what I expected, and I like it.

Overall: 7/10 I've been hearing about Joni Mitchell for years now but never really had the interest in seeking out her music for some reason. Now that I've listened to some of it, I think it's pretty good! She has a nice voice, there's some pleasant harmonies on this album and some pretty instrumentation as well. I sadly haven't been able to dive deep into her lyrics today but I probably will at some point. For now, this was a solid album that I can see myself relistening to in the future. Fav Song: Help Me

Quite pleasant to listen to.

Nie podchodzi mi Joni Mitchell. To poprawna płyta, a dziewczyna naprawdę umiała śpiewać. Ale nuży mnie jej styl oraz warstwa muzyczna. Nie ma tam dla mnie nic ciekawego. Może jakbym bardziej przysłuchiwał się tekstom, to bym bardziej docenił ją jako tekściarkę, ale muzyka to jednak przede wszystkim muzyka i śpiew. Nie dla mnie.

Great album. Wonderful voice. Would listen to again.

This was kinda just what I needed to listen to tonight. This album is calm, beautiful, subtle, and intricate. The kind of album that isn’t immediately rewarding but evidently is incredibly special and becomes one of your favorites over time. Reach out in 5 years and ask me about my feelings on this album. I am confident it’ll be one of my favorites. As for now, I still have only wonderful things to say about it, and I’m now very excited to listen Joni’s other projects.

Going through this list I'm really looking for 5* albums that I've never heard before and I thought this was going to be a contender based on the opening lines of the first song. Unfortunately it does not quite sustain this level and whilst the album is a great easy listen it does loses its way on the later jazzier tracks. Beautiful voice tho.

Court and Spark Although I know some of the songs in here, I've not listened to this album before. The opening bars of the title track, although I don’t think I’ve heard it before, are immediately warm and enveloping and comforting, she really does have the knack of making songs feel immediately familiar, as you’ve always known them. I do already know Help Me, but it also has that same feeling of always having existed, and being immediately comforting, like a kind of nostalgic warmth for something I’ve never experienced, even if the lyrics are more emotionally ambivalent by the end of the song. The brilliance of those two songs continues on the rest of side 1, with the excellent Free Man in Paris, the pen portrait People’s Parties and brilliant piano-led The Same Situation with some lovely steel guitar sounds. The 2nd side very slightly doesn’t quite match the quality of side 1, purely because the cover of Twisted doesn’t really do it for me, it has just a little too much forced jazz hands showtune energy for my taste. Outside that though the rest of the songs are again excellent. The soft rock adjacent Car on a Hill, with its spacey middle section, is great and Down To You is a fantastic song, the meandering piano line evoking the weariness in the words. Just Like This Train is another lovely track and although I wasn’t initially as keen on Raised on Robbery I came to very much like its shot of bluesy pop-rock. And Trouble Child is great, it has a nice Steely Dan-ness to it, and I presume the title and opening riff is an evocation of Trouble Man by Marvin Gaye? Even with Twisted, it’s hard not to give this a 5. It's a brilliant album, combining her characteristic shuffling jazzy folkiness, with her idiosyncratic rhyme schemes and uniquely brilliant voice. 🧨🧨🧨🧨🧨 Playlist submission: Down to You

It is littered with so many gems, and unfortunately the couple of lazy outliers; but it really is too good not too award a charismatic five.

Really rate 'Court and Spark' as one of Joni Mitchell's best albums, 4.5 so gets a bump to 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Decent

Eh

I am once again back on my Joni Mitchell grind, this time I am covering her "return to form" with 1974's Court and Spark. I can definitely tell a difference in sound between this and For the Roses that continue to cement that project being just great, while Court and Spark has hints of something much more spectacular and consistent throughout its' entire 36 minute tracklist. Maybe it is how well everything flows together here or all the new instrumentation Joni is throwing into her songs, regardless this album pops and once again blows my mind with how high of quality she is able to continuously pump out since her debut album. There is surprisingly a good bit of variety with the tracks here, but for the most part if you like Joni doing her own thing solo then there is plenty here for just that. Down to You has these subtle yet much needed orchestra compositions that weave in and out of the track's 5 minutes and 36 second runtime that make it feel like a whole experience in itself. Whether it is the strings, brass, woodwind, or even the simple piano parts, this track feels so cinematic and yet so touching and personal with each note. Twisted on the other hand takes a very different approach while using a trumpet to make for a very fun and lighthearted track that very much strays away from anything Joni has done before. It is punchy, funny, and at times very unserious with itself while still feeling very lyrically dense and captivating with just how Joni works herself into the music. Overall Court and Spark is a blast of fresh air in a discography full of refreshing and top notch Singer-Songwriter music. Joni really doesn't miss and it seems her streak doesn't quite end here which is super exciting.

3.5

"You can't separate a man and his Joni tapes," -- Mr. Chi Pig/SNFU This album is pretty classic Joni Mitchell. A lot of great tracks. There were a few duds. "Raised on Robbery," for example, is a little cheesy for me. I think some of the jazz experimentation on this album works--like in "Twisted," while sometimes I'm left with the feeling that Mitchell should just stick with the folk elements she does best. Tracks like Trouble Child. This is a high 3, but waving between 3 and 4. I'd listen to again.

Joni’s seamless transition from folk to folk-rock to jazz-rock. Also interestingly, the Joni album that features music that sounds the most like the Law & Order theme (“Just Like a Train”, “Down to You”) and the Frasier theme (“Twisted”).

Didn't love this. I am going to give it another listen but I just found it a little uninspiring. Some really creative directions on this album (especially for a folk album!) but I just couldn't really get behind. Didn't really click with me.

I know that Joni Mitchell is one of those artists that I'm supposed to respect. This music was very hard to listen to. The songs tell long stories but don't have the time to tell them so the lyrics are very mashed together and come out like exposition. Oh, and the stories are not interesting. Not my favorite.

I will give it up! I understand why my mom was a fan.

sorry paul this isnt for me

Joni has a wonderful voice. Excellent vibes for a lazy Sunday soundtrack. But not the sort of sound I yearn for on the regular

Joni Mitchell is me nooit écht gelukt. En de reden waarom komt ook op deze plaat naar boven drijven. Ze doet best interessante dingen, vooral melody-wise, maar ik word altijd een beetje duizelig van haar songstructuur en timing. Veel songs op 'Court And Spark' hebben best mooie passages, maar je hebt het gevoel alsof er om de haverklap een nieuw nummer begint. Het is free jazz in een singer-songwriter jasje, en ik kan er gewoon niet in komen. 'Free Man in Paris' en 'Raised on Robbery' landden als enige, maar ik waardeer de algehele insteek. 6,5/10 Highlights: Free Man in Paris Raised on Robbery

Wel aangehad maar eigenlijk niet goed genoeg geluisterd. Helaas zijn het ook wel nummertjes die beetje naar de achtergrond verdwijnen. Maar ik ken de staat van dienst van Joni en geef haar de voordeel van de twijfel. 6,5/10

Really nice easy listening also great to hear jonis voice. Wouldn't say it was my favorite album though

Ok, some of the songs were nice, everything was pleasant, but nothing really grabbed me.

I was impressed with how modern this album sounded, Joni Mitchell was definitely ahead of her time. I can head a ton of influence this album has had on new music. When I think of Joni Mitchell I think of her solo with an acoustic guitar but I was super impressed with the complexity and all the layers of arrangements across this album. I would probably need to listen to this a few times to fully get all the pieces, I most likely will dig this out again soon to do just that.

My intro to Joni Mitchell was via the clip of her playing Coyote in Gordon Lightfoot's apartment during Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review (apparently that was the debut of the song, which she had written during the Rolling Thunder Review). I was immediately taken by Coyote and ended up listening to, and loving, Hejira shortly after watching the movie. However, my budding Bob Dylan obsession quickly took over and I never really got a chance to do a deeper dive into Joni Mitchell's work beyond Hejira. Court and Spark feels much more accessible and pop oriented compared to Hejira's jazz-y experimentation, but Joni Mitchell's poetic inclinations still shine through on this album and some of that jazz-y experimentation starts to come out in the last few tracks. The way she crafts a song and a melody is totally unique; it stands out to me compared to all of the other folk acts of the time.

11 songs - 36 minutes Folksy and can’t really understand what she is singing about, sweet voice and great control but fluctuations don’t match music, not real structure to songs more storytelling Love - Raised on a robbery so funnnn country CHIC Trouble Child and Twisted - 😔🤮

Nothing offensive about it but it wasn't for me.

Usually a big Joni Mitchell fan and I still do love her voice but this album is not for me.

Beautiful voice, of course. I somehow like the album’s themes (love, relationships) more than the actual songs. (“Raised on Robbery” actually sorta annoys me.) Do these songs . . . describe feelings more than invite the listener to experience them? Hmm. Anyway, Mitchell’s work at this point was more about pop than folk, and, as far as I’m concerned, that’s not a compliment (either in 1974 or now, for that matter).

De type of shit dat je hoort aan het einde van een romantische film wanneer de hoofdpersoon en liefdeintresse samenkomen na de hele film gezeik te hebben gehad.

4,5

Some pleasant tracks - just not my cup of tea

Obviously not as heart wrenching as Blue but still very pretty nonetheless. She incorporates the jazz elements very well into her original style. She remains a very intelligent writer

I like her voice, but the songs themselves were a little forgettable.

1/2

Blue lived on the radio so this could live in the Smokey club. Beautiful melodies, flowing piano and jazzy pop tunes to stand with the best of them. A way to sing poetry that reminds you of Patti Smith without the spit.

nice

While I know of her I have never really listened to Joni before this. Great voice and smooth vibes from most of the songs. It got a bit to much like talking instead of singing in some songs to me. Some songs I will definitely come back to in the future whilst others I will probably skip.

вроде более музкальный чем предыдущие что я слышала, но в целом фолкси звук её мне не очень заходит

Female vocals

Sweet record and very good songs, first time listening to a full Joni Mitchell album. Will definitely check out more.

First album that I got from Joni Mitchell. I have to say her voice is really pleasant. It’s the exact type I like to hear in 70’s pop. You’d think I’d love this album. But for some reason, I couldn’t. The songs just couldn’t stick with me, like there was something missing. None of the songs really pop, like it’s content on being middle-of-the-road. Kind of a shame, really, because I really could have liked this one. Favorite track: Just Like This Train Other hits: Help Me, Car On A Hill, Down to You, The Same Situation, Raised on Robbery

A very elegant album elegantly written and elegantly performed.

This is really great in spots but drags overall.

3.5

first impressions: god, i love the album cover. it reminds me of medieval era art in the best way possible. as for the music, it's initially not really my style; but it is very far from bad. it was a pleasant surprise for me to come across 'help me' and 'car on a hill', songs that have now entered my playlist, in an album i wouldn't normally pay any attention to. joni's voice is beautiful. it's deep and sultry, but sweet at the same time. it feels like a soft breeze brushing against your skin on a hot, sunny day. overall, it's a pretty nice album; something one would play on a road trip to just tune off and watch the trees pass by.

Lovely voice for some lovely songs

really chill and amazing vocals. the melody follows the vocals and not the vocals follow the melody. really good album, in my opinion it's 4.7.

Ikke spesielt spennende for min del, glir glatt inn i bakgrunnen. Likte det bedre enn det andre Joni Michell-albumet som har kommet.

It might be from the seventies, but it’s still that crappy sixties sound.

Really soft and nice Love joni mitchell Soft rock/jazz vibes

Double joni! this one's good just it's not what I expect from joni? I prefer her more simpler works, but this one's still good.

Banger alert. Fun, good vocals, great arrangements, good lyrics!!! It falls apart in some of the jazz scatty stuff for me but this is so much better than I was expecting when I rolled it. Very enjoyable.

I liked this more than her other one but I still don't really like her music :(

I’ve never been a big Joni Mitchell fan. Nothing against her at all, she’s clearly a talented artist, but her style just doesn’t click with me. I think it’s her syncopated vocal phrasing that throws me off more than anything. It always feels like she’s singing just ahead or behind the beat, and it kind of pulls me out of the groove. That said, Court and Spark definitely has its moments. “Raised on Robbery” was fun and upbeat, and “Twisted” closed things out with a cool jazzy flair that I really liked. Those two songs showed a different side of her that worked better for me. Overall, it’s a well-made album and I get why people love it, but it’s just not my jam. Respect for the artistry, but this one probably won’t stay in my rotation.

Enjoyed the jazzier, bluesier elements. Crisp and concise

Неплохо, немного скучновато, но под конец разошлась вроде. Наверное там умные стихи, но я как всегда не могу это оценить по достоинству

Mixed feeling ‘boot this one. Love the jazz influences, but soft/folk rock guitar and vocal harmonies isn’t my thing. The songs felt identical, both in instrumental style and themes, but the lyrics were well-written. Overall, good if you enjoy the genre in the first place, and I'm sure there are many who can appreciate this more than me. Twisted was freaking funny though hahah.

A fantastic album, though I'm more of a BLUE fan.

My dad was a big Joni fan and I obviously have loved her voice since small times but I think I always struggled with her because she's very jazz-influenced, even with her early acoustic stuff. I've warmed up to jazz in general as I've gotten older, (I still think it mostly sucks, but I can appreciate what people see in it) but I still have a hard time on first blush. That said, very good on re-listen. And no problematic blackface on this album cover!

Joni Mitchell is underrated in just about every aspect--as a songwriter, as a singer, as a piano player. I think she's probably at a Dylan level of genius in her best moments--maybe that's too easy, maybe that's not fair to her. She is her own universe, and we're lucky to be able to enter it.

8/10 Despite being fairly obsessed with Blue, Court and Spark is not an album that I’ve listened to that many times. I’ve spun it the odd time here and there, but it’s never had as much airplay as it probably deserves. I think part of the reason for that is that I typically prefer a more sparse orchestration than this for her work. The more full band sound can take away a bit of the intimacy that’s inherent in her best work, and it doesn’t quite get its hooks into me in the same way. With that being said, this is still a great album. Joni composes in a very non-traditional way, with her combination of chord choices and rhythmic delivery often providing something counter to the obvious. That could go one of two ways, but with Joni it’s that little element of surprise and wonder that keeps me engaged. Her songs are also frequently one narrative thread, rather than a standard verse, chorus, verse structure, but for me, that just takes me on a wonderful journey, alongside the previously mentioned choices she makes in her composition, and it doesn’t need the more traditional structure to centre things. There are some really fantastic tracks here and I really enjoyed giving it a more close inspection, but I do feel that, as a whole, this album is just a little bit disorganised. It stylistically bounces around a touch too much, with the final three tracks almost feeing like they don’t quite gel with the rest of the album. There’s also the odd lull here and there that allowed my attention to drift just a little bit. The funny thing is, I’ve finished listening to this, only to find myself singing songs from Blue instead. I’ve really enjoyed this and I’ll definitely be back, but I’ll probably stick on Blue first. Sorry Joni. Court And Spark - I love Joni’s piano playing. She makes some really interesting chord choices, and her style is so unmistakably her. It’s a wonderful composition, and her voice is so good as always. Her songs can often be so fleeting, but somehow also have so much to say. Help Me - While my preference for Joni tends to be her more bare-bones arrangements, there’s so much quality in this song. Loads of little bits of instrumentation and rhythmic choices that are so engaging to the ear. It’s got drive and groove, but it’s also so smooth. Free Man In Paris - This is more rocky than I was expecting. Again, there are some really lovely little riffs and lines that reward deep listening. The momentum of the track is excellent and her vocal is so good, particularly the control of her pitch sweeps. The rhythmic stops sections are just brilliant too. People's Parties - This is a bit of a prototype of the kind of sound she’d explore in more depth on Hejira. It doesn’t feel as refined as that album, but there are some really great moments here. She approaches her vocal rhythms in such a great way in which lines can roll from one to the next over parts of bars, rather than always in full bar counts, which is such a great way for the cadence of the vocal to change across a verse. The Same Situation - Some of the sound design here is so nice. The effect on the guitar (I think? Sounds like a synth) in the background adds a beautiful, subtle depth. The song kind of meanders along, but it’s the meandering of a lazy walk in a picturesque landscape, rather than anything aimless. Car On A Hill - This has got a really pretty start and then we get some really unexpected chord changes as we move into the delightfully odd middle section. It’s perhaps a little out of place, but I feel like weird quirks like that should be celebrated. Some gorgeous vocal harmonies in this ones too. Down To You - Things are more stripped back to begin with, just letting the piano and vocal shine. And then there’s this tension that builds, and floats away before we’re back to the sparsity. It’s hard to pin this one down as it drifts and shifts as it goes along. Some moments of pure beauty that drift away from some almost uncomfortable moments of tension. It’s almost a collage of musical ideas. Just Like This Train - This is just very beautiful. She wanders her way through the song which sort of evolves as it goes, with interesting changes to rhythm and feel that might last for a bar or too, but just tweak that feel and inject such flavour to proceedings, but never derail the thrust of the song. Raised On Robbery - This is quite a change. It’s a pretty straight rocker, but it’s so good. There’s some grit to it, but not too much, and it’s got so much drive. Love her vocal delivery again. Perhaps an odd change of pace in the context of the album, but why not? Trouble Child - More typically Joni now. There’s some beautiful guitar playing here and the cadence of her compositional choices are so satisfying, injecting these little off kilter moments that bookmark some impressively pretty passages. Great little jazzy edges here and there too. Twisted - And now we’re pretty much full-on jazz. It’s a cover, but it shows a different side to Joni’s vocal. She’s so, so good. The little bits of vibrato, the switch between spoken and sung delivery, and those little staccato runs. Excellent.

Tällä LegendaLadylla on huikea ääni ja vaikka tuotanto vähän samankaltaista onkin niin paljon tosi mageita veisuja.

Tosi mukavaa kuunneltavaa ja artisti menee suosikkeihin. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Olipas kivaa musaa! Tätä tulee varmasti kuunneltua enemmänkin!

This is the second Joni Mitchell album I’ve been given in the last month. I’m not complaining though, I just think it’s a strange coincidence. Her albums are pretty far away from what I’d choose to listen to normally, but they just seem to work for me. I had more fun with this one than Blue!

Canadian gold

Good, but not as good as Blue

I like her. I don’t like this album.

Soft and cozy 70s singer songwriter folk. Fits in well with Paul Simon, James Taylor, et al. A little too poetic for me but undeniably well written and well executed.

Calm album

Folk. No. However it's a great background music.

pleasant, love Help me.

pretty nice to listen to

Back after four months, hopefully. Sadly on an album that I understand is important and classic but which mostly kind of didn't do much for me, alas.

Wasn’t much to it really. Was a nice gentle listen but felt a bit empty tbh. Still nice to listen to though.

Although, Joni’s voice isn’t really my cup of tea, I did enjoy the lyrics and the variety of the music. That last song?! 😮‍💨

Joni at her best. Classic album!

This is the first Joni album I have listened to in full, and admittedly, it’s not for me. Her voice is lovely, the words are great; observational, deep, sentimental. The music is also great. But there’s an ingredient that just doesn’t jive with the rest. It’s like putting paprika in the caramel. I don’t hate it, but I likely won’t revisit.

This was a beautiful and brilliant folk rock album. Lyrically poetic, experimental/jazz influenced musicianship and production, and phenomenal vocals all around. Even regarding all of that, this just isn’t my style. Would I listen to it again of my own volition while enjoying an spliff on the back porch of a mountain cabin?… Probably, if the record happened to be in the the cabin owners collection and they had a sick ass turntable setup. If the collection also included a copy of KISS’s dog-vomit-pressed-to-vinyl 1998 album “Psycho Circus”, would I actually listen to it? Absolutely. And then I would commit horribly violent suicide in an attempt to once again scrub it from my mind forever. Regardless, “Court and Spark” was a welcome change of pace and a peak at the brilliance of an artist I hadn’t yet given a chance.

Et helt album ble litt vel mye. Help Me var kul da, men ellers ikke treff for meg.

Hyggelig det, liker det. Elsker det ikke 3/5

Det er jo veldig flott, men føler jeg akkurat nå ikke har tid til å dykke ned i tekstene noe jeg tror man må gjøre for å få fullt utbytte. Generelt liker jeg Joni Mitchell da, så er vel en solid treer tenker jeg

The Good: Joni Mitchell is back! The Bad: I think that the court still hasn’t managed to pass judgement… The Ugly: No spark… at all… So yeah, after a very pleasant listen to Cafe Blue, I think, this album was a nice skip session for me. It is possible that this is due to me becoming more and more picky when it comes to albums I don’t know… And I feel bad, because I was really looking forward to this album… maybe I should give it another spin? Okay, I just listened to the album again, and here’s what is critical about my viewpoint now… right before listening to Joni, I was listening to the album of the day, by a band called Red Snapper… which was absolutely not up my alley… and now, Court and Spark is getting the following score from me 4 1/4* Yup… way to go Joni!!!

Second Joni record, and second time being pleasantly surprised. This ones got the toe-tappin happy slappin vibes to it that get em goin wild. Not all great, but when it's great it's something special.

There’s parts and songs that I really like, Raised on Robbery and Help Me for instance. But there’s some songs that, if they were to appeal to me, they’d have to be a little more interesting. But still, I quite liked this. She’s incredibly talented and her lyrics are undeniably inspiring. I feel like this album does what it’s meant to do. It’s jazzy, it’s warm, it’s inspirational. But it didn’t give me enough feeling to give it four stars. So three it is.

This isn’t something I’d usually go out of my way for, but I can appreciate this album. It’s raw and introspective with some songs bordering on stream of consciousness. And then there’s some fun ones thrown in there, like raised on robbery, and my personal favorite, the album closer Twisted.

Very enjoyable and finally understanding what the fuss is about with Joni Mitchell. Unique and genre defying. There’s enough variation here to never get bored. Also her voice sounds a lot like Weyes Blood right? Or I suppose Weyes Blood sounds like Joni. Would listen again, would recommend

I can't stand Joni Mitchell

This is not my kind of music but it sounds really good. The songs are well written and the production values are good. She has a fantastic voice and it’s really up lifting. I’ll probably never listen to this record again but I would recommend it to anyone who is into Folk.

A Joni Mitchell album I’ve never heard before. I didn’t recognize a single song! Maybe it wasn’t the right day for me to come to this? Maybe I’m too old to appreciate unheard Joni songs? Maybe the pale yellow on the cover was off putting to me? Whatever the case, this didn’t thrill me. It washed over me and then was gone. I’m shocked to read this is her best selling album! Maybe people expected more because of her other outings? I’m confused on this one.

4.8

5 stores is not enough

Meh, it's ok, not really my thing.

Jazzy. Poetic. Accessible yet complex. Vulnerable. Witty. A glorious voice. The production is so clean and polished. Love the swing track 'Twisted' with the walking bass and the almost walking vocals, so impressive. Surprise Cheech & Chong cameo too! Help Me was fantastic, Trouble Child and Car on a Hill brilliant, but musically Down to You is hard to top, what an incredible tune. Such beautiful progressions. 8.5/10

achei que seria mais chato porque geralmente não curto essa vibe folk singer-songwriter, mas até que curti bastante viu? mulheres no topo!!!!

Listened to this multiple times today; this is good and chill

Not my jam

Just not for me. I'm generally a fan of acoustic heavy 70s music, but this one missed the boat for me. Part of it I think is the mix. The drums in Help Me sound..off. I also don't like her singing voice in Twisted, though I did like the rhythm of the song.

I didn’t think this was too bad, especially considering that I’ve poorly rated previous albums of similar genres from this list. This one was more upbeat and I really enjoyed the guitar tone

Hat mir gefallen, aber jetzt auch nicht mega special

It's a perfect album. I actually like it better than Blue (might be a hot take). It's a 5/5. She's a poet, has a distinct singing style and it's all backed up bu great instrumentation.

Nice folksy jazz for a certain mood.

Not my thing. Too many wild changes in pitch on every song

Not for me

Sometimes forget how stellar Joni was as a singer/songwriter back in the day

It's a 70s Joni Mitchell album so of course I liked it. The middle is a little cruise controly, but still a really good album.

This one feels like a solid 4 to 5 star. Similar to Tapestry, lovely 70s soft rock feel where every song sounds intentional. This is my first time listening to her as well, it’s fantastic. The vocals, instrumental and everything plays out great.

240/1089 - I really like the jazzy influence and smeary guitar effects on this one. Very sparse but effective use of lydian harmony. Lydian harmony has a tendency to be very "stock" in my opinion. Most people stick it on at the end to sound hopeful or do lydian for the entire song because it sounds "bright", but here it's just a short part of a phrase then it goes somewhere else. I like how she used the lydian sound here. Some parts remind me of Steely Dan sometimes and I'm guessing parts of The Royal Scam and Aja were influenced by this. Gonna listen to this again for sure.

Relax listen but not something I would seek out for.

Ok Maynard James Keenan I see you.

Excellent. Not my favorite style, but still a pleasure to listen to on occasion.

No puedo con esta señora. El vibrato continuo, la voz aguda...

This is exactly what this list is for. Never heard it before, and what a find. Gorgeous production and instrumentation, wonderful vocals, the whole shebang. Favourite tracks: the whole thing, but Twisted is just awesome. What a vibe.

It's fine. Nice songs.

Good, more angular than Blue.

Felt pretty meh about the whole thing. They type of album where I wasn't having a bad time, but wished I was listening to something else.

this was alright, a couple of good tracks but probably wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to this again which is disappointing cos i wanted to like this

I do not get the fascination with Joni Mitchell. Not very moving to me. Voice is pretty but just can't get into it.

Very pleasant listening!

I was worried this was going to be jazz Joni and luckily that was just the last track. Great instrumentation and thoroughly enjoyable.

Joni Mitchell had such an interesting approach to tunes and praying. Maybe it's just what I'm used to but it makes it all sounds very fresh and intriguing. I'm gonna have to listen to this one a few more times.

This feels like Joni's Highway 61. Her folk roots are intact but there's fuller instrumenation/some electric and jazz rock influences. Not my personal favorite but the worst Joni Mitchell is better than most of the best of anyone else.

The instrumental parts are usually really good but the vocals are a bit boring sometimes and don't have much to it

Really beautiful album, she has a wonderful voice, I did find myself getting a tad bored towards the end but I still think this is special

Old folk/country music. Was hoping for more lively but it was a bit slow. If it was all like Raised on Robbery I would have enjoyed it more!

Bello, interessante, senza tempo

-very fun and folky -70s folk feel -jonis voice is great - i enjoyed

A nice, mellow folk rock album. This has beautiful piano playing and instrumentals, and Mitchell has a good voice. This album has a nice vibe and good lyrics. Raised on Robbery was pretty fun.

Nice, easy listening. Never really done a deep dive into Joni Mitchell but what I hear is pretty decent, but probably not enough to make we want to listen to loads more at once.

Not for me

Kind of unstructured beat-pop-poetry-folk. Was different at the time because of that and because it was so personal. Perfect timing for the mid-70's. Also unsatisfyingly short. Eh! 4 for its time and 2 for not surviving past the moment.

What I hear when I listen to this album is what must have been an affable and charismatic young woman’s access to tremendous artistic resources. Beautiful production, tight band, sweet harmonies, and Robben Ford’s guitar work is wonderful - all to prop up painfully vapid lyrics, indulgent interludes, and a lead vocalist with no range. Joni Mitchell reminds me of that rich kid who wanted to be an artist and lined everything up just right… except the authenticity.

I guess you had to be there. Also, knowing she had a blackface “alter ego” and continuously defended it kinda ruins the vibe for me

Perhaps the apotheosis of sophisticated singer songwriter. More complex musically and arrangement wise and therefore seemingly less personal than others. But it’s brilliant

Too much whining

Didn’t do anything for me

It's a completely pleasant album. Mitchell is probably one of the premiere vocalists in the last century of popular music, and while her brand of folksy jazz is not the most interesting to me, I do enjoy hearing the clear influence her vocal sytling has had on one of contemporary favorites HAIM.

BASTAAAAAAA

I had to talk to my buddy about this one. He's a really good music nerd. So I listened to it and kept thinking it's poetry, but set to the wrong music. Turns out I wasn't far off and Joni has a knack for poems and since she knew how to play it was in fact set to music. I don't want you to think it's not a good album. It's not bad and after talking to my music nerd buddy I wasn't in the right mindset to sit down and listen to Joni. It's stupid busy at work and things are a bit frantic. This album isn't right for the time. I do want to explore her discography though. She's talented and I did enjoy som of these tunes. I hope I remember to pull this album out when things are a bit calmer and I can give it an honest listen.

I'm surprised to read that this is her most commercially successful album. I would have thought Blue had sold more. I don't love this one as much as Blue or Heijira, but it is still great. Full of fantastic songwriting and hinting towards her upcoming jazzier experimental stuff. 9/10

Goooooood

Приятный синтез поп-рока, легкого джаза, фолка. Такой очень канадский альбом (из того, что я слышал).

so good it's not even fair

Joni Mitchell is one of my favourite artists but Court and Spark was not an album I would ever reach for - and I was wrong! Joni might just be the greatest songwriter of all time!

really good stuff

Can't get on board with this. Too unsettled, too much going on. I'm sure all these twists and turns are very clever in lots of ways I'm too dumb to understand, but I'm not enjoying the ride.

A masterpiece, Joni in transition. Touching, marvellous and at times laugh-out-loud funny. Thanks to Prince for turning me on to this album in the first place.

Good

Ikke så intens som Hejira og Blue, men stadig virkelig melodiøs og en gudesmuk stemme som altid

Endnu en banger Joni Mitchell plade. Ingen af dem vi har haft har rigtig lydt ens hvilket er super fedt!

Beautiful voice and songs.

It was interesting hearing a few of these songs as part of an album instead of individually. That being said, I know she's a talented songwriter, but I'm just not a huge fan.

Some really good tracks on this

Great album! An absolute gem I hadn't heard before. Blues/jazz/americana

Is there a bad Joni Mitchell album out there? If there is I have never listened to one. Just really solid work here love the infusion of Jazz to the more tradional folk sound. Joni is an all time clever lyrcist moving from cleaver funny wordplay to profound statements in the space of a few lines sometimes. No real direct favorite tracks here the whole thing works as a whole for me so hard to pry out any particular songs from this one. Anyway had a great time with it hope there is more of her in here.

☆4.6 ジョニミッチェルは「歌」ではなく「詩」の人である。 このアルバムを聴くまでは私もそう思っていました。 歌姫とはまた違う、圧倒的な歌唱力、表現力。 カントリーにジャズを導入したことで、よりアダルティでポップな楽曲が完成された。曲作りの原動力には、養子に出した娘の存在があったらしい。 常人では成しえない、魂のこもった楽曲は必聴。

ja ganz cute aber nothing special

I'm not much of a Joni Mitchell fan to begin with but this really caught my attention. One of those albums I wished I heard earlier in life, I could see this coloring my music taste when I was younger for sure. Just great all around, whole album is entertaining, great vocals, lyrics, and the instrumentals are muted enough to let her shine.

Easily my favorite Joni Mitchell album. The perfect mix of catchy tunes and well crafted lyrics/poetry. Free Man in Paris?!?!? Classic! Raised On Robbery?!?? Classic! Help Me?!?!? Classic! It never ends!

Joni Mitchell never really did it for me but after this, I finally get it. Favs: "Raised on Robbery"

SO GOOD!

Boring easy listening piano music, with some folky and jazzy elements. Not bad but really didn't feel memorable in any way. About as bland as you can possibly get for 'good music'.

in germany we call this kind of music 0815 - boring, nothing special every song sounds kinda the same

molto molto carino, mi sono sentito una donna hippie piena di cocaina

mi è piaciuto molto, sia il tema dell’album in generale sia la vibe best song per me help me, ma mi è piaciuta tanto anche people’s party - metto 4 ma sarebbe un 4 e mezzo, 5 non me la sento perché abbiamo ascoltato pochi album per ora

Mi piace

Bel disco con atmosfere folk, a volte jazz. lei ha una grande voce, verso la fine però mi ha iniziato un po’ a stancare, forse perché è praticamente tutto acustico

L’ho ascoltato in macchina ieri, mi ha trasmesso un senso di pace e calma. Bella scoperta, mi è piaciuto

Carino gli avrei dato anche la sufficienza... ma la firma di Joni Mitchell non è centrata rispetto alla cornice sono stato distratto tutto il tempo e mi sono innervosito. Raised on Robbery mo che sto giocando Red Dead la vedo top suonata il un saloon nel west bella.

Non proprio il mio genere preferito, però mi è comunque piaciuto molto, mood molto country e leggero, top come musica di sottofondo, canzone preferita down to you a mani basse

Joni - so fun playful and beautiful voice. Makes me happy! 7.0

The first time I heard Joni Mitchell, I don't even remember what record it was, but I should've started here. A lot of respect has been built after this listen. She exceeds the expectations for a singer-songwriter. The voice and the pen as instruments. Roller coaster of a record because even though I can appreciate the entire project, not every track speaks to me. Just a matter of preferences. 3/5

Were she a lesser singer, I might have a problem with the meandering nature of her chorus-absent songs. But as it is, I enjoyed listening to this album immensely. I didn't think Joni Mitchell would be a singer whose music I could get into. How wrong I was, it appears.

Absolutely not for me: I did finish it, though. Big dislike (though the last song wasn't terrible).

Just didn't work for me

It's a good full-listen, but my aversion to singing that speeds up and slows down makes it hard to fall in love with most tracks.

I’m with the masses on this one. I think it is a far more accessible Joni while also being artistic. She flutters her voice far less while showing off her incredible control. The music is chiefly more interesting than prior albums, far more involved and expansive. The first half of the album is groovy. The second half has some softer jazz elements: Car on Hill even feels like Steely Dan for a second.

3.5 - decent album. Compared to the first Joni Mitchell album I heard, this one actually makes me understand why people hold her in such high regard

Damn Joni

01) Court and Spark - 6,5 02) Help Me - 7,0 03) Free Man in Paris - 7,0 04) People's Parties - 5,5 05) The Same Situation - 5,5 06) Car on a Hill - 6,0 07) Down to You - 5,5 08) Just Like This Train - 5,5 09) Raised on Robbery - 7,0 10) Trouble Child - 6,0 11) Twisted - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,14 (61/100) Current ranking: 498/654

Nett, aber packt mich nicht.

The album and writing lacks structure, which seems to be intentional. Not bad by any means if you think of it as poetry / spoken word and temper expectations. Top Tracks: Trouble Child, Raised on Robbery

Beautiful voice and songwriting as usual by Joni, maybe even better than the magnum opus blue, good jazz pop album, def not my genre

This is something. Id almost like to say I like this more than blue but I dont know how yall would take that lol. But there are some slow songs to start and I liked those well enough. It feels sad but maybe that's just joni I dont really know. Then it gets kinda silly in thr last few tracks. I feel some whiplash to a degree. I do like those songs too but it just feels out of place. Pretty good record though and I enjoyed it pretty well the whole time through.

Ihan hyvää taustamusiikkia. Kuuntelinkin albumin nimenomaan kaiken tekemisen taustalla, joten minulla ei ole siitä sen kummempia kommentteja.

Powiedziałam to raz i powiem to znowu: Kocham Joni Mitchell. Ta płyta czasami za mocno skręca w stronę jazzu, aby stać się moją ulubioną. Ale wciąż ma w sobie melodyjny głos Joni i jej cudowne folkowe ballady. Niesamowity talent i jeszcze większa wrażliwość 8/10

Day598 - joni mitchell’s voice is a national treasure. i really only knew the help me song but it’s a lovely album

was good but raised on robbery has no business going that hard, also twisted at then end makes this a rare back loaded album

Good lyrics but fuck it was hard to get through most of the album. The last few songs are a bit better, but not by much. Fave song: Raised on Robbery

Did she improv all her lyrics or smth? The cohesion between the lyrics and instrumentals are terrible. Favourite Song: Car On The Hill

i honestly thought it was not bad. 2-3, it had some enjoyable moments

Good acoustic background music, didn't pay attention to lyrics. Would relisten.

I like the vibe of the album, though some of the songs seemed a little same-y. I still enjoyed it, all the same. Felt a little more '60s than '70s, but that could be my ignorance showing. The last song caught me by surprise, in a good way?

Ikke noget for mig

I just don't like Joni Mitchell. It sounds like random warbling to me.

Calm and relaxing

Quite enjoyable, very good guitar playing and some fun tunes.

Good songwriting and guitar playing but no songs were like damn I really need to hear that again. I think her first album is gonna be a lot better

People's Party- Sentiment hits quite hard, personal Car on the Hill- Instrumentation is great, really highlights how the album "feels". Mixed with a lot of space, feels like more moving parts than there are. Down to You- Another sentimental one, themes of love, longing, melancholic self talk and stories "externalized" very prominent on the album. Stopped thinking and just listened. Good album, plan to revisit.

Folk music is a hit or miss with me. This one hit the right spot.

Such amazing soul and emotion in her voice. I really loved this album and there are songs on it that will stick with me for a long time. Best Track: Help Me

Another desert island disc for me - fantastic songwriting, varied styles and moods. Near perfection for me.

This was the first of her jazz-inflected albums and the arrangements are more intricate. While I prefer "Blue" and her other more straight acoustic stuff, this album has some great songs--"Help Me," "Free Man in Paris," "Raised on Roberry," "Just Like a Train"-- that it's almost a greatest hits album. Lyrically, it's as great as ever. Didn't know about the whole blackface thing and her saying she feels like she has a "black soul." While probably misguided, It doesn't take away from my appreciation of this album and her body of work.

I'm a big fan of Joni Mitchell's early folk stuff and had never heard this.. not sure how i feel about it. Was enjoyable enough but I think I just prefer the sparse sounds of her unique guitar playing accompanied by great lyrics, like on Blue. I don't think the extra instrumentals add much to her music. Raised on Robbery is a great tune but I didn't find a whole lot else compelling. And I find the jazzier tracks, especially Twisted, kind of cringy in the context of Mitchell using blackface throughout her career and defending it as recently as 2017. You're a white woman from Canada, Joni, no matter if you say you feel like a black man in your soul (yikes). Its not a bad record but probably overrated, and doesn't have shit on Blue or even Ladies of the Canyon.

Not bad.

I like Joni Mitchell, but this one's a bit hit and miss for me. Some songs are great, some just don't do it for me.

Mitchell's voice soars through this album. Musically interesting too, with dips into rock and jazz. Importantly doesn't get overblown at any point whilst really letting the strongest instrument, her vocals, shine. Feel like I'll be coming back to this one.

I mostly enjoyed this, especially lyrically.

Joni Mitchell all kinda sounds the same to me

Joni Mitchell captivates with strong storytelling ability and raw and honest lyrics. The music, combining singer-songwriter folk with jazz, is wonderfully warm and inviting, if a little bit ballad-heavy and slow for my taste. But the soul of the album lies in her ability to wrap you in her world and paint a picture, and I think the music serves her well in that regard.

Never really delved into Joni Mitchell before. Enjoyed it.

Smooth stuff

"Help Me" was apparently her biggest hit and it's easy to see how it would fit in on 70s commercial radio. "Raised on Robbery" is fitting single material too, the kind of thing that could easily by licensed for a chase sequence on a dusty road. "Twisted" is a cutely comedic and jazzy send-off for the album.

This folk crappy pop is really no good. I can't believe Joan is so big. I mean at least they are original songs and decent storytelling but the music really sucks

6/10, favorite was Raised on Robbery

joni, girl, it's crazy that you have an entire wiki page to your blackface controversies because this album goes hard af

Yeah its alright

Classical Joni Mitchell - all about the stories. Too much work for me, but I get why so many people like it.

Feels like Coffee Shop music. Not my bag

Top three Joni album which makes this one of the top three albums of all time.

Joni Mitchell always hits. Loved this album.

I listened to this album in junior high and high school. The lyrics to “Help Me” came instantly to my mind as I listened. “Free Man in Paris,” “People’s Parties,” “Car on a Hill,” “Trouble Child,” and “Twisted” were staples in my adolescence. I love Joni Mitchell. I love this album.

Huge fan of Joni Mitchell's music; this album was no exception. Already have several tracks saved.

I get this a lot more than other Joni albums I've listened to. I need to pay closer attention to the lyrics but I enjoyed it more than I expected. 3.5

I'm sorry to Joni Mitchell but this is now the third album I've listened to for 1001 and I just really, really dislike her voice and vocal style. It's hard to put together a critique beyond that, but not one I would reach for again.

i can tell that this is expertly made music, it just isn't particularly for me

Raised on Robbery seemed to kind of pop up out of nowhere compared to the others? I like that her voice is kind of deepening here compared to earlier albums.

it was soothing

I really liked this album. Joni Mitchell's voice is great. Again, this is another album I haven't heard before, but I am so glad that I've been able to experience it now. This is a very laid back album, easy to listen to.

Pretty solid album by Joni. great production and musically very strong. The last song on the album is a cover of something I haven't heard in some years.

Solid musically. Probably better lyrically but that's the side I pay less attention to

Kinda weird folk jazz thing. I didn’t get it

Help Me- This track felt nostalgic even though I'm sure I've never heard it before. I think the reason for this is that if her voice were replaced with a soft trumpet, it would fit right in as ambient music in a Hobby Lobby. I didn't mind it, but I was expecting something a little more out of a song with 23 million plays on Spotify. That said, it was musically pleasing and brought me from being in the mood to commit vehicular manslaughter against my coworkers to not considering it anymore. I'll be honest, after reading that Joni is Canadian, I was hoping for more out of this album. It was an interesting listen and I don't regret listening to it, but I could never disappoint my mother as much as this album disappointed me. Most of the tracks just weren't musically satisfying. There just wasn't enough tension built up at any point to be released.

First time hearing Joni Mitchell and I'm delighted. This album was poetic and fun. I don't relate much to these songs, but they are good to listen to. Her voice is amazing. It sometimes seems like she is just telling a story with some music in the background, though.

Very nice. Joni is an acquired taste. Incredible musician and poet. This album wasn't my favorite. Three stars

I am surprised how much I liked this one! I went into it sort of expecting a 'good' but 3-star album to me, just on account of it being okay acoustic stuff, but it had a lot more zing to it than that. Cool stuff!

What a phenomenal album. So many things off here that I knew but didn't even know I knew. Great stuff.

Great great stuff from an all-time great songwriter. Joni manages to pack a variety of sounds in here and pull them all off excellently, with a voice that never wavers.

What a neat surprise! I dreaded this seeing the singer-songwriter tag but there were some really cool instrumental things happening as well. I particularly liked the first two songs, and the last three. It got to be kind of boring in the middle but still beautiful. Trouble Child into Twisted was kinda incredible.

I have been Jonipilled!!!! Who knew having vodka at 3 years old could make you such a genius Standouts: Help Me • Car on a Hill • Down to You • Trouble Child • Twisted

Some great songs on here, with Help Me and Raised on Robbery being two of her best ever. However, I have trouble paying attention to an entire album of hers for whatever reason and they are generally pleasant listens that eventually become background noise.

Leicht und Munter aber nicht wirklich mein Fall. Aber gute Entspannungsmusik

Not my thing.

I think it was alright, not for me but...overall it was alright.

If you like Joni Mitchell, you'll like this Joni Mitchell. Maybe if we could cede an album or two from some of the artists who have multiple entries on this list to newer artists, we could have a more expansive definition of 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. This is my fourth Mitchell review for the list with probably a fifth coming. Mitchell's a gifted songwriter with an amazing voice, and I bet this is many people's favorite or second favorite record of hers, but Court And Spark doesn't reveal anything to me that the other albums haven't already.

Alla singer song writers gudmor. Fantastiska låtar, men jag blir inte engagerad tyvärr. Fyra (svag)

I don't usually connect with many female vocalists — for me, it takes something truly exceptional to make an impression. Unfortunately, this album didn’t do it. I found it kind of whiney. "Raised on Robbery" saved me from only giving this album one star.

It was okay.

Super chill listen, in line with Jim Croce and other songwriters of that era. Really enjoyed it

Just not my bag. I find it boring as hell. Sorry

Uneven singing, particularly "Twisted" (was that on purpose?) Average music (elevator music) 5/10

Incredible listen with so much energy and amazing vocals! The instrumentals are fantastic – it blends Folk, Rock, and Pop seamlessly. I absolutely love this album and will definitely keep it in my rotation. Joni Mitchell truly stands out as one of the best! 9.5/10

4/10 - nice easy going music, not offensive or exceptional either

I can see why this one is her most popular album - it's much more condensed and palatable than her others. Pioneer she may be, she's just not for me. 3/5

Great variety in this record. Every track scratches a different itch. I enjoyed the traditional pop-inspired tracks found in the latter part of this record. Favourite Track(s): Raised on Robbery, Twisted Least Favourite Track(s): Car on a Hill

I'm liking the folk singer-songwriter sound of this. And importantly, the sound feels modern; there are a few tracks where the instrumentation places it firmly in the 70s, but many of these songs feel like they could've been produced today.

Things I've discovered while doing this project. I like Bob Dylan a lot more than I thought I would. I dislike Joni Mitchell a lot more than I thought I would. Favorites: None Would I listen to it again: No

Idk why but this album agitated me. Did not enjoy.

1. Court and Spark - 5 Lyrically solid, instrumentally good. Overall a solid opening track to the album. Not anything fantastic but not anything poor either. Just a decent track. 2. Help Me - 7 Great sound. Vocals and guitar are absolutely exquisite on this track. Beat takes a little to get used to but overall it's a good track. 3. Free Man In Paris - 6 Another nice and lovely sound of vocals and guitar. Just like the track before it. 4. People's Parties - 2 Vocally this sounds great but the speed and tempo crash into each other. For example some lines lyrically are in line with the music and other others are sped up and sung really quickly so as to fit the sentence in before the guitar is one it's chords. The longer held notes at the end do not sound good either. Leaves the track feeling too rushed. 5. The Same Situation - 4 Solid but overall average song about searching for love. Nothing remarkable. 6. Car On A Hill - 7 Jazzy track unless the previous 5 on the album. The sax sounds great, as does the piano. Lyrically it's the strongest track on the album so far. Just an overall great track. 7. Down To You - 4 Another song that lyrically feels very rushed. The tempo of the lyrics make the song feel miles all over the place. Background singers feel out of place with how the opening two minutes are as do some of the instruments. Just not a great track. 8. Just Like This Train - 4 Instrumentally it's a bit odd. The pitch is gets too high on a lot of the ending rifts to the lines, at least too high for my liking. Vocals are less of the all over the place style of the previous tracks I've struggled to get through but still threaten at times to return to that random pattern. Overall just an incredibly odd song. 9. Raised on Robbery - 9 Brilliant track. Much more jazzy than anything else on the album but brilliant. Lyrically strong, musically a joy, overall just a solid track with a lot of love about it. 10. Trouble Child - 4 Again the pace is all over the place and the track becomes extremely hard to enjoy because of it. The lines of the verses just crash into each other because of this. It just feels like it could have been better written. 11. Twisted - 2 Like one of those bad solo singers in an underground coffee shop. Again the pace loses itself at times and it happens during the time when Joni's pitch reaches it's highest, which only drowns the actual words out into sound. Lyrically it's very weak on top of that. Forgettable track. Average Rating: 4.90 Adjusted to a 5-Point Scale: 2.45 Rounded Down: 2 Stars

ok

Lovely album! Simple and clean execution. 'Help Me' is a nice song.

the album was a decent refreshment to someone who listens to rock and metal, raised on robbery has been the surprisingly good one in this album, the rest were ok.

The best was background music, most of it was just boring, and the worst was at least slightly annoying. This just isn't my type of music.

gorgeous voice, incredibly beautiful album

Sorry Shane :-( good songs and great instrumentation but it’s a voice thing

I tried getting into Joni Mitchell by way of Blue and it never took until I listened to this song and then I finally got why the people love Joni. Help Me is another one of those inner circle All-Time pop songs. I feel like I'm giving Fives out like they're candy but a hit is a goddamn hit.

Joni steps a little out of her comfort zone and shows a real spark. Damn, she's a talented vocalist.

🧚‍♀️🫃🫄🤰🙆‍♂️🧖‍♂️🕴️👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩🪢👑⛑️👢🧦🐸

Sort of boring

I liked it!

Not bad but lacked energy

Jag tycker inte att det är Jonis bästa album men vissa bra låtar

The next step of my journey exploring Joni Mitchell, and after the sample size of a singular listen to both albums, I think I'd have this over Hejira as the one I'd be more likely to reach for at the moment. Whilst I very much enjoyed the latter as well, this one felt a bit more accessible and optimistic in tone, with the folk and pop elements of her sound taking greater urgency. There are still hints of the jazzy direction which would be amplified on Hejira, particularly channeled through the bass arrangements, but whilst the latter gave off the vibe of an album that you'd chuck on as an accompaniment to a cozy winter evening indoors, this is the Yang to Hejira's Yin as one more suited for a stroll in the summer. Consider me a newly enlightened fan.

Pleasant but kinda boring. Not my genre

This is one of Joni's best records. It's beautiful, meandering, and definitely jazzier than her other works. It's no "Blue" or "Hejira," but it's a classic, nonetheless. 8/10

Better than Coldplay

Pretty darn good

Jon

A solid 3

I’m so distracted by the lack of melodies and weak singing that it’s hard to find the great songwriting everyone is here for

I’ve been cursed with a streak of “very middle of the road” albums (2.5/5)

Free man in Paris is a great song.

It's... fine. Nothing bad, but just nothing that I'm excited about. 2/5 for personal taste reasons.

Would listen to again - singer song writer vibes with great music accompanying it.

no es para mí, no pude escuchar todos los temas con letra al lado pero en los que si se nota que es una poeta, pero son embargo no me atrapa, me gustó el último tema que era muy jazzero

Overall it’s a pleasant listen. She did a lot of registration changes. Her voice is good but does sound a bit old school. I still really like her voice though. Music wise nothing really stands out but nothing goes wrong either. The album is reasonably diverse and well produced (considering it was released in 1974..). Is Phoebe Buffay based on Joni Mitchell???

It was honestly just fine. I don’t have any particular standout tracks that come to mind, and I’m not quite sure I’ll ever come back to this. Middle of the road, so three it is

A bit boring for most of the album, but pretty good. The last 3 songs got my attention more than anything else, to the point that I was disappointed that the album ended when it did. I wish those songs had been earlier in the album.