Court and Spark is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. Released by A&M in January 1974, it infuses the folk rock style of her previous albums with jazz elements.
In 2004, Court and Spark was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[10]
Background
Mitchell did not release a new album in 1973, the first year she had not done so in her professional career. 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.
Mitchell spent most of 1973 in the recording studio creating Court and Spark. Mitchell and engineer Henry Lewy called in a number of top L.A. musicians to perform on the album including members of the Crusaders, Tom Scott's L.A. Express, cameos from Robbie Robertson, David Crosby and Graham Nash and even a twist of comedy from Cheech & Chong.
Release and reception
On December 1, 1973, Asylum Records released a single, her first in over a year, "Raised on Robbery".[11] The single reached No. 65 on the Billboard Singles Chart in February 1974.[12] In January 1974, Court and Spark was released, and met with widespread critical acclaim and commercial success. 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 Billboard single, peaking at No. 7 on the Hot 100 in the first week of June, and reaching No. 1 on the Adult Contemporary chart.
Court and Spark became a big seller that year, peaking at No.2 on the Billboard album chart[22] and staying there for four weeks. The album topped the US Cashbox and Record World charts for one week each.[23][24]
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.[25] She later suggested that Dylan was probably trying to be "cute" in front of label boss David Geffen, who was also present.[25]
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."[26]
In 2003, the album was ranked number 111 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[30] 114 in a 2012 revised list,[31] and 110 in a 2020 revised list.[9]
