For the Roses

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Work

For the Roses was released in November 1972, between Blue and Court and Spark, the two greatest successes of Joni Mitchell. It is her fifth studio album. Her record company asked for a song for radio. Mitchell wrote You Turn Me On I'm a Radio, intended as a sarcastic answer. It became her first top 40 hit under her own name. Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire is a menacing, jazzy portrait of the heroin addiction of her then boyfriend James Taylor. Judgement of the Moon and Stars was inspired by Beethoven.

The critics were glowing. The New York Times praised the elegant language and the irony, and Rolling Stone mentioned her vocal acting and phrasing. Robert Christgau heard how she had turned the strange leaps of her voice into music that sounded almost classical. In 2007 the Library of Congress added the album to the National Recording Registry.

Listening

Track list

1. 1Banquet3:01Apple Music ↗
2. 2Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire4:17Apple Music ↗
3. 3Barangrill2:52Apple Music ↗
4. 4Lesson In Survival3:11Apple Music ↗
5. 5Let the Wind Carry Me3:56Apple Music ↗
6. 6For the Roses3:43Apple Music ↗
7. 7See You Sometime2:57Apple Music ↗
8. 8Electricity3:02Apple Music ↗
9. 9You Turn Me On I'm a Radio2:40Apple Music ↗
10. 10Blonde In the Bleachers2:42Apple Music ↗
11. 11Woman of Heart and Mind2:39Apple Music ↗
12. 12Judgement of the Moon and Stars (Ludwig's Tune)5:19Apple Music ↗

30-second previews via Apple Music. Listen to the whole album on Apple Music ↗