Insomnia has rendered me nearly insensate today, but I plan a nice science post tomorrow, assuming I’ll be able to write and think. Today we get music.
“Free Man in Paris” is a song written, sung, and performed by Joni Mitchell, describing record and film producer David Geffen kvetching about busy life in the US, where many people importuned him constantly. It’s about his celebrating his freedom from that importuning in Paris. The song first appeared on Mitchell’s “Court and Spark” album in 1974.
Geffen originally signed Joni to Asylum Records (part of Atlantic), and here’s a bit more about the song from the Wikipedia links above:
Joni Mitchell and Geffen were close friends and, in the early 1970s, made a trip to Paris with Robbie Robertson and Robertson’s wife, Dominique. As a result of that trip, Mitchell wrote “Free Man in Paris“ about Geffen.
The song is about music agent/promoter David Geffen, a close friend of Mitchell in the early 1970s, and describes Geffen during a trip the two made to Paris with Robbie Robertson and Dominique Robertson. While Geffen is never mentioned by name, Mitchell describes how he works hard creating hits and launching careers but can find some peace while vacationing in Paris. Mitchell sings “I was a free man in Paris. I felt unfettered and alive. Nobody calling me up for favors. No one’s future to decide.”
I love this song, as I love Joni—at the top of singers/songwriters/musicians of our era. Here she is playing it in 1979. The sax is great, and Joni plays electric. (The recorded version is here.)
Excellent. I think that’s Michael Brecker on sax? Also Pat Metheny, Lyle Mays, and Jaco Pastorius (sadly, the latter 2 no longer with us), who made some great music together, as well as backing up Joni in studio and live. Don’t recognize the drummer.
Don Alias
Doing his best Brecker impersonation.
Oh, I guess it is Brecker after all.
Jaco Pastorius was a talented bass guitarist. What a tragic end to his life.
A welcome break!
Yes, she is the best.
Her band here is Jaco Pastorius on bass, Pat Metheny on guitar, Michael Brecker on sax, Don Alias on drums, and Lyle Mays on keyboards
… and with those musicians, each already storied, you may not be lucky enough to hear a better band in your life.
Agreed. Stellar line up. Check out Black Crow from the same show.
I love the song it blends into, The Same Situation. “Tethered to ringing telephone in room.full.of mirrors”. (So evocative, so nice to have grown past those days)
That was an important album in my youth. Great pick.
Me too, Debi…well more grad school than actual youth, but court and spark vinyl on a wonderful AR turntable. That was some sax in this morning’s video!
I came across this yesterday.
Joni Mitchell also visited Matala. She wrote about it in her song “Carey” from her album Blue:
“Oh you’re a mean old Daddy, but I like you…”
“Come on down to the Mermaid Café and I will buy you a bottle of wine…”
I love Joni too. I am currently writing a history of rock music, and 400 pages in I’m only so far at 1977! Though I discuss thousands, I consider 140 artists as “A” artists (the slightly less important ones are “B”), and indeed Joni is an A. In the video you show, I believe she is surrounded by the greatest musicians of all time, Jaco Pastorius (from Weather Report) on bass, Pat Matheny on guitar, and Michael Brecker on sax, all considered the greatest jazz musicians on their instruments at this time. Joni’s song about Geffen in Paris was a type of biography that she employed frequently (for example, For Free is a song about the brilliant jazz musician Lol Coxhill busking on a bridge in London). She was one of those folk musicians who delved more and more into jazz, thus bridging styles and creating something extremely original – other musicians from her time that did the same were Tim Buckley (in my view one of the most original of artists in rock), Nick Drake, Nico, and others. You mention her label, which (Reprise label) was unusual in signing so many of the greatest rock musicians (Randy Newman, Jimi Hendrix, Kinks, Grateful Dead, Van Dyke Parks). Great stuff indeed!
The late great Jaco Pastorius on bass.