"Raised on Robbery" is a song written by

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan Mitchell (née Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter. As one of the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitch ...

. It was the lead single from her 1974 album ''

Court and Spark ''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. It was an immediate commercial and critical su ...

''.

Lyrics and music

The lyrics are about a prostitute who tries to pick up a man sitting alone in a hotel. The prostitute tells him about her life, until at the end of the song the man leaves. ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' music critic

Robert Hilburn Robert Hilburn (born September 25, 1939) is an American pop music critic, author, and radio host. As music critic and editor at the ''Los Angeles Times'' from 1970 to 2005, his reviews, essays, and profiles have appeared in publications worldwide ...

explains that although the lyrics are provocative, they are "camouflaged enough" for

AM radio AM broadcasting is radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions. It was the first method developed for making audio radio transmissions, and is still used worldwide, primarily for medium wave (also known as "AM band") transmi ...

, for example by using a cooking

metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

. "Raised on Robbery" has a

strophic Strophic form – also called verse-repeating form, chorus form, AAA song form, or one-part song form – is a song structure in which all verses or stanzas of the text are sung to the same music. Contrasting song forms include through-composed, ...

structure with a refrain at the end of each verse and a four-line introduction section to describe the setting and characters. The music is more commercial than much of the music Mitchell performed before releasing this song, and

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

critic William Ruhlmann describes it as "an outright rock tune," although retaining the

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked, its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

work that Mitchell was known for.

Robbie Robertson Jaime Royal Robertson (July 5, 1943 – August 9, 2023) was a Canadian musician of Indigenous and Jewish ancestry. He was the lead guitarist for Bob Dylan's backing band in the mid-late 1960s and early-mid 1970s. Robertson was also the ...

the Band The Band was a Canadian-American rock music, rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario, in 1957. It consisted of the Canadians Rick Danko (bass, guitar, vocals, fiddle), Garth Hudson (organ, keyboards, accordion, saxophone), Richard Manuel (piano, d ...

plays

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...

on the song to enhance the rock music feel. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described the guitar playing as "funky" and said that the guitars and

horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

s keep the music flowing. According to music professor Lloyd Whitesell, Mitchell "employs vocal histrionics to portray" the prostitute and conveys her brash personalities through "a bright, forceful vocal tone and suggestive, flamboyant slides."

Reception

Music critic Sean Nelson regarded "Raised on Robbery" as a tribute to such 1950s rock and roll songs as " Shake Rattle and Roll" and performers such as

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and de ...

but did not think it was very convincing, saying that it sounded "stodgy and wrinkled." On the other hand, Ruhlmann regarded the song as a perfectly realized "short story in song" with "funny and saucy" lyrics. Fellow Allmusic critic Jason Ankeny stated that "Raised on Robbery" " offers an acutely funny look at the predatory environment of the singles bar scene." Hilburn called it the "liveliest track" on ''Court and Spark,'' calling it a "surprising, but welcome exercise in humor." ''Tallahassee Democrat'' critic Bud Newman claimed that it was the only song on ''Court and Spark'' that "comes right out and grabs you, holding you captive to the lyric and the musical package." ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that "a rocking, rolling hard driving effort by Joni is a rarity...but this one was well worth waiting for." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that "Joni goes for a boogie-woogie beat, tight '30s harmonies and great instrumental backup on her spectacular new single entry." "Raised on Robbery" reached No. 50 on the '' Cashbox'' singles chart, No. 65 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and No. 40 on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart. "Raised on Robbery" was later included on the video version of Mitchell's 1980 live album '' Shadows and Light'', along with her compilation albums ''

Hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

'' (1996) and '' Songs of a Prairie Girl'' (2005), the latter album being dedicated to Saskatchewan's centenary celebrations.

Covers

*The song was covered by the Trans-Canada Highwaymen for their 2023 album, ''Explosive Hits Vol. 1''.

Charts

References

{{Authority control Joni Mitchell songs Songs written by Joni Mitchell 1973 songs 1973 singles Song recordings produced by Joni Mitchell Asylum Records singles