As my last few posts have made clear, I’m quite fond of lyricists who are able to capture a specific mood. “Help Me” finds Joni Mitchell falling for a guy who’s unquestionably a cad. He’s a smooth talkin’ ladies man, and he loves his freedom more than he loves love. So why is Joni falling in love with him anyway, even though she feels like she’s going too fast? Well, sometimes the heart wants what it wants. And sometimes the heart makes stupid-ass decisions for no reason at all. Girl, I have been there.

I have to once again credit Prince for my Joni Mitchell love, because “Help Me” was a very specific portal through which I fell in love with her. Why “Help Me” Because Prince quoted it in 1987’s “The Ballad of Dorothy Parker”. I’m not quite sure when I realized that the line was taken from a Joni Mitchell song, but when I did, I became intrigued about who this Joni Mitchell person that Prince loved so much was.

He did not steer me wrong.