The Last Time I Saw Richard

richard in the beginning of the song is the one looking for true love and is desperate and she is trying to convince him that true love does exist and refuses to think like he does, the depressing fate romantics meet. he even tells her that her eyes are full of moon, of hope, of expectation but he has tombs in his eyes. something in him died while she is certain that what they are looking for is out there. AND THEN, richard marries a figure skater and wastes his life, throws it away with dishwashers and superficial emptiness and she realises that richard, the richard she knew, sold out for comfort. and so she becomes the bitter one depressing in a cafe, not seeing herself as a dreamer anymore. i love this song, i love how true it is when it comes to either finding true love or settling for something half way. the thing with true love is that you may end up alone in a dark cafe. richard settled and that killed her, how someone can give up dreams like that. and if he the dreamer learned to forget, then what's the point in believing in love?

my favourite joni mitchell song. joni's defending her choice of waiting for perfection, even though it makes her sad at times. she's basically saying 'yeah, i might be on my own in this dark cafe, but he'll turn up eventually'.

This song makes me cry. The narrator truly believes these days of lonliness are only temporary, that it's just a phase and that one day her helpless romanticness will no longer hinder her into getting into healthy relationships.

But the listener can see her life is set. She will be stuck in this rut of hopeless cafe days forever.

anthem for all hopeless romantics

One of the most tragic and beautiful songs I've ever heard. And the last verse is so passionate and heartbreaking.

I actually think this song can be seen as optimistic; it's readable in several ways, obviously.

To me, the blowing out the candle signifies that she doesn't want anybody to talk to her -- that is, she won't be boring someone in a dark cafe. She's cynical and drunk for now, yes, but she knows she'll get through it, hence the "only a dark cocoon..." line. She sees what Richard did to himself, and so wants to avoid the same fate.

when i listened to this song when i was little, i always thought that it was about a hopeless romantic trying to convince richard that love does exsist. i thought it was an optimistic song, too. but does anyone listen to the second lat stanza? shes says richard gave in to idea of 'love' and now hes sitting at home now alone drinking. that doesnt sound very optimistic to me- instead of brooding in a cafe somewhere, hes just doing it in his materialistic (modern) home. and now joni's sitting in a cafe by herself thinking about him, realizing everything he said was true.

Joni’s Whispers

I am screaming

Screaming silently

Silently exiled

No one listens

But all return the smiles The smiles are the beginning The beginning of our separation

Smiles are root of the separation of I And those who are Laughing in my laughter

It is just as she had sung to me So many times “Now it’s just another show Leave them Laughing when you go.”

And you know you will go.

Oh to cease the craving for freedom Freedom is my fuel. Traveling traveling traveling

Go back to traveling If I can find where I left Down Up In circles Backwards Never forwards
Because I’m a blind traveler on this journey This journey for freedom

And again the cry of her guitar And her whispers Oh, and the whispers Reaching my detached mind

“There’s no comprehending Just how CLOSE To the Bone And the skin And the eyes And the lips You can get and still feel so alone.”

Now I am in my world. Only I can see this chaos I and Joni It is only she who really understands This façade And the loneliness

I am a sixty-five year old lady Staring from behind a cigarette With tombs in my eyes Because we all know All romantics meet the same fate some day, Cynical and drunk and boring some one in some dark café

My heart is blessed With a terrible thirst So full And yet so hollow Like a Cactus tree All I want is to be free I want to make you feel free

“All good dreamers pass this way some day Hidin' behind bottles in Dark cafes Dark cafes Only a dark cocoon before I get my gorgeous wings And fly away Only a phase, These Dark Café Days"

Really good song, possibly my favourite on Blue.

"The last time I saw Chuck Mitchell..."