I don't agree that this song is about extolling the virtues of waitresses and gas station attendants. I think it's about Joni--the woman writing the song, not the characters in it.
The singer's a very smart woman who's sick of journalists, academics, and people who supposedly have answers. Like on the album Hejira, she hits the road in search of her own answers. But it's not really for their supposed enlightenment that Joni admires the waitresses and gas station attendants she encounters: it's just 'cause they're the opposite of journalists and academics and so on.
The quest is about her, not about the people she meets; in fact, Joni's condescending, talking about these people's simplicity. I think she knows that. She writes, "Her mind's on her boyfriend and eggs over easy," undercutting her assertions about this person's enlightenment. Plus, there's the simple fact that she calls her Mecca or whatever Barangrill, or Bar and Grill. I think that's a bit of a self-deprecating joke.
Joni's being a narcissist, and she knows it, but that doesn't mean her confusion and desire for truth isn't sincere. This is one of my favorite songs on the album, but I think it's moony-eyed to act like it's some Fanfare for the Common Man.
I don't agree that this song is about extolling the virtues of waitresses and gas station attendants. I think it's about Joni--the woman writing the song, not the characters in it.
The singer's a very smart woman who's sick of journalists, academics, and people who supposedly have answers. Like on the album Hejira, she hits the road in search of her own answers. But it's not really for their supposed enlightenment that Joni admires the waitresses and gas station attendants she encounters: it's just 'cause they're the opposite of journalists and academics and so on.
The quest is about her, not about the people she meets; in fact, Joni's condescending, talking about these people's simplicity. I think she knows that. She writes, "Her mind's on her boyfriend and eggs over easy," undercutting her assertions about this person's enlightenment. Plus, there's the simple fact that she calls her Mecca or whatever Barangrill, or Bar and Grill. I think that's a bit of a self-deprecating joke.
Joni's being a narcissist, and she knows it, but that doesn't mean her confusion and desire for truth isn't sincere. This is one of my favorite songs on the album, but I think it's moony-eyed to act like it's some Fanfare for the Common Man.