James Taylor Off The Beaten Path

Portable PA
1

SiriusXM James Taylor Channel has me remembering lots of great old JT tunes!

Here’s my question:

What JT songs do YOU play? (thru your Bose L1)

Please do NOT include "the obvious ":
Sweet Baby James, Fire And Rain, Carolina In My Mind, Country Road,
his covers - including You’ve Got A Friend, Up On The Roof, Handyman, et al

I’ll start us off with:
Secret O Life / Wandering
Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight
Blossom
Sunny Skies
Hey Mister That’s Me
You Can Close Your Eyes

Thanks and have fun…

2

Hi Mike,

Great to see you, and a great question.

I haven’t played a JT tune in some time although I was at a community music event last night and someone played Blossom. Last week I heard You Can Close Your Eyes.

3

Damn, This Traffic Jam!
How I hate to be late…
Hurts my motor to go slow.
Damn, this Traffic Jam.

4

Hi Mike,

Nice question, thanks for putting it to us.

James Taylor is probably THE main reason that I play acoustic guitar. Over the years I’ve played a fair number of his own songs and also several covers.

I especially like to play Millworker. His cover of the traditional “The water is wide” is a particular favorite of mine which I played together with my wife (flute accompaniment) at the celebration of my mother’s life last week.

Once again, good question (and a very nice man. His concert at the BBC in 1973 was excellent, and his humbleness there was refreshing. Not at all like many of the so-called superstars of today who no-one will remember in a few years time. The concert is on Youtube and really worth watching).

Take care,

Tony

5

San Antone, and Germany - FAR OUT!

Yes, Sweet Baby James’ influence is SO broad - talk about The Water Is WIDE!

Thanks for the replies…

6

Hi Mike,

Yes,as far as JT goes, his influence seems to be everywhere. As far as Germany and myself goes, I discovered JT pretty much at the beginning (probably around 1968/69). He moved to England for a while (I’m originally from England and left there in 1977) where he met Peter Asher (from Peter Gordon). If you like, his career really began in England. JT was probably my greatest influence as an acoustic guitarist. To this day I am grateful for his existence and influence in my musical life. JT then moved back to the states (with Peter Asher who produced his first albums). The rest is history.

Have a really nice day Mike, and thanks for starting this thread.

Tony

Here’s a link to the 1970 BBC concert on youtube. Use Headphones if you can.

IN CONCERT ‘’ JAMES TAYLOR ‘’ BBC STUDIOS 1970

I was lucky to see it first time around.

7

One song I do off the beaten path is “T-Bone” (from Never Die Young).

Also “Mexico”, but that’s probably on your obvious list, and “Honey, Don’t Leave LA”.

8

Thanks for responding SF, Sea and Tres - I very much enjoy folks’ reactions and experiences…

Mexico is so nice - WISH I could play it, probably could but haven’t taken the time and effort. Same for Smiling Face, Up On The Roof, a few others. The intro bass line to Gorilla! I play mainly rock band gigs now, so the JT intricate soft stuff is not “useful” to me, right now.

My most proud guitar accomplishment is to have learned to play Secret O’ Life correctly, BEFORE JT posted the lesson - I’m at 90% or better accuracy on that one. Always enjoyed playing Lonely Tonight too.

Keep em coming, friends! Thanks again all…