James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Carly Simon, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Crosby Stills & Nash, Simon & Garfunkel, and so on all were excellent song writers and added the "soft side" to rock & roll. James Taylor made his ninche in the rock & roll scene due to his unique songwriting and "soft sung word." Maybe the best way to describe James Taylor is to present an exerpt from the Times Magazine cover story of March 1, 1971:

"Listeners do not need to know anything about him to enjoy his music. Taylor is a master of many styles and subjects. The song Sweet Baby James is simply one of the best lullabies ever composed. Like so many other troubled, dislocated young Americans, Taylor may at first seem self-indulgent in his woe. What he has endured and sings about, with much restraint and dignity, are mainly "head" problems, those pains that a lavish quota of middle-class advantages--plenty of money, a loving family, good schools, health, charm and talent--do not seem to prevent, and may in fact exacerbate. Drugs, underachievement, the failure of will, alienation, the doorway to suicide, the struggle back to life--James Taylor has been there himself.

...the man who best sums up the new sound of rock--as well as being its most radiantly successful practitioner--is a brooding, sensitive 22-year-old rich man’s son who sings,he says, "because I don’t know how to talk." James Taylor’s first album came out only two years ago on the prestigious Apple label. It sold only 30,000 copies its first year. Today, Taylor is one of the best and steadiest national record sellers since the loudest days of Beatlemania. Sweet Baby James, his second album, has already sold 1,600,000 copies and, along with his hit single Fire and Rain, has been nominated for five Grammy Awards."

That was 1971, the beginning of his career. Now, after more than 30 years He continued to win Grammies in 1977, 1997, 2001, and 2003. James Taylor is still writing and rock'n. In the year 2000 he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. On February 2006 he was awarded the MusiCares Person of the Year at the annual Grammy Awards. His awards go on and on and he has been so deserving of them.

If some of you don't know James Taylor and are opened minded to music that you must listen to the lyrics please, do so as it will not be a disappointment. Some songs that have made the mainstream and have been popular for years are "You've Got A Friend," "Carolina In My Mind," "Handy Man," "Fire and Rain," and albums such as "Hourglass." But, there is much more not mentioned here.

My personal experiences at his concerts has revealed a man with great talent and also a great personality and sense of humor. His concerts flow and are easy going that allow the listener to take voyages in the soul's mind and to experience romanticism as well. James Taylor has endured time and is a classic act. He is a true hall of famer.