One of my all-time favourite songs.

Nice.

Remember the Concert for New York City organized by Paul McCartney the month after 9/11, with fire fighters, etc...in the audience?

You couldn't help listen to many old song lyrics in the context of what had just happened and James Taylor performed "Fire and Rain". Now, I believe the Flying Machines were a band he used to be in, but I remember thinking that line from this song really sort of stood out:

"Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground."

Strange that he wrote it before the Twin Towers were even built.

At any rate, James sure passes the one singer and an acoustic test. I love it when the detractors say he is wimpy. They have no idea how strong you have to be to pull these sounds out of an acoustic guitar. He can make a bass string on an acoustic sound like a grand piano. Somewhere along the electronic path, the top two strings of this performance became slightly overloaded, but I guarantee they left the guitar sounding magnificent. They probably overwhelmed that little microphone that's pointing at the sound hole with their strength. James Taylor wimpy? Yeah, right.

Needless to say Paul McCartney brings a lot to the vocal/guitar format as well. As does Neil Young. You know who really was shockingly great with one acoustic in a concert at the Rose Garden? Prince. It felt like a funk band was backing him up.

Oh well. I also smile when I think of a young James Taylor signing with Apple Records and going around London with the Beatles. Not too many people saw it from that perspective.