I take you back to August of 1970. I was heading off to college for the first time. I had this huge trunk that held everything we thought would be needed for the first year. I only brought one record album with me. It was the one you see in the above photo. “Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor.
I’m not sure why that was the one. You’d think I’d bring a few of our Beatles albums. But there was something about this record that made it the one to take.
The JT of my generation was among the first of the singer-songwriter genre. His songs stood out then and more than fifty years later they still do. Plus, I liked his look. When my hair first grew out to what is his length in the album photo, I parted it down the middle as he did. It didn’t look nearly as good as his. I also loved the blue denim shirt and still wear one—which I did Saturday night when I saw Taylor in concert at Ravinia.
Close to fifty-four years after stealing the album from my sister, James Taylor is still performing at a high level. A twenty-two-song performance has all the songs you love from his lengthy career. When he played “Fire and Rain”, I commented, “I wonder how many times he’s played this song? He’s been doing it for more than fifty years.” He still made it sound as fresh as the first time he sang it.
And it wasn’t only that tune. How about the concert opener “Something In the Way She Moves”, “Carolina in My Mind”, “You’ve Got a Friend” and “Shower the People.” If you’re a fan, you heard all of his biggest songs. You certainly got your money’s worth.
The amazing thing is at age seventy-six, Taylor’s voice still sounds great. While so many of his contemporaries struggle with this, JT is still in top form.
This is the third time I’ve seen James Taylor in concert in recent years. The first two were at Wrigley Field. While those shows were good, his music is meant more for a smaller, more intimate setting. Ravinia is perfect for him.
When you get a night of music that brings back treasured memories, but the performances sound like they’re being done for the first time, that makes for a special concert. James Taylor on Saturday night gave us that and more.
So good to know he thrives and is in such fine form.