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1. Something In The Way She Moves

2. Sweet Baby James

3. Fire And Rain

4. Country Road

5. You've Got A Friend

6. You Can Close Your Eyes

7. Long Ago And Far Away

8. Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight

9. Walking Man

10. How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)

11. Mexico

12. Shower The People

13. Golden Moments

14. Steamroller (Live)

15. Carolina In My Mind

16. Handyman

17. Your Smiling Face

18. Up On The Roof

19. Only A Dream In Rio

20. Bittersweet

Product Description

From Amazon.com

Any good singer can interpret a song, but it takes a stylist to make it his own. James Taylor is a stylist. This 20-track anthology obviously can't chronicle much more than the hits and high points of Taylor's career, but it nonetheless captures the artistic essence of a performer who's become a virtual synonym for "singer-songwriter" since his emergence in the late '60s. A lot of ink has been spilled ruminating about Taylor's role in soothing a '60s-burned generation, but given his own well-known demons (depression, addiction) his gentle voice often sounds like the physician wisely healing himself. His muse seems fully formed from the opening "Something in the Way She Moves," a track cut for the Beatles' Apple label in late ‘68 (and one that seems to share some symbiotic relationship with George Harrison's own classic "Something" from the period), its tone at once familiar and inviting--if ripe for a few decades of parody--as it wends its way from his seminal early '70s hits through a slate of later originals, R&B ("How Sweet It Is," "Handy Man") and pop ("Up On the Roof") covers. Tellingly, he delivers those chestnuts with an offhand confidence and illumination that makes them his own, a sense that informs even his jazz and Brazilian ("Only a Dream a Rio") flirtations. The set's newly recorded bonus cut, John Sheldon's "Bittersweet," is a pleasant pop confection that showcases Taylor's knack for being laconic and upbeat in the same breath. --Jerry McCulley

Album Description

20 of his greatest singles and most popular album tracks released on Apple, Warner Bros. and Columbia/Sony. Slipcase. 2003.

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Customer Reviews

46 Reviews

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (46 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Quality Collection that includes all of the timeless hits!, April 15 2003

By

Robert L. Henry Jr. (Paden City, WV United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Best of James Taylor (Audio CD)

This is the collection to own of JT's work. All the hits are here, including the entire old Warner Bros. Greatest Hits album and then the Columbia hit material. However 2 or 3 songs are included on this great set that really are not needed such as " You Can Close your Eyes" or Golden Moments, and "Long Ago and Far Away. These 3 songs are good songs but they do not add any flavor to the collection. What about the old tune "Rainy Day Man, which dates back to the "Flying Machine" days and then was re-recorded for his debut album, "James Taylor" on Apple records back in 1969. There has to be a way Warner Bros could have got the rights to this classic. Also what about Copperline, it could have fit in nicely after "Only A Dream in Rio", in the time frame of things. This collection also features a new track, "Bittersweet" which is absolutely top notch and should turn out to be a JT classic, the best JT song in years!!!!! This collection is a MUST BUY!!!!!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Twenty-five years late. Right on time., April 8 2003

By

Pat Kelly (Here, There & Everywhere) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Best of James Taylor (Audio CD)

There is very little on this album that couldn't have been released on a James Taylor "best-of" in 1978. Up On The Roof appears to be the most recent track, if you can call 1979 recent.

Unfortunately, this was about the time that Ol' JT switched record labels (Columbia to WEA) and so it was not possible to get a Greatest Hits package that actually contained all his greatest hits.

It still isn't. Not quite. Missing in action are his duets with his ex, Carly Simon (Mockingbird & Devoted To You), his duet with JD Souther (Her Town Too), What A Wonderful World (recorded with Art Garfunkel & Paul Simon) and the lovely remake of Buddy Holly's "Everyday". Or anything he's recorded during, say, Britney Spears' lifetime.

But what is here more than makes up for what's missing. Classic gentle songs, that warm you like brandy on a winter's night. And like brandy, age does not harm the contents.

At this year's Grammies, James was part of a singer-songwriter performance. Alongside "young whipper-snappers" like John Mayer and Vanessa Carleton, JT performed the 30-year old "Sweet Baby James", a track than never even sniffed at the charts.

One has to question whether Mayer or Carleton will be able to strike similar memory chords in 2038.

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly A Collection Of Taylor's Very Best Work !, Dec 12 2003

By

Barron Laycock "Labradorman" (Temple, New Hampshire United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Best of James Taylor (Audio CD)

I was lucky enough to first see James Taylor live in a small outdoor venue called Avaloch in rural Lenox, Massachusetts in the summer of 1970, after this first album recorded by the Beatles in London had been released and just before the release of the fabulously successful "Sweet Baby James" album by Warner Brothers. He appeared alone on-stage with a full head of long, long hair in a simple denim shirt and cut-up jeans with his four or five acoustic guitars, and for two and a half hours proceeded to absolutely enchant the sprawling lawn-full of hundreds of audience members with a spellbinding performance of all of the work from both of those albums. Although virtually unknown at the time, word of mouth had spread so quickly in the Berkshires area (who still considers him one of their own) that many of us went out to get this album to play before he appeared. The rest, as they say, is history.

This is a fantastic collection of his greatest hits garnered from both of his greatest hits collections, and so represents some twenty gems on an incredible collection of wonderful selections, and is therefore a terrific summary of that work. Many of my favorites are here, including "Something In The Way She Moves", "Carolina In My Mind", and "You Can Close Your Eyes". Of course, so is "Fire And Rain", "You've Got A Friend", "Steamroller Blues", and "Country Road", all now Taylor standards. My all time favorite song from this album is "Sweet Baby James", which is sung about the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts where I grew up, so I have always considered this a special song, with its evocation of a snow-driven drive along the turnpike just as winter's first snow hits the Berkshires. His performance on it is a brilliant early indication of just how incredibly talented an interpretive artist Taylor really is. He always pleases with songs like "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight", "Mexico", and "Walking Man", and this album is sure to please even the most cautious music fan. It is certainly a terrific showcase for how well Taylor can deliver on a variety of original works and covers of traditional folk songs. Enjoy!

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars True talent and ability
This CD is great! The collection is perfect for any James Taylor fan.

Published on July 17 2004 by James Reeves

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!
This CD has all my favorite James Taylor songs all in one high-quality compilation. What a great addition to any music collection! Read more

Published on July 9 2004