The Best of James Taylor [Paperback]

James Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1992

11 of his best, including: Carolina on My Mind * Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight * Fire and Rain * Long Ago and Far Away * Steamroller * You Can Close Your Eyes * and more.

Product Details

• Paperback: 64 pages
• Publisher: Hal Leonard Corporation (July 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0793514207
• ISBN-13: 978-0793514205
• Product Dimensions: 11.9 x 9 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #72,906 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Player and Fan, February 4, 2005

By 

Player and Fan - See all my reviews

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

I have been a JT fan since that day way back in the fall of 1970 when i purchased the original Apple album and Sweet Baby James at EJ Korvette in NYC - (for $2.69 each).

JT is a great player - his style is highlighted by a moving bass, unusual chords, and rhythmic syncopation - it's a difficult style to replicate. Not to mention those classic JT licks!

I've checked all the JT tab books out there. Both James Taylor Greatest Hits and James Taylor Classic Guitar Tab are accurate - but - they do something very strange. As many of you know, JT capos his guitar. These two volumes correctly identify the capo position but the tab reflects the actual fret rather than the relative fret. Now I read music and Tab well enough to figure out what's happening - but these two books just make you work far to hard. Thumbs down for those guys.

Anyway - this volume - The Best of James Taylor - does it correctly. Tab reflects the relative position. No matter where you capo, it's easy to figure out.

As for accuracy - the Tab is very accurate. For those wishing to truly get that JT sound - this is it (until Homespun Tapes finally gets JT to make an instructional DVD - what about it Happy?). This book really does a great job of getting the chords and picking style correct. Thank you.

Finally, song selection - there are so many great JT tunes - no single volume is going to make everyone happy. Personally, I wish this included Something in the Ways She Moves and You've Got a Friend - however, there are enough great tunes here to keep you busy.

Nice to have - it would have been nice if the publisher had included instructional CDs.

Thanks Colgan Bryan for doing such a great job!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good For Learning JT's Guitar Style, August 29, 2002

By 

Robert Scott Swisher (Dublin, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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

I wish this book was available years ago. When I started playing guitar 20 years ago, my goal was to learn to play like JT. This book features guitar tablature arrangements that are very faithful to what you hear on JT's records. The only reason I don't give the book 5 stars is that it lacks some of the songs most of us would expect given the title. However, the book DOES contain the all-important "Fire and Rain", "Carolina in My Mind", "Sweet Baby James", and my personal favorite, "You Can Close Your Eyes"

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you are a JT fan, you must get this, November 7, 2005

By 

Kun Hee Hong "elton" (Middleton, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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

First of all, you can't be too disappointed about whether You've Got A Friend is included in this book or not. It was originally written by Carol King. JT also is a songwriter/singer. It makes sense that the Best of James Taylor should include his own compositions. If you want You've Got A Friend, you should look at this book called Acoustic Guitar Bible. It has a great collection of acoustic songs(recorded version) that are accurate and the book is relatively cheap.