Customer Reviews

Hourglass (Sl)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It is amazing to me that the balladeers of the late `60s and early `70s don't get any airplay on the classic rock stations. JT was, and remains, one of the best. He has one of the easiest to listen to voices I can recall hearing. Whether backed by only a six string guitar or the entire band, you can just sit back, close your eyes and relax. The songs on this album are classic JT, with no throw-away material. With the SACD version, you get very high quality sound reproduction. This recording is wonderfully warm, clean and open. You can hear the air around JT's voice. My breathing slows down listening to this SACD. This was the first SACD I purchased several years ago, and it still gets listened to more than many of the more recently purchased SACDs simply because of its sheer aural beauty.

Why buy the SACD? After listening to DVD-A and SACD for some time, I really have gotten to dislike listening to CDs because CDs sound harsh and brittle. CDs produce listening fatigue in minutes. It is hard to explain the subjective difference between the sound produced by SACD and DVD-Audio and the sound produced by a CD. Essentially, it is like trying to reproduce cool seaside air with the dry brittle air blowing out of an airconditioning nozzle in a jet airplane. In a very literal sense, the CD format is like playing a violin with a hack saw -- there is simply no way to smooth out the saw teeth sufficiently to make it sound correct. SACD and DVD-Audio fix the problem by giving you enough data to filter out the audible errors created by digitizing analog sound.

Enjoy!

But this SACD is an awesome sound experience. I originally purchased this SACD for my wife, but when I listened to it, I was absolutely blown away with the sound quality. JT was in my living room, and the neighbors thought so too. My 7.1 system using Monitor Audio S10 mains powered by Denon Amps show the system off right. The track "Gaia," about 4 minutes in shows the tighest, cleanest low end of any SACD I have. I listen to this CD often and am waiting for another JT SACD in hopes that it is as fine a production as this one certainly is.

James Taylor is only getting better. Most singers lose something along the way after as many years of singing and songwriting as JT has done, but not him. I love every single one of the songs on this album (except maybe "Yellow and Rose"), and would highly recommend it to all JT fans and new listeners. Almost all of the lyrics are interesting, especially those of "Line 'Em Up" and "Enough To Be On Your Way". My absolute favorite is "Another Day" which is classic JT: beautiful and moving. Buy this cd; it's the best.

I've been listening to James Taylor since he first came to prominence in the early 1970s. I can think of no other voice that moves me more or another artist who makes me feel as if all is right with the world than this man at his peak, as he is here. This is wonderful James Taylor. I could do without 'Hangnail,' but everything else is as good as it gets, which is quite an accomplishment for an artist who was one of the most popular in his field 35 years ago.

On a technical note, I have a 7.1 audio system to do this justice. The result is amazing. The multichannel mix is well done. Generally subtle, every once in a while the rear channels have a surprise that reminds me why I have full range speakers with 200W amps for the rear channels.

JT is an artist who gets better and better. This CD has great songs, top notch musicians and excellent sound quality.

How did I miss this?? Was there a time warp of some kind? This is a great sound experience and an tasteful mix for SACD surround that somehow got by me for too long. It brings James Taylor into a new light for me and it is only challenged by his guest appearance on a Yo-Yo Ma, Mark O'Connor, Edger Meyer CD for an ultimate James Taylor experience.

A great listen.

The original CD was more than good.
This sacd is superb. If you close your eyes you can imagine that James is playing in your living room. All sounds the way it should be from big bangs up to the final high notes

Once this album was released, I waited a good while to actually purchase it, hoping that the $20.00 price tag might come down. In fact, it took several long years before I saw the price come down, and if you listen to it, you will understand why. This is probably the finest album Mr. Taylor has released to date, and it well derserved winning contemporary album of the year in 1997.

I have given "Hourglass" as a gift many times over to people with various preferances in music, including people who, unbelievably, had never heard of James Taylor before they were given this album. My advice to everyone was (and is)always to grab one's favorite beverage, lock out all distractions, get comfortable, and LISTEN. I do not believe James Taylor's music can ever be used simply as background music; His songs demand that one really listen. Each song on "Hourglass" is like a crown jewel. On occasion, some music critics unjustly criticized Mr. Taylor's songs as "all sounding alike." This has never been true, and if anyone wants to demonstrate just how incredibly varied and rich his songs are, one can do no better than point to the songs on this album. Everyone to whom I have given this album absolutely loves it, even one friend who claimed to only like country-western music. This particular friend sadly divorced a couple of years after I gave her this album, and she told me that when she and her husband divided their albums, they argued over who should get "Hourglass." Of course many country-western artists have been influenced by Mr. Taylor's work, and he has been influenced by some country-western artists as well; the legendary George Jones springs to mind. So, it was no surprise to me that this woman who "only listened to country-western music" fell in love with "Hourglass." This is not to say, however, that "Hourglass" could be considered a country-western style album.

I do not believe that one can truly and accurately "categorize" Mr. Taylor's work. Mr. Taylor is in a class all by himself so far as I am concerned. He is one of a kind, a true original, and as someone once observed about the great American writer, Eugene O'Neil, "it is very hard to be an orginal in America." Mr. Taylor has to be counted as one of the few in that select group of Americans. So, on that note, I am, as ever, happy and excited to recommend this album to lovers of all types of music. From the brilliant "Line'em Up" to "Walking My Baby Back Home," the songs on this album are worth hearing, worth loving, and worth keeping.

One great record. A must have for a JT fan, or any music lover.

If you like soft and very melodic sing- and songwriter music this is a must-have CD - I'll promise you that! Almost every song has a hit potential. Only one track doesn't really keep up with the others, Yellow and Rose (too much traditional country for my taste). Buy this CD right now and enjoy!