Customer Reviews

James Taylor - Greatest Hits, Vol. 2

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This companion to James Taylor's 1976 Greatest Hits package, which chronicled his Seventies' output for Warner Brothers, is cause for celebration for casual James Taylor fans who have not kept up with his infrequent studio albums since signing with Columbia in 1977--there have only been seven, and they're all represented here.

The sixteen songs collected here are presented in chronological order from 1977's J.T. through 1997's Hourglass. The good news is that you get his late Seventies hits "Handy Man" (No. 4, 1977), "Your Smiling Face" (No. 20, 1977), "Up on the Roof" (No. 28, 1979) and his final Top 40 hit "Her Town Too" (No. 11, 1981), a duet with J.D. Souther from the album Dad Loves His Work. You also get most of the key album tracks including three from each of his Nineties albums, New Moon Shine and Hourglass.

The bad news? You get only three tracks from his Columbia debut J.T. Okay, maybe that's a personal bias, but it was arguably his best album for Columbia and second only to Sweet Baby James as the best album of his career. It would have been nice to have made room for "Honey Don't Leave L.A.," "Bartender's Blues" or "Traffic Jam." [Did 1985's That's Why I'm Here really need to be represented by four songs? It was not is strongest album, yet it is the most represented on this collection.] The problem was that Taylor's first greatest hits album covered only six years, and Volume 2 tries to cover twenty years with a single disc. When it comes to one of popular music's best singer-songwriters, that's a daunting task. Overall, it succeeds and this will make a welcome addition to your CD collection. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

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 both of the albums to play before he appeared. The rest, as they say, is history.

Of course, most of the songs included on this second volume of his greatest hits were not on either of those two early albums, but for those of us who became life-long admirers of JT's work early in his career, it has been a delight to watch his career continue over the thirty years since with all these wonderful songs, ranging from "Copperline" to "Your Smiling Face", from wonderful covers of classics like "Handy Man" to "Up On The Roof", this is a fantastic collection of his greatest hits as he began to mature as an artist. This second greatest hits album is a terrific summary of that continuing work. Many of my favorites are here, including the very recent "Enough To Be On Your Way", "Secret O' Life", and "That's Why I'm Here". Of course, so is "Stop Thinkin' `Bout That", "Only A Dream In Rio', and "Never Die Young". His performance here is living proof of his lasting appeal , and proof positive also of just how incredibly talented an interpretive artist Taylor really is. He always pleases with songs like those included here, 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 classic pop hits like "Everyday" by Buddy Holly and the Crickets. Enjoy

Any major fan of an artist is going to own each of the different CDs from that artist and will not settle for a greatest hits package. Thus I would imagine that some diehard fans won't be impressed with this CD. However, if you just want to catch up on what James Taylor has been doing since he moved from Warner Brothers to Columbia, I highly recommend this CD. Doug Sax and Ted Jensen did really nice jobs in remastering the cuts to sound better than on the original CDs the songs were on. The diehards will want a 6 CD comprehensive Boxed Set with unreleased and other non-hit songs with Warner and Columbia playing nice together-- fat chance. For the folks who normally wouldn't buy just a single album from an artist anyway...this is a great buy!!

This second compilation of James Taylor's hits definitely shows that he lightened up after the period represented by the first hits album. This isn't to say that it's a lesser album. However, when you consider that the first greatest hit album had twelve cuts representing six years, and this one has sixteen cuts representing around twenty years, it is obvious that he really mellowed out.

Now, the albums during this latter period had lots of good material on them, but not your typical radio top 40 by a long shot. Songs such as "Secret O' Life", "Handy Man", "Your Smiling Face", the cover of "Up On The Roof", "Her Town Too", "Copperline", "Shed A Little Light", are all good typical Taylor-made hits, and the concluding numbers from "Hourglass" show that he still is able to convey a deeper level than average in pop music.

Basically, this CD is for those who have few if any of his CDs, one to have along with the first "greatest hits" album. On the other hand, if you want only the truly best of this performer, I personally would forget the "greatest hits" duo, and get "Sweet Baby James", "Hourglass", and the 2 disc "Live" set.

I've been waiting years for JT to put out a greatest hits part 2 ,and everyone else on the planet.All the hits are here,from the remakes that James is famous for,"Up on the Roof,Handy Man,"and"EveryDay."The way James Taylor sings these songs,you swear you've never heard them before.JT's own original songs are all here,"Your Smiling Face," about his new born daughter Sally,one of my all time favorites.To his break up with Carly Simon,"Her Town Too," JT's last top twenty hit.I really enjoyed the live recording of "Shed A Little Light." A Tribute to the late Martin Luther King,and the last number,"Enough To Be On Your Way," from JT's Grammy winning Album,"Hourglass."There's a couple of other songs that I wish were on this collection,like"Millworker,Stand and Fight,B.S.U.R.",but I'm very happy with this CD.It will be a huge hit,like The Eagles,and FleetwoodMac's Greatest hits Record.All I have to say is get ready for a Lovely Ride.

A good number of artists could have their careers and ranges summed up in one Best Of compilation. James Taylor is one of the exceptions, however: his 11-million-selling Greatest Hits on Warner Brothers featured megahits like "Fire and Rain," "Sweet Baby James," "You've Got a Friend," and "How Sweet It Is," but Volume 2 covers his work with Columbia Records and unveils a lighter, more upbeat, and just as important side of this master singer/songwriter.

The shift in attitude is heard clearest on sunny odes to loved ones -both friends and lovers- such as "That's Why I'm Here," "Little More Time With You," and the timeless classic "Your Smiling Face." There's even a surprising jolt of flat-out rock and roll on the irresistible "(I've Got to) Stop Thinkin Bout That," and he also shows his gift of interpretation is just as strong as his writing skills: covers of "Handyman," "Up on the Roof," and "Everyday" are among his most charming performances. But there are still plenty of mature observations to be had: "Secret O' Life" is one of the wisest takes on life ever heard, the rich imagery of "Never Die Young" makes a recollection of childhood all the more touching, and "Shed a Little Light" offers more astute pleas for social harmony than your average global-conscious pop song. "Enough to Be On Your Way" is a moving farewell to a troubled soul passed on, and the post-breakup classic "Her Town Too" is one of the most gorgeous pieces of melancholy ever recorded.

So what you end up with is another collection of superior songs from one of the most important singer/songwriters in pop history, all sung with Taylor's usual warmth and ease. One line in "Secret O' Life" sums things up well: "try not to try too hard/it's just a lovely ride."

I have this disc, but there is a song that's missing here, "Only One". That's a good song. I've heard it on the radio a few times, and I think it should have been on here. Still, I recommend this disc.

I'm a huge James Taylor fan, I've been listening to him since I was born.

In 1977,James Taylor shifted from the Warner Bros. label to Columbia which he still records on today. That year,his JT album was released spawning the hits HANDY MAN and YOUR SMILING FACE. From 1979's FLAG,comes UP ON THE ROOF,first recorded in the 60's by the R&B group,The Coasters. From 1981's DAD LOVES HIS WORK comes HER DOWN TOO,a duet with ex-Eagle J.D. Souther. I also like EVERYDAY from 1985 and 1991's COPPERLINE. All the other songs are good. Taylor's musical style has not changed at all. Since he put out his first songs in 1970,he always displayed,in the aspect of sound,his soft-sounding acoustic guitar. A must for all soft rock fans.

The packaging is similar to his first greatest hits album. But unlike that album there are no remakes here. Although the version of "Shed a Little Light" is live, not studio. This is for Taylor newbies only. No new songs here, although the sound is superb, if you haven't updated your JT Columbia CD's, this might work for his fans. At slighly over an hour this had room to include some of his best album tracks like "Frozen Man" or "Line 'Em Up" or even "Traffic Jam" or "Bartender's Blues" Or "Millworker". Or even a minor hit like "Hard Times." Taylor has hinted that at some point he'd like to do what Joni Mitchell did and release a Misses CD to go along with his Greatest Hits CD's. That or a 2 label box set (with Columbia and Warner cooperating) would be a plus for those who think that some of his best songs aren't always the singles.

James Taylor has been unfairly criticized for "selling out" over the years as his music has gone from the deeply serious and personal songs of his first few albums to the lighter, more pop-oriented approach of his later years. I don't see it as selling out. James is simply an artist. When he wrote SWEET BABY JAMES, he was feeling depressed and somber. Over the years, his life brightened and so did his music. In short, he always has and continues to EXPRESS himself. Just like an artist is supposed to.

This disc is a great sampler of his later years on Columbia. Although it is missing a few of my favorite album cuts, all the hits are here.

And I disagree with others who malign James and put him in a seperate category from what they obviously considered "artistic" music. While it is true that James for the most part stuck to his working formula, I don't see where that makes him less of an artist. What's wrong with someone who likes doing things a certain way, does them well, and makes people happy that way? Where is it written that an artist has to constantly change his approach or re-invent himself with each album or risk being labeled a SELL OUT or a mediocre artist? Music is not supposed to be about FOLLOWING RULES...and James never has. He just writes his songs.