One Man Band

James Taylor | Format: MP3 Download

Product Details

• Original Release Date: November 13, 2007
• Release Date: November 13, 2007
• Label: Hear Music
• Copyright: (C) 2007 James Taylor Under exclusive license to StarCon, LLC
• Record Company Required Metadata: Music file contains unique purchase identifier. Learn more.
• Total Length: 1:17:42
• Genres:
• ASIN: B000Y9G4PW
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (115 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,573 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of-a-kind portrait of a living legend., November 13, 2007

By 

modern jazz - See all my reviews

This review is from: One Man Band [CD + DVD] (Audio CD)

James Taylor is that rarest of creatures -- an unpretentious superstar. The 59-year-old iconic singer and songwriter, originally from North Carolina, presented his so-called "One Man Band" show at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, MA during July 2007 with such effortless charm that it was as if he were sitting around the fireside at home, talking with a bunch of old friends. But the ease with which he put it all across belied the rigorous attention to detail and sheer craft that went into the making of this delightful show.
Larry Goldings, who accompanies Taylor on piano, organ, synth, harmonium and melodica, is a one-man band. He has developed a following in the jazz world for his own compositions and recordings, as well as his live performance.
James Taylor sang some of his most beloved recordings, interspersing them with his insightful and humorous anecdotes on the inspiration for the songs.
He and Larry together serve up a full menu of Taylor's work over the past 40 years, from "Something in the Way She Moves" (the song which won him his first contract with the Beatles' Apple Records in 1968) right up to "Mean Old Man" and "My Travelling Star" from his most-recent release October Road.
An illustrated voyage around Taylor's life and times, the show begins with him alone, singing the gentle melody and picking out the lilting chord sequence of "Something in the Way She Moves", one of the first songs that he wrote.
Joined on stage (and on the record) by the piano player Larry Goldings, he moves on to another of his early songs, "Never Die Young".
.."That's always good advice", he told the audience. "But far too late for me, of course"...
On this 19-song set -- which marks a return to an earlier, simpler style of performance for the perennial, quintessential singer-songwriter -- Taylor sings with a touch that is nothing short of perfection.
You will enjoy some of his biggest hits "Sweet Baby James", "Carolina in my Mind" and "Fire and Rain" and the gentle, life-affirming mood of the album will continue to resonate long after your listening.
This isn't an album for fans of shoot-outs and car chases, as you might expect from a man who sings: "The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time".
The album's highlights : "Carolina On My mind", "Chili Dog", "Something in The Way She Moves" and "You've Got a Friend".
All in all, this is an extraordinary, one-of-a-kind portrait of an artist, his renowned repertoire and the personal stories behind the songs.
Enjoy!
One Man Dog
The Best of James Taylor
James Taylor - Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
James Taylor (Live)

64 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A gift from JT for his fans, November 14, 2007

By 

William Merrill "eclecticist" (San Antonio, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: One Man Band [CD + DVD] (Audio CD)

I was a little doubtful of the "One Man Band" concept, having previously found various "unplugged" albums to be fairly boring, even by artists whose music I normally love. Fortunately, this concert was not truly "one man," with Taylor being accompanied throughout by pianist Larry Goldings, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, and even a drum machine on occasion! But the main focus is on James and his guitar, and these many wonderful songs he has written. The description of One Man Band by another customer as merely a greatest hits CD is not entirely accurate. There are several lesser known works in the set, and the complete song list spans his entire career, not just the "glory days." The man's singing is superb here - his expressiveness, emotion and tone are all really good. In fact, he sings better here than when I saw him in concert. A couple of the real highlights for me were "Shower the People," which uses the backing chorus to full effect, and "You Can Close Your Eyes," the final encore number. The album almost never lets the listener down; a sluggish "Fire and Rain" being a notable exception.

The DVD is much better than the CD in terms of entertainment value, not just for the obvious reason (visuals!), but also because of the added JT narration and dialogue. I do understand this particular CD/DVD packaging idea - "one for the car," which is in fact where I first listened to it. The concept has been used several other times before with live albums (ex., Fleetwood Mac). I just wish it wasn't the same exact concert both places - all the same songs, no more or less. Couldn't they have gotten a different concert from the same tour for the CD?

Kudos for Starbucks / Hear Music, though. They seem to have become THE Baby Boomer record label lately!

37 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An instant CLASSIC!! A must-have for the ardent fan, or just someone who wants to know who JT really is, November 16, 2007

By 

C. A. HAMPTON "Nat's mommy" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: One Man Band [CD + DVD] (Audio CD)

As James has explained, this cd/dvd set is a "primer" of his music -- by stripping it down and going back to the basics: his amazing, soulful voice, the unique sound he creates on his custom Olson guitars and the accompaniment of the incomparable Larry Goldings on piano. I cannot emphasize enough how beautiful it is, a compilation/distillation of many of his very best songs -- some faves, but some lesser known. They span his entire career, from "Something in the Way She Moves," written when JT was only a teenager, to "Traveling Star," which was on his most recent album "October Road." Plus, it's 19 tracks and 2 hours of music! What more could you ask for?

This is not just another "greatest hits" album. I have all of his albums and none of the songs on this one are recorded the same way as on the original album where they appeared, or anywhere else. Notable examples are the use of the Tanglewood choir via videotape as backup on "Shower the People" and "Traveling Star" -- which is such a brilliant idea, by the way. Why hasn't that been used more often? Or the gigantic, wooden drum machine that accompanies a couple of tracks.

I was lucky enough to be in the front row of his "One Man Band" show in Los Angeles, so I was very familiar with what is on the dvd. It's such an intimate, special show in that he explains the inspiration for many of his songs and shows personal, family photos and video footage. You feel like you get to know the real person, what makes him tick, and you are also exposed to his great sense of deadpan humor.

If you are already a fan, then your collection is NOT complete without this set. But if you are not that familiar with this brilliant artist, this true American treasure, and are interested in getting to know him, then this is the set to buy.

In fact, I plan to buy several copies and give them to friends and family during the holidays.