Published on Feb 19, 2001
Of all the discs I listened to featuring country-tinged tributes
to contemporary artists, no one artist seemed like they would be a
perfect fit like James Taylor. For over 30 years, Taylor has been
the modern-day version of the troubador, making people who claim
they don’t like folk music become devotees to his own style of the
genre. I was recently in a record store, and overheard someone ask
the clerk who Taylor was — and I wanted to slap some sense into
them. “Fire And Rain”… “You’ve Got A Friend”… “Sweet Baby
James”… he’s a freakin’
legend, for crissake!
The musicians who take part in
Country Road: An Acoustic Tribute To James Taylor obviously
do the best job they can, and their musicianship is without peer.
But there is is something about this disc which doesn’t make it the
most approachable.
Maybe, just maybe, this is because those who planned this album
aimed it towards Taylor’s diehard fans, those who know Taylor’s
entire discography forwards and backwards. For these people, this
disc has to be a wonderful shrine to Taylor. For those of us,
though, who are most familiar with Taylor’s hit singles, sometimes
this collection drifts off into unfamiliar territory.
If you know songs like “Mexico,” “Shower The People” and “Fire
And Rain,” you’ll greatly appreciate the mandolin-rich arrangements
of these songs presented on
Country Road. While Taylor never really leaned towards
country music in his writings, he did have his roots in acoustic
music, and these songs adapt well to the introduction of mandolin,
dobro and the like. Unlike some of the volumes from this series of
tributes, you couldn’t claim that this is bluegrass; the original
styles of these songs are not changed much.
Then we get to songs like “Me And My Guitar,” “Anywhere Like
Heaven,” “You Can Close Your Eyes” and “Riding On A Railroad.” The
arrangements are pleasant enough, I admit, but I also find myself
in the position of not being familiar enough with Taylor’s catalog
to know how true to the originals these versions are. Some of the
magic is lost, simply because these aren’t the most familiar songs
of Taylor’s that could have been chosen.
I’m not suggesting that
Country Road should have only been a collection of hits
re-arranged for fans of acoustic-based country music. After all,
the goal in a tribute album is for musicians who enjoy Taylor’s
music to lovingly adapt their favorite songs to their style of
playing. Yet I can’t help but wonder if this disc would be more
approachable (and, at times, interesting) if songs like “You’ve Got
A Friend” had been included. It might have just made this disc a
little more accessible for some people.