15/05/2007

The good tracks from a half good, half bad album that you've never get around to listening to otherwise part one


Hey there's a new tribute album to Joni Mitchell out, and it features such luminaries as Sarah McLachlan, Annie Lennox, and yes, James Taylor. I can feel your excitement through my keyboard. But hold on, before you go back to youtube to look for clips of monkeys fighting, the album also contains these fine artists:

Sufjan Stevens - Free Man In Paris

Bjork - The Boho Dance


Caetano Veloso - Dreamland

Elvis Costello - Edith & The Kingpin

Prince - A Case Of You


Jamesinbrasil - wading through the Lennox to give you the Stevens.

8 comments:

David N said...

Ok, I like Sufjan and all (obviously not as much as you do), but James Taylor wrote Fire & Rain. Sufjan will never ever write a song as good as that as long as he lives, as hard as he tries. He hasn't got it in him. He'd write half the first verse and turn it into an epic waltz with two orchestras and a Welsh choir on the chorus.

The Prince version of A Case of You is just beautiful. Declan McManus isn't half bad either.

Anonymous said...

"Obrigado para a música"
It's astounding how much the Caetano Veloso song sounds like Herman Dune...or they sound like him? He sounds like David Byrne too.... I've never noticed that before. But then, I'm a little slow on the up-take....I only realised that David Byrne was American the other day! Maybe I shouldn't admit that...hmmm...

hf,c,.jgvkhbj,. said...

Well, I have never investigated the James Taylor back catalogue partly because You've Got A Friend is enough to put anyone off, and partly because having a shelf of cd's with James Taylor written on the spine would be too much, even for a rampant ego like mine. Don't dis Super Sufjan though, not in my manor.

Zoe, if I'm being very kind I'll mention that David Byrne's parents are from Dumbarton, Scotland. If I'm not, I'll mention that he was the frontman of one of the most famous NYC bands of all time. Depends what mood I'm in really...

Anonymous said...

I know that he fronted "one of the most famous NYC bands of all time" now.... so you wouldn't need to re-iterate the point. David Byrne being from New York makes no difference to me or how I feel about his music. But the fact that Kate Bush was expelled from my school, makes her even more cool, if that's possible! It's all relative, I suppose...

Anonymous said...

Boys....boys....it doesn't have to be a contest between Sufjan and James. They can exist quite happily alongside one another.....

Dude,
How can you not like 'You've Got a Friend'? Have you got a heart of stone?

I can understand why you don't want to look like an egomaniac by playing his music, but 'Carolina on my mind' and 'Fire and Rain' are great.

David N said...

Just out of curiosity, where did you think David Byrne was from?

James, you need to buy all the James Taylor (and The James Taylor Quartet) merchandise you can get your hands on. T-shirts, scarves, posters. Immerse yourself in their music.

Something In the Way is also a great song. And Mexico. James Taylor rules! Not you, James.

hf,c,.jgvkhbj,. said...

Dave, you were talking about me. It's okay. We all know.

The lead singer of Kool and the Gang was called James 'JT' Taylor. How come no one ever mentions that one? I'll take Jungle Boogie over a singer-songwriter or a acid jazz revivalist any day.

David N said...

Coz everybody thinks that hes called "Kool". He should be called "Kool". NT. Now theres a song.