JAMES TAYLOR : JT

  1. Your Smiling Face
  2. There We Are
  3. Honey Don't Leave L.A.
  4. Another Grey Morning
  5. Bartender's Blues
  6. Secret O' Life
  7. Handy Man
  8. I Was Only Telling A Lie
  9. Looking For Love On Broadway
  10. Terra Nova
  11. Traffic Jam
  12. If I Keep My Heart Out Of Sight

Label : Columbia

Release Date : June 22, 1977

Length : 37:55

Review (AllMusic) : On his last couple of Warner Bros albums, Gorilla and In the Pocket, James Taylor seemed to be converting himself from the shrinking violet, too-sensitive-to-live "rainy day man" of his early records into a mainstream, easy listening crooner with a sunny outlook. JT, his debut album for Columbia, was something of a defense of this conversion. Returning to the autobiographical, Taylor declared his love for Carly Simon ("There We Are"), but expressed some surprise at his domestic bliss. "Isn't it amazing a man like me can feel this way?" he sang in the opening song, "Your Smiling Face" (a Top 40 hit). At the same time, domesticity could have its temporary depressions ("Another Grey Morning"). The key track was "Secret O' Life," which Taylor revealed as "enjoying the passage of time." Working with his long-time backup band of Danny Kortchmar, Leland Sklar, and Russell Kunkel, and with Peter Asher back in the producer's chair, Taylor also enjoyed mixing his patented acoustic guitar-based folk sound with elements of rock, blues, and country. He even made the country charts briefly with "Bartender's Blues," a genre exercise complete with steel guitar and references to "honky tonk angels" that he would later re-record with George Jones. The album's Top Ten hit was Taylor's winning remake of Jimmy Jones' "Handy Man," which replaced the grit of the original with his characteristic warmth. JT was James Taylor's best album since Mud Slide Slim & the Blue Horizon because it acknowledged the darkness of his earlier work while explaining the deliberate lightness of his current viewpoint, and because it was his most consistent collection in years. Fans responded: JT sold better than any Taylor album since Sweet Baby James.

Review (Wikipedia) : JT is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter James Taylor. It was released on June 22, 1977 via Columbia Records, making it his first album released for the label. Recording session took place from March 15 to April 24, 1977 at The Sound Factory in Los Angeles with Val Garay. Production was handled by Peter Asher. The album peaked at number 4 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in the United States and was Taylor's highest-charting album since Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon. By January 31, 1997, it was certified 3 times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. At the 20th Annual Grammy Awards, it was also nominated for Grammy Award for Album of the Year, but lost to Rumours by Fleetwood Mac. The album spawned four singles: "Bartender's Blues", "Handy Man" (Taylor's final top 10 hit), "Your Smiling Face" and "Honey Don't Leave L.A.". "Handy Man", a Jimmy Jones cover, peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Adult Contemporary and won the Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. "Your Smiling Face", the other big hit, peaked at #20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The record also contains other Taylor classics such as "Secret O' Life" and "Terra Nova", with the participation of Taylor's then-wife Carly Simon.