#ohne filter

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “Country Road” (Live, March 27, 1986)

Though it was only a minor hit, “Country Road” is one of James Taylor’s must-plays.

Released on 1970’s Sweet Baby James alongside the title track, “Steamroller,” “Fire and Rain,” “Blossom” and others, “Country Road” is a perennial fan favorite that always tends to land on the setlist. It’s evolved significantly over the decades, most notably with a breakdown bridge that adds some strut to Taylor’s proverbial walk in the woods.

The version recorded March 27, 1986, for the Jan. 2, 1987, broadcast of West Germany’s “Ohne Filter” television program is of its time in both the band’s appearance and the song’s relatively tame presentation. But the just-freed-from-the-vault video time capsule is nevertheless a fine reminder that Taylor was one of the few musicians of his generation not to fall prey to that decade’s worst musical instincts.

Grade card: James Taylor - “Country Road” (Live - 3/27/86) - B

3/7/24

[angelloverde]

MO SOUL’s CHOICE

Today’s choice is Robben Ford  (Ohne Filter), 1997.

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “Handy Man” (Live, March 27, 1986)

Though he’s likely played “Handy Man” more times than he count, James Taylor always makes it count.

And so it was during the March 27, 1986, performance of “Handy Man” for the Jan. 2, 1987, broadcast of West Germany’s “Ohne Filter” television program.

The tempo receives a slight boost and Taylor makes a couple of subtle changes in the phrasing; perhaps to entertain himself; perhaps to throw off anyone in the audience who fancies themselves a singer.

Whatever the reason, it works.

Grade card: James Taylor - “Handy Man” (Live - 3/27/86) - B

2/27/24

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “Sweet Baby James” (Live, March 27, 1986)

James Taylor’s acoustic guitar pairs nicely with Dan Dugmore’s pedal steel on the March 27, 1986, performance of “Sweet Baby James.”

It’s just the two of them - which is just enough.

Recorded for the Jan. 2, 1987, broadcast of West Germany’s “Ohne Filter’ television program, this version is the latest in Taylor’s ongoing series of vault releases. Familiar, yet unique to its setting, this “Sweet Baby James” finds Taylor making some minor adjustments to his playing and singing while obviously enjoying Dugmore’s subtle, yet essential, fills.

Grade card: James Taylor - “Sweet Baby James” (Live - 3/27/86) - A

1/18/24

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “You Can Close Your Eyes” (Live, March 27, 1986)

On stage in West Germany with only his guitar and voice, James Taylor on March 27, 1986, demonstrated the strength of simplicity and the resilience of “You Can Close Your Eyes.”

First broadcast on the Jan. 2, 1987, episode of “Ohne Filter” and recently sprung from Taylor’s vault, the video is a short - less than three minutes - and oh-so sweet offering of what may be the quintessential J.T. folk/love song.

Given all the airings “You Can Close Your Eyes” has received over the decades, this version falls somewhere in the middle-top tier as mid-career Taylor - sober and still in youthful voice - sings with sincerity and plays with a suppleness modern versions cannot boast.

Grade card: James Taylor - “You Can Close Your Eyes” (Live - 3/27/86) - B+

1/10/24

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “You’ve Got a Friend” (Live, March 27, 1986)

It probably says more about Carole King than James Taylor that a songwriter of Taylor’s stature had one of his biggest hits with a King composition.

The song is “You’ve Got a Friend.” And it pops up at most every Taylor gig, including his March 27, 1986, taping of West Germany’s “Ohne Filter” television program, a version just sprung from the archives.

Dan Dugmore’s pedal-steel guitar lends a countrified vibe to this video recording and Taylor edits the lyrics on the fly, singing on the coda:

No matter how low you may go sometimes/got to take some consolation in one thing/ain’t it good to know/yeah, yeah, yeah/you’ve got a friend

Taylor’s may be the definitive studio version of King’s song. But one of the things that makes Taylor such as intriguing live artist is his willingness to mess with such things - as he did here.

Grade card: James Taylor - “You’ve Got a Friend” (Live - 3/27/86) - B+

6/12/24

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “Everyday” (Live, March 27, 1986)

What sounded just fine in the 1980s sounds totally dated in the 2020s.

It’s this truism that makes James Taylor’s vault releases from the 1970s more contemporary than their counterparts from the following decade, the latest of which is “Everyday,” as performed March 27, 1986, for West Germany’s “Ohne Filter” television program.

Taylor, his musicians and singers are in fine form but Bill Payne’s synths are intrusive and peg the video to its time. And in its time, this “Everyday” was well-received. But today, it might make Buddy Holly cringe and even longtime J.T. fans are likely to pine for music from the ’70s, the ’90s and beyond over specimens such as this.

Grade card: James Taylor - “Everyday” (Live - 3/27/86) - C

4/18/24

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: James Taylor - “Steamroller Blues” (Live, March 27, 1986)

James Taylor is a churnin’ urn of burnin’ funk.

No, really.

He sings so right here in this freshly unearthed live version of “Steamroller Blues” recorded March 27, 1986, for West Germany’s “Ohne Filter” television program. Not only that, his band back him up with blues-worthy guitar and keyboard solos; ballsy backgrounds; and a bit of vocal play from the from the frontman hisself, who squeezed in an f-bomb to boot before a bit of Led Zeppelin’s “Heartbreaker” to bring it home.

OK. That last bit is hokey. But the song proper is badass, a napalm bomb if you will.

Grade card: James Taylor - “Steamroller Blues” (Live - 3/27/86) - A-

6/27/24