Taylor delivered a set of hits during his first of three nights in the DC area
James Taylor shrugged self-deprecatingly as he made his way from the dark corner of the bare stage to the spotlit stool at the center of the stage at Wolf Trap on Thursday (Aug 21st). This late-summer set down in the Northern Virginia wilds seems to have become an annual tradition for the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer. As always, he delivered a charming night of hits and stories.
Unlike Taylor’s previous two tours, this concert was not broken up into two sets. Instead, he played 20 songs in two hours of music and laughs. He opened with the harmonic, mellow “Wandering.” He then kicked things into high gear with a cover of the Motown hit “(I’m A) Road Runner.” Fan favorite “Mexico” soon followed, which, like the night’s first song, is off Taylor’s fifth album, Gorilla, which is celebrating 50 years this summer.
In between songs, Taylor told stories and had the crowd in stitches. For the uninitiated, his hilarity is always a surprise given how soft-spoken and unassuming his personality is. But that adds to the impact of Taylor’s verbal storytelling. And for those who have seen him multiple times, fans look forward to the banter between music just as much as the songs themselves.
The throughline for this tour is travel and destinations. In between numbers, Taylor connected nearly every song to a part of his journey globally as an artist. “Carolina in My Mind”—which earned a lengthy standing ovation—was actually written by Taylor on a boat in Ibiza.
One such serious story involved his first appearance at Rock in Rio. Taylor’s arrival in Brazil to play for 300,000 revelers coincided with the country’s first democratic elections in two decades. He called the mood in Rio de Janeiro “electric.” Taylor got to his hotel and, using a borrowed guitar, felt the song “Only a Dream in Rio” pour out of him.
As always, a portion of the night is devoted to Taylor’s friendship and collaboration with Carole King. A cover of “Up on the Roof” has made a return to the setlist. And one song later, he of course played “You’ve Got a Friend,” a song as synonymous with Taylor as it is with King, some 53 years after each won a Grammy on the same night for the song, in different categories.
Taylor’s stage lights were warm and inviting, adding to the living-room atmosphere on stage. His 11-piece all-star band played precisely, yet matched the mellow attitude of their leader. And as for James Taylor’s thoughtful voice? It doesn’t ever seem to age.
Taylor sprinkled his biggest hits throughout the night. “Carolina in My Mind” was seventh; “Fire and Rain” and “Sweet Baby James” came early in the latter half of the night. A true songwriter, Taylor is not egotistical about these juggernauts and doesn’t hog them till the end. A welcome addition in the show was the return of one of his biggest hits, “How Sweet It Is (to Be Loved by You),” another Motown cover – this time by Marvin Gaye – that has also become synonymous with Taylor. Perhaps James Taylor is the coolest white guy in music?
It is a testament to the depth of his catalogue that a song as big as “How Sweet It Is” can come out of his setlist for a few years, and you still walk away from the show feeling like he hasn’t left anything to spare. This year? No “Handy Man.” No matter. Maybe next year. That’s why it’s extra-special when a big song returns to Taylor’s set: it feels like a gift.
A whole James Taylor concert is a gift. It’s a gift that he’s still touring annually, consistently selling out multiple dates at the same venue year after year. (Taylor returns to Wolf Trap for two more performances, August 23-24). How Sweet It is, indeed.
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