Track Listing
DISC 1:
1. September Grass
2. October Road
3. On the 4th of July
4. Whenever You're Ready
5. Belfast to Boston
6. Mean Old Man
7. My Traveling Star
8. Raised Up Family
9. Carry Me on My Way
10. Caroline I See You
11. Baby Buffalo
12. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
DISC 2:
1. Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight
2. Benjamin
3. Sailing to Philadelphia
| Details | | Contributing Artists: | Edgar Meyer, John Pizzarelli, Mark Knopfler, Mark O'Connor, Michael Brecker, Ry Cooder, Yo-Yo Ma | | Producer: | Russ Titelman | | Distributor: | Sony Music Distribution ( | | Recording Type: | Studio | | Recording Mode: | Stereo | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
Personnel includes: James Taylor (vocals, acoustic guitar); Michael Landau (guitar, gut string guitar); John Pizzarelli, Ry Cooder (guitar); Stuart Duncan (violin); Tommy Morgan (harmonica); Michael Brecker (saxophone); Robbie Kilgore, Larry Goldings (piano); Clifford Carter (organ, keyboards, synthesizer); Rob Mounsey (keyboards, synthesizer): Greg Phillinganes (keyboards); Jimmy Johnson (bass); Steve Gadd (drums); Luis Conte (percussion).
"Mean Old Man" won the 2003 Grammy Award For Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocals.
"October Road" was nominated for the 2003 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
The limited edition of OCTOBER ROAD contains a bonus disc with three extra tracks featuring performances by Michael Brecker, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, Mark O'Connor and Mark Knopfler.
This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: Michael Landau (guitar, electric guitar, gut-string guitar); John Sheldon, John Pizzarelli, Ry Cooder (guitar); Donna Tecco, Tamara L. Hatwan, Robin Olson, Alan Grunfeld, Ken Yerke, Stuart Duncan, Cenovia Cummins, Bruce Dukov, Julie Gigante, Natalie Leggett, Richard Sortomme, Margaret Wooten, Liane Mautner, Belinda Whitney (violin); Brian Dembow (viola); Paula Hochhalter, Stephen Erdody (cello); Rob Mounsey (pennywhistle, keyboards, synthesizer, percussion); Tommy Morgan (harmonica); Michael Brecker (saxophone); Lou Marini (horns); Clifford Carter (piano, organ, keyboards, synthesizer); Larry Goldings, Robbie Kilgore (piano); Greg Phillinganes (keyboards); Steve Gadd (drums); Luis Conte (percussion); David Lasley, Kate Markowitz, Sally Taylor, Arnold McCuller (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Dave O'Donnell ; Russ Titelman.
Recording information: Capital Recording Studios, LA; Clinton Studios, NY; Flying Monkey Studios, NY; Q Division Studios, Boston, MA; Right Track Studios, NY; Secret Studios, NY; Signal Path Studios, Nashville, TN; The Studios At Linden Oaks, Rochester, NY; The Village Recorders, LA.
Photographers: Sante d'Orazio; Russ Titelman; Craig Nelson .
You've got to hand it to pioneering singer-songwriter James Taylor for staying the course decade after decade. His 2002 release OCTOBER ROAD is so much of a piece with his previous work that it wouldn't have sounded out of place as a follow-up to his 1970 breakthrough album SWEET BABY JAMES. The laid-back phrasing, slightly jazzy acoustic guitar chords, artful-but-humble lyrical themes, it's all there. Though the elements that make up the Taylor sound are never far away, OCTOBER ROAD is not just a rewrite of past glories. "Belfast to Boston," with its pennywhistle and (synthesized) bagpipes, is an ostensibly Celtic-themed song about the tragedies of war and hatred, but the song manages to be subtly relevant to its post-9/11 emergence. The good-humored "Mean Old Man" is a Taylor original that sounds like a jazz standard, partly thanks to the work of famed jazzers Larry Goldings (piano) and John Pizzarelli (guitar). While Taylor occasionally indulges himself in a little polite R&B bounce, though, the bulk of OCTOBER ROAD is cloaked in the gentle, contemplative folk-rock style that those familiar with the man's oevure will have no problem cozying up to.
James Taylor's 15th studio album -- his first new recordings in 32 years -- is, if possible, even more familiar and self-referential than ever. By now, it is an article of faith that you could take practically any track from any Taylor album and put it on another one without disturbing the mood, and that is as true of the ones here as it is of those on the other 14. That warm (if slightly deepened) tenor, singing with its odd accent which combines New England and the North Carolina Piedmont, and that acoustic guitar, with its sparkling, unhurried fingerpicking, remain the most prominent elements in the sound. But even more, October Road finds Taylor seemingly intent on evoking his own past. The title ...
Editorial Reviews
Grade B - ...Taylor pretty much defines easy listening...
Entertainment Weekly (08/16/2002)
3.5 stars out of 5 - ...the melodic facility and phrasing are as elegant as we have come to expect...OCTOBER ROAD's autumnal tones prove there is no substitute for experience.
Uncut (09/01/2002)
...the world's most accomplished exponent of [soft rock]...faultlessly arranged, impeccably played songs.
Mojo (09/01/2002)
4 stars out of 5 - ...An album of rich, subtle melodies, championship-level guitar, playing and lyrical depth, as good an introduction to the low-key wonder of Taylor's work as MUD SLIDE SLIM or IN THE POCKET were in the 70's....A virtual songwriting masterclass.
Q (09/01/2002)
4 stars out of 5 - ...A hit album without any obvious hit songs....Taylor's unhurried acoustic picking and calm, steady croon are - as they should be - the album's central joys.
Rolling Stone (10/03/2002)
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