Live Review: James Taylor Has Perth In His Mind in 2024
An Evening with James Taylor and His All Star Band Live in Concert, 12 April 2024 at Kings Park & Botanic Garden, Perth Western Australia
Review by Sheldon Ang
Photography by Sheldon Ang Photography
For six decades, James Taylor has been moonlighting between a poet and a master interpreter of words into musical form – whether through a studio recording or a live version such as last night’s performance. The life chapters of the 7-time Grammy Awards winner are explored though a polarised lens, carving the extremes of his early years into a lyrical personification out of darkness in suicide to the lonesome depression and acute melancholy, to cherishing the visceral air of requited love. Last night, we were immersed in the autobiographical chapters of the American singer, flowing through the undulating stream of highs and lows, from the psychedelic era when The Beatles were still a Fab Four and Joni Mitchell was the intimate friend. Not only we had witnessed the history of James Taylor, but also a chapter of musical folklore – as the American is the quintessential singer songwriter of the confessional kind. For those who indulged poetry, they’d be in captivated by the emotional resonance thought his vocal expression.
Listening to James Taylor is cathartically contemplative, especially in the wet autumn night under the heavy clouds at King Park, a forever reserve sitting high at the eye level of the Perth’s skyline in the wilderness state of Western Australia. “Perth couldn’t get any further from my home, without leaving the planet”. The legendary singer dived into the 60’s and 70’s nostalgia with the collective effervescence Something in the Way She Moves from the debut album James Taylor released in 1968. The story of his early partner was poignant and the restrained delivery were powerfully elegantÿ. The lyrics is simple, yet the message told the story that only James could.
After almost 60 years in the business through 20 studio albums, the choice would’ve been difficult to fit into a setlist of 18 songs. The beautiful fiddle weaved by Andrea Zonn as a precursor to Sweet Baby James underlined the celebratory sentiment through an Irish folk music, enriching the fusion of country lullaby and folk, casting an innocent mood onto a song about his nephew. Mexico speaks of the southern border followed by scintillating act on the guitar. Carolina in My Mind was one of the crowd’s favourites as Taylor sang in a retrospective mood, reminiscing North Carolina – the place he grew up while stuck in overseas (with a lady – of course). The lyrics and the point in time voice were poignant to many of us, not just for the North Carolina boomers, but for those who had been struck with homesickness once upon a time, as imageries of the innocence of childhood memories resurfaced. After all, we are a nation of immigrants. The beautiful harmony by the four backup vocalists was cathartically gospel without the choir effect.
The set was backed by a full piece plus more. The layers over studio original added nostalgia and poignancy of time travel. The themes and the story line simply oozed more soul in a connective sense – although the baritone of James Taylor was already pacifyingly moody, contemplative and point in time without the musical add ons. The lighting on the old theatre backdrop were striking, drawing the charm of the 60s and 70s.
The heavens above appeared menacing for a while, but the crowd welcomed Fire and Rain despite the gloomy storyline behind the 1970 haunting track, narrating the story of his childhood friend who took her own life and speaks of the alcoholism and drug addiction that plagued from a chapter of his life. The mood from the matter of fact, introspective, lyrical narration was palpable, with the honesty and the hurt stem from his heart was cast across the grounds. We felt the underline hurt, pain and misery, without the singer ingesting too much of air through the rustic baritone and the distinctive guitar.
From this moment, a new chapter of his life emerged. Shower The People was more meaningful last night as we felt the drizzle prior, although the lyrics are not meant to be taken literally, as he advised others to shower their love to everyone. The love by the Perth crowd was requited.
We were then met by the party side of James Taylor. Steamroller was a punctuation, that became the full stop to the subdued chapters. We were transported to the revelry in a midnight club of New Orleans as he took his electric guitar, teasing the crowd with a B.B. King personification, followed by the harmonica, while upkeeping with the piano on his far right in a fast tempo. The brighter note of musical duality sparked the crowd to dance in a festival of blues. One fan at the front row stood and encouraged the rest to join his physical enthusiasm, and the canopy of heads grew taller by several feet. James Taylor became the physical rockstar again at 76 – almost the alter ego of his earlier set.
As we looked upon the heavens, the clouds were starting to spread apart with the slight breeze of fresh air, cleansed by the rain that poured earlier, and the stars appeared. Perhaps it was the divine note underlining the chapter of his later part of his life as the happy sounds of James Taylor progressed.
The encore was fused with more sounds of familiarity, as James Taylor closed off the night on a brighter note with the Carole King’s classic You’ve Got A Friend. It may be a sing along song of the night as everyone suttely mumbles to the words as hands waved side to side. How Sweet It is (To Be Loved By You) summed the love story of James Taylor, as he cast his demons of the early years to a beautiful ending of requited love.
Sheldon Ang Media would like to thank Revolutions Per Minute, Live Nation Australia, Mellen Events and James Taylor for the Press Accreditation.
About the Writer/Photographer: Perth based Sheldon Ang Media (est. May 2022) have been accredited to over 80 of the hottest acts including Taylor Swift (ERAS Tour in Sydney), KNOTFEST (Melbourne), Coldplay (Perth), KISS, P!NK, Tom Jones, Robbie Williams and Rod Stewart with reviews shared by the likes of UB40, Delta Goodrem, The Wiggles and Toni Childs on social media. He has interviewed rockers Suzi Quatro (that’s her below), Ace Frehley (KISS), John Steel (The Animals), Frank Ferrer (Guns N Roses), Phil X (Bon Jovi), Andrew Farris (INXS) plus over 40 artists.
