Hoogste tijd om weer even te luisteren naar het vertrouwde geluid van James Taylor, mijn grote favoriet sinds de vroege jaren 70. Hier zingt hij zijn prachtige lied Line ‘Em Up, dat komt van zijn veertiende album Hourglass uit 1997. Hij speelt het 10 jaar later bij een concert in Pittsfield, tijdens zijn concertserie One Man Band.

Line ‘Em Up
I remember Richard Nixon back in ’74,
And the final scene at the White House door.
And the staff lined up just to say good-bye.
Tiny tear in his shifty little eye.
He said, nobody knows me,
nobody understands.
Little people were good to me.
Oh, I’m gonna shake some hands.

Somebody line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Oh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Help me line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Yeh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.

Oh at that time my heart was all broke.
I looked like ashes, and smelled like smoke.
And I turned away from my loving kind,
try to leave my body and live in my mind.
But it’s much too much emotion,
to hold in your hand.
They’ve got waves out on the ocean,
they’re gonna wear away the land.

I say line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Oh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Can’t you line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Yeh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.

Ah I’ve seen corn in Kansas.
And I’ve seen picket fences.
And certain cowboy dances.
I’ve been lining up for shows.
I’ve been safely placed in rows.
Sure I know how it goes.

Yet another day goes by,
little time machine.
I’m breaking my brain
over what it might mean.
Just to claim the time,
and to turn away.
To make today today.

Who waits for you,
lonely tired old toad?
It’s your life laid out before you.
Like the broken white line down
the center of the road.

Line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Ah line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Help me to line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Oh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.

Yeah big moon landing.
People all standing up.
Smiles for the loved ones.
We go walking on down the aisles.
Each re-engages,
stepping into the sun.
I watch them turn like pages,
one by one by one.

Oh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Can’t you line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Yeh line ‘em up
line ‘em all up.

Come on line ‘em up,
help me line ‘em all up.
We got to line ‘em up,
just to line ‘em all up.
It works when you line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.
Oh line ‘em up,
line ‘em all up.

In februari 1968 begonnen de repetities voor het debuutalbum van de toen 20-jarige Amerikaanse singer/songwriter James Taylor op het Apple label van The Beatles. Dankzij Peter Asher (de manager van de groep) en Paul McCartney was het hem gelukt daar binnen te komen. Van juli tot oktober volgden opnames in de Trident Studios in Londen, waar tegelijkertijd The Beatles zelf hun White Album opnamen. Hier zie je een zeer bijzondere en vroege uitvoering van Taylor’s lied Something In The Way She Moves van juni 1968. Het was het lied dat hij had gespeeld tijdens de auditie voor Paul McCartney. De beginzin van het nummer inspireerde George Harrison om zijn lied Something (1969) te schrijven.

Something In The Way She Moves
There’s something in the way she moves,
or looks my way, or calls my name,
that seems to leave this troubled world behind.
And if I’m feeling down and blue,
or troubled by some foolish game,
she always seems to make me change my mind.

And I feel fine anytime she’s around me now.
She’s around me now, almost all the time.
And if I’m well you can tell she’s been with me now.
She’s been with me now quite a long,
long time, and I feel fine.

Every now and then the things I lean on
they lose their meaning.
And I find myself careening,
into places where I shouldn’t let me go.
She has the power to go where no one else can find me,
and to silently remind me, of the happiness
and good times that I know now,
just got to know.

It isn’t what she’s got to say,
but how she thinks and where she’s been.
To me the words are nice the way they sound.
I like to hear them best that way,
it doesn’t matter what they mean.
She says them mostly just to calm me down.

And I feel fine anytime she’s around me now.
She’s around me now, almost all the time.
And if I’m well you can tell she’s been with me now.
She’s been with me now quite a long, long time,
yes and I feel fine.

Eén van mijn favoriete nummers van de Amerikaanse singer/songwriter James Taylor is Secret O’ Life. Taylor had last van een erfelijke depressie en daaraan gekoppeld last van verslavingen aan alcohol en drugs om de heftige emoties te onderdrukken. De tekst van het lied is typisch iets wat een depressief iemand tegen zichzelf zegt om zich moed in te spreken. Waarschijnlijk na het duizenden malen van anderen te hebben gehoord. Om de titel niet al te pretentieus te laten klinken koos hij voor Secret O’ Life en niet voor The Secret Of Life, zodat het ook refereerde aan Amerikaanse snoepjes als Pep O Mint en Wint O Green. Hij beschouwt het lied zelf als een spiritual en schreef het in 1977 voor het album JT. Hier speelt hij het tijdens de tv show van Dick Cavett in hetzelfde jaar. Eerder zag je bij de Songcatcher al een cover door de Amerikaanse singer/songwriter India Arie van het nummer.

Secret O’ Life
The secret of life
is enjoying the passage of time.
Any fool can do it.
There ain’t nothing to it.
Nobody knows how we got
to the top of the hill.
But since we’re on our way down,
we might as well enjoy the ride.

The secret of love
is in opening up your heart.
It’s okay to feel afraid,
but don’t let that stand in your way.
‘Cause anyone knows
that love is the only road.
And since we’re only here for a while,
we might as well show some style.
Give us a smile.

Isn’t it a lovely ride?
I’ll be sliding down, gliding down.
Try not to try too hard,
it’s just a lovely ride.

Now the thing about time,
is that time isn’t really real.
It’s just your point of view.
How does it feel for you?
Einstein said he could
never understand it all.
Planets are spinning through space.
The smile upon your face.
Welcome to the human race.

Isn’t it a lovely ride?
Wish I was sliding down,
see me gliding down.
Try not to try too hard,
it’s just a lovely ride.

Isn’t it a lovely ride?
Sliding down, gliding down.
Try not to try too hard,
it’s just a lovely ride.
The secret of life
is enjoying the passage of time.