James Taylor at 78: Still Feeling Fire and Rain
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- James Taylor played an Edinburgh Castle summer-twilightshow backed by an 11-piece band with four backing vocalists, whose smooth virtuosity at times shaded into bloodlessness, per a live review
- Millworker was singled out as a set highlight precisely because of its spare arrangement — a violin drone and martial beat that let Taylor's baritone cut through
- AI-looking visuals on the big screen were called ugly enough to distract from and undermine the songs, with the reviewer noting 'Sweet Baby James deserves better'
- Carolina in My Mind was rendered hymn-like in a tight choral group, while Carole King's You've Got a Friend retained 'undimmed sentiment' despite its standard-status
- In the final line of Fire and Rain, Taylor altered the recorded lyric to a direct address — 'Thought I'd see you just one more time, Suzanne' — suggesting the song about a friend's suicide still lives for him, not just his audience
- The reviewer raised the question of whether the 78-year-old on stage at a 'heritage site' is now simply a heritage act, ultimately leaving it open as the lyric change tipped the balance
Why it matters: The review hinges on whether a canonical 1970s songwriter can still be more than a nostalgia act, and Taylor's last-line lyric change to 'Suzanne' — rather than the recorded version — is offered as the decisive evidence that the material remains emotionally alive for the performer, not just the crowd.
