Let me start by saying that I am a big James Taylor fan, and I don't mean to be negative, but I would not recommend this album to anyone but the serious JT fan. There are a few bright spots, most notably James in his 'story telling' mode on the heavy 'Sleep Come Free Me' and, and the interesting 'Millworker', sung from a single mothers perspective--quite peculiar, but somehow it works. There are also two cover tunes here- 'Up On The Roof' which sounds great, and 'Daytripper' which does not. For the most part, the rest of the album seems to be rather pointless, almost as if James lost his way. If you are a new fan, try "JT", "Greatest Hits" or "Sweet Baby James". Save this one for last.

I really like this CD and felt the single review before mine doesn't do this CD justice. It would be a shame if that review kept a person from enjoying this wonderful CD.

This is classic JT (personally I think his only misstep was "Never Die Young" and even that had a few good moments).

But c'mon this Cd has several great tunes such as BSUR, Rainy Dan Man, and especially Millworker. Yes, I even like his cover of "Day Tripper".

If you liked the JT CD, this is a safe follow up in a similar style. Trust me...it's good stuff.

I was lucky enough to first see James Taylor live in a small outdoor venue called Avaloch in rural Lenox, Massachusetts in the summer of 1970, after this first album recorded by the Beatles in London had been released and just before the release of the fabulously successful "Sweet Baby James" album by Warner Brothers. He appeared alone on-stage with a full head of long, long hair in a simple denim shirt and cut-up jeans with his four or five acoustic guitars, and for two and a half hours proceeded to absolutely enchant the sprawling lawn-full of hundreds of audience members with a spellbinding performance of all of the work from both of those albums. Although virtually unknown at the time, word of mouth had spread so quickly in the Berkshires area (who still considers him one of their own) that many of us went out to get the album to play before he appeared. The rest, as they say, is history. Everyone there became lifelong James Taylor fans.

While this particular album was nowhere near as popular as some of his other releases, I consider it to be proof positive of Taylor's enduring ability to produce a continuing stream of memorable songs and albums. With breathless ease he delivers with such memorable songs as "Rainy Day Man", "Millworker" (from a failed Broadway play), a terrific cover of "Up On The Roof", and a number of lesser known but still very interesting and captivating songs like "I Will Not Lie For You", "Company Man", and "Sleep Come Free Me", about a convicted murderer sentenced to life in prison. For anyone else, this album would have been a stunner, but following a number of stellar efforts like "Sweet Baby James", "Mudslide Slim", and "Gorilla", it considered a disappointing work by many. Give it a listen. I think you will come to like this "lesser' effort by JT, and will include it in your collection of frequently played CDs.

These are indeed basically story songs. "Company Man", "Brother Trucker", "Millworker" are the basic down to earth songs that most workers can relate to, each expressing the hopes and the frustrations of the working world. "I Will Not Lie For You" and "B.S.U.R." are deep striking comments. "Sleep Come Free Me" expresses life in prison. For a change of pace, there's the playful "Is That The Way You Look?" Notable of the radio pop songs are "Rainy Day Man" and the cover of "Up On The Roof". "Day Tripper" didn't come off as well for me, and the "Chanson Francaise" seemed basic filler. But one which especially reached me was the poignant "Johnnie Comes Back" with it's all too common story.

This album isn't one of his most popular and I find that there's less to say about this one than there is about others. But if you enjoy the singer's folk style, the self-revealing lyrics, the way he works with the back up musicians, this definitely belongs in your collection.

This is one of my favorite James Taylor albums. His cover of "Up on the Roof," especially, should be required listening (along with the Drifters' original). And to the person who said this was a boring album cover, an explanation: the cover is semaphore for "Man Overboard," and referred to JT's heroin problems at the time. He has since, thankfully, recovered.