There is no bad album by James Taylor in the 1970s, so from there it's a matter of how the recordings from that decade stack up against each other. "Walking Man" does not have the same consistency as classic albums like "Gorilla" and "In the Pocket" but the good songs are great. The title track, "Daddy's Baby" and "Fading Away" rank up there with Taylor's best ballads, while tunes like "Aint No Song" and "Let It All Fall Down" have an interesting, understated melodic quality - they're not-quite-pop pop songs. Things slide a little bit at the end with "Hello old Friend", "Migration" and "The Promised Land," but on the whole the CD still possesses that peculiar Taylor charm and intimacy that few other artists can touch even at their best.

This record is Taylor's "Astral Weeks" or "Revolver," a record of sure, truth-telling merit and no-apologies intensity. If you don't know this album, you don't know JT.

What I really love about this album is because it is electric taylor but it still truly maintains that awesome charm and beauty of Sweet baby James. It is not electric like "gorilla" or "In the pocket" which are good discs, but this is a more "tasteful electric". Taylor alters between ballads with strings, ballads with horns and ballads with himself, as well as jazz and folk. Not bad James! Paul and Linda McCartney as well as Carly simon are featured on a lot of songs and it gives the album a great feel. The album has 10 songs which for this type of album is perfect. You will be hooked with the first 5 songs. However, song 4 "me and my guitar" has awful lyrics but still a nice hook. skip "ain't no song"-he didn't even write it and go onto the beautiful "Hello old friend". By then you have 3 songs left and they are all soothing. the album has a few loose ends but once it's over you'll be glad you've listened to it.

JT's Walking Man is a good album. Not great but good.

The title track is the highlight for me, but there are also a few nuggets in here like "Daddy's Baby", "Me & My Guitar", "Let It All Fall Down", and "Fading Away".

They one thing I must mention is that this album is the first with that has the "comtemporary" JT feel to it.

Bottom Line: Walking Man is "good", not James' finest though so do not start with this album. -- try out the previous 3 albums to get that cool sound.

While this album did not receive great critical acclaim...I couldn't even find it in local CD stores. It is one of my favorite JT albums. The music is so soothing. It takes me to where I am most comfortable. It is sitting in a easy chair holding a nice cup of hot chocolate in front of a fireplace with a roaring fire on a chilly night. Safe and secure.