Taylor achieved his breakthrough in 1970 with the No. 3 single "Fire and Rain" and had his first No. 1 hit the following year with "You've Got a Friend", a recording of Carole King's classic song. His 1976 Greatest Hits album was certified Diamond and has sold 12 million US copies. Following his 1977 album, JT, he has retained a large audience over the decades. Every album that he released from 1977 to 2007 sold over 1 million copies. He enjoyed a resurgence in chart performance during the late 1990s and 2000s, when he recorded some of his most-awarded work (including Hourglass, October Road, and Covers). He achieved his first number-one album in the US in 2015 with his recording Before This World.
He is known for his popular covers of other people's songs, such as "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" and the aforementioned "You've Got A Friend", as well as originals such as "Fire and Rain".
Taylor's four siblings (Alex, Livingston, Hugh, and Kate) have also been musicians with recorded albums. Livingston is still an active musician; Kate was active in the 1970s but did not record another album until 2003; Hugh operates a bed-and-breakfast with his wife, The Outermost Inn in Aquinnah on Martha's Vineyard; and Alex died in 1993 on James's birthday.
After his divorce from Carly Simon in 1983, Taylor married actress Kathryn Walker on December 14, 1985 at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York. She had helped him get off heroin, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1996.
On February 18, 2001, at the Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Boston, Taylor wed for the third time, marrying Caroline ("Kim") Smedvig, the director of public relations and marketing for the Boston Symphony Orchestra.[81] They had begun dating in 1995, when they met as he appeared with John Williams and the Boston Pops Orchestra. Part of their relationship was worked into the album October Road, on the song "On the 4th of July". The couple reside in the town of Washington, Massachusetts, with their twin boys, Rufus and Henry, born in April 2001. Henry shares James' intrest and talents.
Sally and Ben, his children with Carly Simon, have also embarked on musical careers. After they were born, Taylor moved with his family to Lenox, Massachusetts.
Captain Jim's Drunken Dream
James Taylor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's plain as rain that you've never been down to the southern sea.
To see me now is like watching a fish on dry land.
I only wish you could see me down in the islands, mister that's my home.
What a fool I was to leave the only happiness I've known.
You see me coming, you wink your eye and call me Captain Jim.
And when I don't do nothing but walk on by you say babe, get a load of him.
Instead of you hicks straight out of the sticks deciding I ain't a man.
You'll never understand. Up here I'm a whisky bum but down there I'm a king.
Sounds just like the angels up in heaven when they sing.
Welcome home, welcome home. Such a sight to see.
Instead of some Salvation Army sister singing "Nearer My God To Thee."
Now I know that Yankee whisky has taken away my mind,
And I know that rum is the only drink suitable to mankind.
And I know this tree I'm under is shaped entirely wrong.
I need to see a gentle palm tree and I won't wait to long.
I can feel that it's coming on strong,
The first cold wind of winter is flapping in my clothes
Showing me the way with the direction that it blows,
Welcome home, welcome home. Let it blow, welcome home, welcome home.
Welcome home, Such a sight to see.
Instead of some Salvation Army sister singing "Nearer My God To Thee."
Let me hear it.
In this song, James Taylor portrays a man who feels like a fish out of water living in a small town. He longs for his idyllic life with the southern sea as his home. The people in his hometown look down on him and ridicule him, calling him Captain Jim. He feels that they just cannot understand him and his longing to be back in the islands. He acknowledges that his drinking problem may be a result of leaving the only happiness he's ever known. He ponders how something as simple as the sight of a palm tree could make him feel at home.
The lyrics have a melancholic feel to them with a deep sense of longing and regret. It’s like the song is about someone trying to find their true identity or their place in the world. They don’t belong in the town they find themselves in, but they also don’t feel completely at home in the tropical paradise they long for.
Line by Line Meaning
Well you country fools in your one horse town, you can laugh at me.
You people who have never left your small town can mock me, but you have no idea what life is like elsewhere.
It's plain as rain that you've never been down to the southern sea.
It's obvious that you have never experienced the beauty of the southern sea.
To see me now is like watching a fish on dry land.
Me living away from the sea is as unnatural as a fish out of water.
I only wish you could see me down in the islands, mister that's my home.
I long for you to understand what it's like down in the islands, which is truly my home.
What a fool I was to leave the only happiness I've known.
Leaving the islands, the only place I truly felt happy, was a mistake.
You see me coming, you wink your eye and call me Captain Jim.
You look at me and call me Captain Jim with a mocking tone.
And when I don't do nothing but walk on by you say babe, get a load of him.
When I pass by without doing anything, you comment in a sarcastic manner.
All I need is the sea and the sky and I know where I stand.
The sea and sky are the only things I need to feel grounded and content.
Instead of you hicks straight out of the sticks deciding I ain't a man.
Instead of you small-minded people from the countryside thinking that I'm not a man.
You'll never understand. Up here I'm a whisky bum but down there I'm a king.
You will never comprehend that here I'm just a drunken nobody, but down in the islands, I'm royalty.
Sounds just like the angels up in heaven when they sing.
It sounds like harmonious singing up in heaven.
Now I know that Yankee whisky has taken away my mind,
Now I realize that drinking Yankee whisky has made me lose my mind.
And I know that rum is the only drink suitable to mankind.
I am convinced that rum is the only drink fit for humanity.
And I know this tree I'm under is shaped entirely wrong.
It's obvious that the tree I'm sitting under is not the right kind for where I am.
I need to see a gentle palm tree and I won't wait to long.
I yearn to see a palm tree and cannot wait any longer.
I can feel that it's coming on strong,
I can sense that the feeling is getting more intense.
The first cold wind of winter is flapping in my clothes
The first cold wind of winter is blowing and making my clothes flap.
Showing me the way with the direction that it blows,
It's indicating the path I should take with the direction it blows.
Welcome home, welcome home. Let it blow, welcome home, welcome home.
I feel like I'm finally coming home, so let the wind blow and welcome me home.
Welcome home, Such a sight to see.
It's a wonderful sight to finally be back home.
Instead of some Salvation Army sister singing "Nearer My God To Thee."
Rather than hearing a Salvation Army hymn, I'm happy to hear the sound of the wind.
Let me hear it.
I want to hear the wind blowing in the palm trees.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JAMES TAYLOR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@carolyncolinhogarth8732
8 billion....people overwhelmed from all these shores....what Jesus gave us to care for Wow! It is over whelming at times. Thank you....I honour you.
@localafh
Life is so hectic, but James Taylor is one of only a handful of recording artists/singers that put me at peace almost immediately. So glad he’s been and always will be a part of my musical life. ‘Love Always’ Acts 20:35
@michaelarrowood4315
The best version ever, from the "In The Pocket" album. I so loved this song... and but for some reason it just seemed to disappear in popular culture and even on YouTube. I admire it so much, the lyrics and the music. I guess it never got any radio play or whatever... but it's genius, from back in my JT years. :)
@bradfrink5313
A classic that never got any radio time. An all time fav. "Not some sad Salvation Army sister singing nearer my God to thee".
@jimbrown4869
exactly Brad.
@futuristicconcepts1257
When I cross over I'd love to hear this playing as I approach the shore. Now THAT would be a homecoming.
@Raymond-rr5iv
Great song .... he's singing about me !! Shouldn't have left Miami !!♡!!
Been way to cold here in New Jersey !!
@marytheresa1943
Great storytelling from the one and only Mr. James Taylor. In fact, this sounds like something that Jimmy Buffet would do. Great Song.
@peternieborak7108
Yes, a song that has been shelved in my mind and always enjoyed when it surfaces on shuffle play
@jacquelineganem6166
Linda melodia 🌹👍💋 apaixonante romântica pura magia