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.
Sailing To Philadelphia
James Taylor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I Am Jeremiah Dixon
I Am A Geordie Boy
A Glass Of Wine With You, Sir
And The Ladies I'll Enjoy
All Durham And Northumberland
Is Measured Up By My Own Hand
To Make My Mark Upon The Earth...
He Calls Me Charlie Mason
A Stargazer Am I
It Seems That I Was Born
To Chart The Evening Sky
They'd Cut Me Out For Baking Bread
But I Had Other Dreams Instead
This Baker's Boy From The West Country
Would Join The Royal Society...
We Are Sailing To Philadelphia
A World Away From The Coaly Tyne
Sailing To Philadelphia
To Draw The Line
The Mason-Dixon Line
Now You're A Good Surveyor, Dixon
But I Swear You'll Make Me Mad
The West Will Kill Us Both
You Gullible Geordie Lad
You Talk Of Liberty
How Can America Be Free
A Geordie And A Baker's Boy
In The Forests Of The Iroquois...
Now Hold Your Head Up, Mason
See America Lies There
The Morning Tide Has Raised
The Capes Of Delaware
Gome Up And Feel The Sun
A New Morning Is Begun
Another Day Will Make It Clear
Why Your Stars Should Guide Us Here...
We Are Sailing To Philadelphia
A World Away From The Coaly Tyne
Sailing To Philadelphia
To Draw The Line
The Mason-Dixon Line
The song "Sailing To Philadelphia" by James Taylor, written by Mark Knopfler, is about two historical figures, Jeremiah Dixon and Charles Mason, who were tasked with surveying and marking the boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland in the mid-1700s. Throughout the song, we hear the inner thoughts and conversations between the two men as they navigate their journey together.
Jeremiah Dixon is depicted as a lover of women and wine, as well as a skilled surveyor. He acknowledges his fate to make his mark upon the earth, and with Charles Mason's help, he is finally able to do so. Charles Mason, on the other hand, is a "stargazer" who originally trained as a baker but had other dreams instead. He became a member of the Royal Society, joining with other great minds to chart the night sky.
The refrain "we are sailing to Philadelphia to draw the line, the Mason-Dixon line" reminds us of the ultimate purpose of their journey - to draw a boundary line that would provide a clear delineation between the two colonies. While Dixon and Mason work together, the tension between their different backgrounds and ideologies is highlighted in their conversations. Dixon is skeptical of America's ability to be free, while Mason is hopeful and reminds him of the promise of the stars that guide them.
Line by Line Meaning
I Am Jeremiah Dixon
My name is Jeremiah Dixon.
I Am A Geordie Boy
I am from the northeast region in England called Geordieland.
A Glass Of Wine With You, Sir
Would you like to have a drink with me, sir?
And The Ladies I'll Enjoy
I will socialize with the ladies.
All Durham And Northumberland
The regions of Durham and Northumberland.
Is Measured Up By My Own Hand
I have personally surveyed the land and measured it myself.
It Was My Fate From Birth
I was meant to do this from birth, it was my destiny.
To Make My Mark Upon The Earth...
To leave a lasting impact on the world through my work.
He Calls Me Charlie Mason
My name is Charlie Mason.
A Stargazer Am I
I am an astronomer who enjoys looking at the stars.
It Seems That I Was Born
It appears that my natural talent lies in astronomy.
To Chart The Evening Sky
To map out the sky at night.
They'd Cut Me Out For Baking Bread
The locals where I am from thought I would become a baker, but I chose a different path.
But I Had Other Dreams Instead
I had aspirations to become an astronomer.
This Baker's Boy From The West Country
I grew up in the West Country as the son of a baker.
Would Join The Royal Society...
I joined the Royal Society, an association for scientists and intellectuals.
Now You're A Good Surveyor, Dixon
You are a skilled surveyor, Dixon.
But I Swear You'll Make Me Mad
But I am worried you will frustrate me.
The West Will Kill Us Both
The American western frontier is dangerous and could be our undoing.
You Gullible Geordie Lad
You naive guy from Geordieland.
You Talk Of Liberty
You speak of the ideal of freedom and self-governance.
How Can America Be Free
How can America truly gain independence and sovereignty?
A Geordie And A Baker's Boy
A guy from Geordieland and a former baker.
In The Forests Of The Iroquois...
Deep in the forests of the Native American Iroquois tribes.
Now Hold Your Head Up, Mason
Now keep your spirits high, Mason.
See America Lies There
Look, America is right before us.
The Morning Tide Has Raised
The sea level has risen due to the morning tide.
The Capes Of Delaware
We have reached the capes of Delaware, a state in the United States.
Gome Up And Feel The Sun
Stand up and feel the warmth of the sun on your skin.
A New Morning Is Begun
A new day has started, full of opportunities and promise.
Another Day Will Make It Clear
By the end of another day, we will likely have more clarity and understanding.
Why Your Stars Should Guide Us Here...
Why your expertise in astronomy should help guide us with this task of surveying and mapping.
We Are Sailing To Philadelphia
We are traveling by water to Philadelphia, a city in the United States.
A World Away From The Coaly Tyne
Far from the coal mines and industries of Tyne, we are headed to a new land.
To Draw The Line
To mark and establish the boundary.
The Mason-Dixon Line
The line that was surveyed, marking the border between Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Mark Knopfler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
John Brown
This song was co written by Mark and James and is about two English surveyors who went to America and established the borders between Pennsylvania and Maryland, Delaware and Virginia in the 1760s. This later became known as the Mason Dixon line ,the border between the Southern and Northern States. I bought JT's first album way back in '69 and still listen to his work and it is as fresh now as it was then. We who lived through the late sixties into the seventies were truly blessed !
K. Hendrickson
Thanks for the background on this fantastic song.
Man, him & James Taylor together?
Shaking my head in amazement.
Zac Fry
15 years old, and Mark Knopfler is my favorite artist of all time. Pretty much inspired me to pick up a guitar. These songs bring up so much memories.
IronEagle
And now you are 26 years old . What do you think of this song right now?
SWAENWALL
I came here looking for some random comments, found gold
vernon passmore
At 78 still makes goose bumps as do other of Marks songs...guitar player extraordinaire ❤
Warren Watters
Both extraordinary musicians..coming together so beautifully. Both beyond amazing guitar players and both with beautifully hauntingly sublime vocal ability...so glad to happen upon this song...
Gian pears
❤
David Leineweber
Beautifully dreamlike, melodic, historical...musically perfect. It paints a vivid picture of another place and time. Something that every American school kid should listen to in history class. A great lesson in under six minutes...
L I
David Leineweber nice sentiment David. As an Englishman it’s a nice reminder of.our place in American history.