On June 16, 2015, James Taylor took the stage, dressed in black with a newsboy’s cap, and proceeded to whisk the crowd of SiriusXM subscribers away with his wonderfully narrative tunes. Now, in celebration of the legendary singer’s 68th birthday, SiriusXM is making the entire concert available for the first time On Demand!
“Having James play an intimate show at the fabled Apollo was an incredible experience for our listeners, and being there made it all the more rewarding,” said Lou Simon, PD of the limited-engagement James Taylor Channel. “His timeless style, his choice of repertoire and his excitement over finally getting to play on that stage made for a spectacular evening.”
The historic show, which featured a 21-song set, started off with a rendition of Something In The Way She Moves before moving into songs off his 2015 album, Before this World, and other career-spanning favorites.
“It sounds incredible to say it, but 50 years ago I sat right in that balcony right there and watched a life-changing show here at the Apollo Theater,” Taylor recalled in between songs.
“I was 17 at the time. It was a James Brown Christmas Show, and the house band was amazing. There were these guest appearances, you know two or three songs, by Billy Stuart, Don Covay, Lee Dorsey, Charlie and Inez Foxx, Gladys Knight & the Pips.
“It was unbelievable. And there was a movie, too, in the middle of the show, about a 25-minute Western. The audience was cheering for the Indians — it was definitely a [cultural] shift. Anyway, it’s really like a dream come true to be on this stage at the Apollo with this band.”
The storytelling continued throughout the evening, as Taylor introduced each song. At one point he was even joined onstage by his wife Caroline “Kim” Smedvig and their son Henry for a precious family sing-a-long.
The evening began to wind down as he performed a gospel rendition of Shower the People before ending the night with an “old Scottish tune about the coming of summer” by Francis McPeake called Wild Mountain Thyme.
Listen to the concert On Demand via the SiriusXM App and online at SiriusXM.com starting March 12, 2016.
For a free 30-day trial, check out http://www.siriusxm.com/freeTrial.
Related Articles
Click here to start listening at home siriusxm.com/listenathome