THE "L "LATE SHOW" WE GET A GUES
WHO TELLS SUCH GREAT STHARS WE CAN'T FIT IT ALL IN ONE SHOW. JAMES TAYLOR WAS HERE EARLIER
THIS WEEK, AND WE WEREN'T ABLE TO AIR ALL OF IT. SO WE HAVE A SPECIAL TREAT FOR
YOU TONIGHT, MORE SWEET BABY JAMES! WHEN WHEN DID YOUR FIRST ALBUM
COME OUT? >> THAT CAME OUT IN THIS COUNTRY
IN '69, IN ENGLAND, IN LATE '68. >> Stephen: WHEN WAS "SWEET
BABY JAMES?" WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO BE BREAKING
ON THE SCENE AT THAT TIME? >> TO BE IN LONDON IN 1968 AND
TO BE SIGNED TO AND RECORDING WITH THE BEATLES, SEEING THEM
EVERY DAY IN THE STUDIO -- >> Stephen: THIS IS THE PART
THAT PEOPLE MAY NOT KNOW IS THAT YOU WERE THE FIRST NON-ENGLISH
ACT, OR NON-BRITISH ACT-- >> NON-BEATLES. >> Stephen: FIRST
NON-BEATLES-- >> FIRST ACT --
>> Stephen: OTHER THAN THE BEATLES SIGNED TO APPLE. >> YEAH. >> Stephen: HOW DID THAT COME
ABOUT? >> YOU KNOW, IT WAS JUST GOOD
LUCK. BUT, OF COURSE, IT FOLLOWED A
NUMBER OF YEARS OF BAD LUCK. SO, BUT--<i>
( LAUGHTER ).</i> >> Stephen: I GUESS THAT'S HOW
THAT WORKS. >> YEAH. I WAS INTRODUCED TO PETER ASHER,
WHO, OF COURSE, HAD BEEN PART OF THE BRITISH INVASION OF --
>> Stephen: PETER AND GORDON. >> PETER AND GORDON, YEAH. PETER REALLY, HE'S THE ONE WHO
GAVE ME MY BIG BREAK. >> Stephen: AND WHAT WAS HE AT
APPLE? >> HE HAD JUST SIGNED ON AS HEAD
OF A& R, WHICH IS TERRIBLY A TALENT SCOUT. AND, YEAH, HE WAS LOOKING FOR
PEOPLE TO SIGN. IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN BETTER--
BETTER TIMED. AND I WENT OVER TO VISIT PETER,
AND I PLAYED HIM MY LITTLE DEMO. IT WAS ON A REEL-TO-REEL TAPE,
YOU KNOW. AND HE LIKED IT, AND I-- HE GAVE
ME A GUITAR, AND I PLAYED A FEW OTHER THINGS. AND ULTIMATELY, HE SAID, "YEAH,
THAT SOUNDS GOOD. LET'S GO TO APPLE AND SEE IF WE
CAN INTEREST A BEATLE IN IT." SO... THAT'S WHAT WE DID. WE WENT OVER THERE. AND THE WAY PETER RECALLS IT,
I-- I HAVE VERY LITTLE MEMORY OF THE DAY, BECAUSE I'M-- I'M
NERVOUS NOW, BUT AT THAT POINT, I WAS, LIKE VIBRATING AT ABOUT
440HERTZ. >> Stephen: AN "A." >> YAN "A." I WAS REALLY-- I WAS REALLY
NERVOUS. AND I BARELY REMEMBER IT. I FELT AS THOUGH I WAS
UNDERWATER FOR THE ENTIRE DAY. >> Stephen: SO WHO WAS THERE
WHEN YOU GET THERE? WERE THERE ANY BEATLES
AVAILABLE? DID. >> THERE WERE. >> Stephen: DID YOU GET ONE
OUT OF THEIR CRATE. >> THAT'S RIGHT. THEY BUSTED A SEAL ON A CAN OF
BEATLES. PAUL McCARTNEY AND GEORGE
HARRISON WERE THERE. AND THE WAY PETER REMEMBERS IT
IS THAT HE JUST-- WE WENT INTO A ROOM AT-- IN BAKER, BAKER
STREET, WHICH IS WHERE THE APPLE OFFICES WERE AT THAT POINT. AND HE JUST-- PETER LEANED OUT
OF THE DOOR INTO THE HALLWAY AND SAID, "IS THERE A BEATLE IN THE
HOUSE?" <i> ( LAUGHTER )</i>
AND-- AND, IT-- IT TURNED OUT THERE WERE TWO BEATLES? <i> ( LAUGHTER ).</i> >> Stephen: SURE, THAT'S
ENOUGH. >> BUT PETER SAID, "LISTEN, I'VE
GOT THIS GUY HERE. I'D LIKE TO SIGN HIM TO THE
LABEL, BUT-- SO LET'S TAKE A LISTEN." AND I PLAYED "SOMETHING IN THE
WAY SHE MOVES," TO GEORGE AND PAUL. AND I-- I DON'T ACTUALLY
REMEMBER THE-- THE-- ANYTHING ABOUT IT. <i> ( LAUGHTER )</i>
I MEAN -- >> Stephen: DOES PAUL REMEMBER
THE MOMENT? >> YEAH, PAUL DOES REMEMBER
TVAGUELY, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT WAS --
>> Stephen: THEY HAD A LOT GOING ON. >> YEAH, THEY HAD A LOT GOING
ON, THAT'S RIGHT. >> Stephen: THEY WERE
RECORDING THE "THE WHITE ALBUM AT THE TIME." DID YOU REALLY RECORD YOUR FIRST
ALBUM WITH THEM-- WAS THAT "SWEET BABY JAMES" OR "JAMES
TAYLOR." >> "JAMES TAYLOR." >> Stephen: DID YOU DO THAT
WHILE THEY WERE RECORDING THE WHITE ALBUM AT THE TIME. >> YES. THEY USED TO RECORD AT ABBY
ROAD, BUT ABBY ROAD DIDN'T HAVE AN 8-TRACK MACHINE, AND THERE
WAS ONLY ONE 8-TRACK MACHINE IN BRITAIN AT THE TIME. AND THAT WAS AT A STUDIO CALLED
TRIDENT, WHICH WAS IN LEICESTER SQUARE. SO THE BEATLES JUST BOOKED IT
SOLID FOR A COUPLE MONTHS, AND WE TOOK THE TIME THEY WEREN'T
USING. >> Stephen: DID YOU WATCH THE
RECORD OF "THE WHITE ALBUM?" >> YES. >> Stephen: HAVE YOU EVER
COVERED ANY OF THE SONGS FROM THE WHITE ALBUM. YOU WOULD KILL ROCKY RACCOON. >> I HEARD THE FIRST PLAYBACK OF
ROCKY RACCOON AT THE END OF THAT SESSION DAY. IT WAS GREAT. >> Stephen: DID THEY ASK YOUR
OPINION OF ANY OF THEIR MUSIC "WHAT DID YOU THINK ABOUT THAT,
JAMES?" >> NO. >> Stephen: DID YOU HEAR
ANYTHING AND G, I DON'T GET 'REVOLUTION NUMBER NINE'." >> Stephen: I-- I DIDN'T
REALLY GET "REVOLUTION NUMBER NINE, EITHER." >> Stephen: BACKWARDS IT MAKES
ALL THE SENSE IN THE WORLD. YES. >> Stephen: HEY, LET ME ASK
YOU A QUESTION. DID YOU REALLY WRITE "CLOSE YOUR
EYES" FOR JONI MITCHELL WHILE SHE WAS ASLEEP IN THE BACK SEAT
OF A CAR THAT YOU WERE DRIVING ON THE PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY? >> NO. <i> ( LAUGHTER )</i>
BUT-- BUT -- >> Stephen: NO, NO, NO! >> IT'S CLOSE. >> Stephen: MAYBE THAT'S THE
END OF THE STORY. NO, GO AHEAD. IT'S CLOSE. >> IT'S CLOSE. JOANNIE-- I WAS MAKING A MOVIE. THE ONLY MOVIE OF MY LIFE CALLED
"TWO LANE BLACKTOP." >>
>> Stephen: SURE. >> AND JONI WAS TRAVELING WITH
ME AT THE TIME JUST FOR COMPANY, AND SHE WAS KNITTING ME A
SWEATER, A BLACK-TOP SWEATER. ONE OF THE ARMS WAS THIS LONG
AND THE OTHER WAS HERE. BUT IT WAS REALLY-- IT WAS A
BEAUTIFUL THING. AND I WISH I KNEW WHERE IT WAS. BUT I--<i>
( LAUGHTER )</i> BUT SO JONI WAS TRAVELING WITH
ME. WE WERE STAYING IN A HOTEL,
MOTEL, OUTSIDE OF SANTA FE, AND SHE WAS ASLEEP IN THE-- IN THED
ABOUT, AND I WAS SITTING ON THE SIDE PLAYING THE GUITAR. AND I WROTE THAT SONG, YEAH. >> Stephen: AND-- AND-- AND
YOU-- YOU PLAYED IT FOR HER WHEN SHE WOKE UP? >> YEAH, AND SHE-- YOU KNOW,
SHE-- SHE SEEMED TO LIKE IT. <i> ( LAUGHTER )</i>
>> Stephen: IT'S AN OKAY SONG. IT'S AN OKAY SONG. >> IT'S NICE. >> Stephen: IF YOU EVER WANT
TO WRITE ME A SONG... <i> ( LAUGHTER )</i>
YOU'VE GOT A NEW ALBUM COMING OUT. IT'S CALLED "AMERICAN STANDARD." YOU'LL BE BACK HERE NEXT MONTH
TO DO SOME SONGS. <i> ( APPLAUSE )</i>
FROM THAT. WHAT MAKES THE CUT FOR JAMES
TAYLOR AS AN AMERICAN STANDARD? >> MOSTLY SHOW TUNES. THE GREAT ROGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN
SHOWS-- "OKLAHOMA," "PACIFIC" "KISS ME KATE" BY COLE PORTER
"PORGY AND BESS." ALL THOSE GREAT SHOWS OF THE
40s AND 50s. AND ACTUALLY, MY MOM USED TO
TAKE US UP TO EXPOSE US TO CULTURE IN NEW YORK A LITTLE
BIT. AND WE'D GET ON THE TRAIN AND
COME UP IN LITTLE GROUPS OF TWO OR THREE. AND SHE'D-- SHE'D TAKE US TO A
MUSEUM OR TO A BROADWAY PLAY, YOU KNOW. SO, BUT-- HOW DID WE GET THERE? OH, YEAH. SO THE FAMILY RECORD COLLECTION
WAS A LOT OF THESE SONGS, AND I LEARNED TO PLAY THEM ON THE
GUITAR. AND THOSE SONGS THAT I'VE HAD
ARRANGEMENTS OF ON THE GUITAR FOR LO THESE MANY YEARS, THOSE
ARE THE ONES THAT WENT INTO THIS ALBUM. IT'S BASICALLY A GUITAR-- WORK
ON GUITAR. THERE'S NO PIANO. THERE'S NO STRINGS. IT'S BASICALLY TWO GUITARS, AND
VOCALS. <i> ( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE )</i>
>> Stephen: JAMES' NEW ALBUM "AMERICAN STANDARD" IS AVAILABLE
ON FEBRUARY 28.
