James Taylor to Perform Live on Good Morning America
Legendary singer/songwriter James Taylor will perform live on Good Morning America on Monday, September 15th. Taylor’s performance kicks off the unprecedented “50 States in 50 Days” initiative that will take ABC News and USA Today reporters to every state in the union in the fifty days leading up to the Presidential election in November.
GMA’s “Whistle Stop ‘08” tour begins with James Taylor’s performance in his home state of Massachusetts on the porch of the historic Red Lion Inn. Taylor will perform material from his forthcoming release “Covers,” which will be available on September 30th.
The performance will include a special duet with acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
James Taylor recorded his new album with his “Band of Legends” during a rare 10-day recording session in a converted barn on his property in western Massachusetts.
“Covers” features music from notable recording artists from the fifties, sixties and seventies including a cover of Big Mama Thornton’s version of “Hound Dog,” Junior Walker’s “(I’m A) Road Runner” and “Wichita Lineman,” (one of the most revered country songs penned by Jimmy Webb). These songs were improvised on the spot and recorded live with some of the best players in popular music.
The unique broadcast on September 15th will occur on rails and will offer viewers a never-before-seen television experience that will consist of three locomotives and eight rail cars, two of which are historic antique cars. Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts, Chris Cuomo and Sam Champion will anchor the morning broadcast on board a specially-equipped Amtrak train.
According to a recent Billboard article, James Taylor says his next priority after the release of “Covers” is his first album of original material since 2002’s “October Road.”
“I’ve got a start” on the project, the veteran singer/songwriter told Billboard. “I have songs in various stages of completion (that) I need to go back and finish. This year coming up I intend to finish it.”
Taylor says that he has “one more studio album, maybe two, of my own stuff” in him. He also hopes to record an album with orchestral accompaniment, echoing live performances he’s done in recent years, and he plans to create “a series of guitar lessons” to teach the rudiments of his “simple style.”
“I’m just proceeding in a way of working through these things I really want to do,” Taylor says. “There are these things I want to get done, and I’m trying to get all of them on the calendar for some time in the future, even if you have to re-think them repeatedly.”
For more information on James Taylor you can visit his website, jamestaylor.com.