James Taylor Sweet Baby James

Though James Taylor's self-titled debut introduced his mellow melodicism and affecting song craft, Sweet Baby James was the album that rocketed him to national recognition. With Sweet Baby James, Taylor abandoned the slightly psychedelic structural ambition of his first record and settled fully into the folk and country styles to which he is best suited. The Top Ten hit "Fire and Rain," for instance, a deeply personal story-song based on the artist's experiences in mental hospitals and the suicide of a friend, is built around Taylor's gentle, understated voice, acoustic guitar, cello, piano and drums.