I’ve been a James Taylor fan for as long as I can remember. I always get excited when I come across hidden gems in his catalog—songs that didn’t make the greatest hits but absolutely deserve to be there.

This track is from James Taylor’s 1974 album Walking Man, his fifth studio release. Unlike his earlier albums, Walking Man didn’t achieve the same level of success, peaking at No. 13 on the Billboard Album Chart and selling only 300,000 copies in the U.S. Until the release of Covers in 2008, it was the only Taylor studio album that hadn’t earned gold or platinum certification from the RIAA.

One of my favorite stories about James Taylor is how he got his start. In late 1967, he moved to London and recorded a few demos. A friend of his passed those demos along to Peter Asher, who had just become the A&R man for The Beatles’ new label, Apple Records. Peter shared the demos with The Beatles, and Taylor was quickly signed to the label. When he played “Something in the Way She Moves” for them, George Harrison was so impressed that he used it as inspiration for the lyrics to The Beatles’ classic song, “Something.”

James said this about it… “I never thought for a second that George intended to do that. I don’t think he intentionally ripped anything off, and all music is borrowed from other music. So completely, I let it pass.” James also did acknowledge that “Something in the Way She Moves” was taken from the Beatles’ song “I Feel Fine.” So I guess what goes around comes around.

Fun Fact: This song was written by Joey Levine and David Spinozza. Spinozza, who produced the album, was an outstanding guitarist and musician during that time. Joey Levine, a singer, songwriter, and producer, made a name for himself in the commercial jingle industry. You might recognize his work from the late 1970s Almond Joy and Mounds jingle, “Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut.”

Crazy Fact: On December 7, 1980, Taylor was approached by Mark David Chapman, the man who would murder John Lennon the following day. In 2010, Taylor said, “The guy had sort of pinned me to the wall and was glistening with maniacal sweat and talking some freak speak about what he was going to do and his stuff with how John was interested, and he was going to get in touch with John Lennon. And it was surreal to actually have contact with the guy 24 hours before he shot John.” The following night, Taylor, who lived in a building next to Lennon’s, actually heard the assassination take place. Reflecting on that moment, Taylor said, “I heard him shoot—five, just as quick as you could pull the trigger, about five explosions.”

My Listening Tips: It’s rare for songs from this era and style to have a brief, free-form intro like this one. It almost feels like the rubato beginnings you’d hear in an old jazz tune. Pay attention to the brass, especially during the short interlude in the middle—that’s Michael Brecker on tenor sax! Carly Simon and Peter Asher join Taylor on background vocals, and Ralph MacDonald is absolutely nailing it on the congas. In my opinion, great percussion is often the “secret sauce” that elevates a song’s sound..

Happy listening!

Painters use their eyes
To show us what they see
But when that canvas dries
We all see it differently

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There ain’t black or white
There ain’t no day or night
There ain’t no way around it
You know I would have found it

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There ain’t no song in the whole wide world
Could hardly sing about you
There ain’t no song in the whole wide world
To tell you the way that I feel

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My name is Michael Sanchez and I’m an avid record collector and obscure song searcher. My goal is to post one song a day that’s been on my stereo/turntable frequently. If you don’t like the song… too bad 🙂 I do.

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