Sweet Baby James

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Also celebrating a birthday today is James Vernon Taylor, better known as James "Sweet Baby James" Taylor, one of the greatest singer/songwriters of the rock era. Taylor was born in 1948.
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Taylor rode the wave of the soft rock era in the 1970's, scoring monster hits like "Fire and Rain", Carolina On My Mind", "You've Got a Friend", "Handy Man", "How Sweet It Is" and "Shower The People".
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During this time Taylor married fellow singer/songwriter Carly Simon, and they quickly became music's preeminent
"power couple". A duet with the two hitmakers was inevitable, and it appeared in 1974 with the Top 5 hit, "Mockingbird". Taylor and Simon divorced in 1983, but not before their marital differences became the stuff of much public discussion; Taylor even scored a hit with J.D. Souther in 1981, "Her Town Too", which hinted at the couple's problems.
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Taylor's career waned in the 1980's, but he's never stopped performing in the years since. To date, Taylor has won five Grammy Awards, his latest for his 2003 duet with Alison Krauss, "How's The World Treating You". In 2000, Taylor was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and The Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine listed Taylor at #84 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
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Taylor's appeal has always been widespread and universal, especially among the baby boomer set. His notable appearances span the decades, including being one of the first musical guests, (in 1976), on NBC's "Saturday Night Live", to 2009 when he sang on Jay Leno's final "Tonight Show" episode before he was replaced by Conan O'Brien. In 2010, Taylor sang The Beatles' "In My Life" during the In Memoriam segment at The Academy Awards.
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Taylor continues to perform to this day. His 2010 Troubadour Reunion Tour, which included fellow musical legend Carole King, toured the world and grossed over 59 million dollars, making it one of the most successful live music act tours of the year.