James Taylor Shares the Story of How He Wrote Carolina in My Mind

[@cleverusername9369]

I'm from NC, i lived in Colorado for a year and was homesick frequently, and "Carolina in my Mind" never failed to make me cry my face off

[@terryadcock3574]

I'm from New Orleans, but Colorado is absolutely my favorite place on earth! I love this song, but I always substitute "Colorado" for "Carolina" when I sing it... and usually cry my face off.

[@dabear2438]

I'm your neighbor to the south (SC), and love NC... it's gorgeous!!

[@maryjbelle]

Im from New England but it resonates in a way that’s hard to describe. He actually lives and performs in the Berkshires and that is my home area. Sweet Baby James Now, the first of December was covered with snow So was the turnpike from Stockbridge to Boston Though the Berkshires seemed dreamlike on account of that frostin'

[@Ncdude25]

I'm from NC too but I've lived in PA for a few years. I still get sentimental and homesick when I hear this song.

[@Stardust414]

I have fond memories of my parents taking me on Sunday drives--warm sun shining, windows down, James Taylor playing through the speakers. We loved to belt out the chorus to "Carolina in mind" & I remember it like yesterday!!!☀️☺️🎶 Unfortunately, my Dad passed away very unexpectedly a few years ago & I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to him. At the service, we played his favorite JT song & to my surprise I felt a sense of peace instead of sadness. When I'm missing my Dad & feeling down about his passing, I still put on a James Taylor song bc it reconnects me with my Dad. It's like a bridge I can feel but I can't see. Remember: the most important gift that we can offer those we love in our life is our time, our attention & our presence. When they're gone you won't have another chance 💕 I thought I had more time to "do life" with my Dadbbut that wasn't the case. IDK who this msg is for but if you made it this far in the post then perhaps it's you?!? Whatever it is you've been thinking of...don't wait any longer. Do it now! No more excuses. Figure it out. Just do it!

[@catrinamcdonald510]

just sending cyber hugs. An older brother introduced me to James Taylor when I was in my early teens and he has been a part of my musical biography since - i´m now on my mid 50s. i shared many special times, memories and daughter/mother moments which included James Taylor´s music. She developed dementia and music was a connector when language was not in her final years. She died in Scotland when we were in lockdown and I couldn´t get to visit her or be with her.....JT is playing in Bilbao next Sept, I´ve never seen him live and I know it will be a joyful experience as well as a night when I will shed a few tears. Hugs to you and your Dad.

[@valeriesuttonpayne7413]

I’m sending you hugs, too! JT is comforting and familiar.

[@jackvaughan7577]

How’ya Obnoxious, Catrina and Valerie Isn’t it amazing that a Man like James can link together like a Big Comfortable Jumper (Pull-Over) with an ever ending thread, million’s of people in this F**k’d Up World Love all y’ere Comments Jimmy T and his beautiful music’s been part of my life, all of my life also Take care Folks Jack Vaughan Tipperary Ireland

[@erin_hall]

I’m from North Carolina, I live right down the street from where James Taylor grew up 🥰

[@jormayorccis1028]

Morgan Creek?

[@jackvaughan7577]

Ya Lucky Thing Erin He’s a World Wide Treasure Take Care Jack Vaughan Tipperary Ireland

[@kerryn6714]

I love James Taylor. He’s an excellent singer/songwriter/musician & an all around nice guy ✌️💙😍

[@NewMessage]

Having an attitude about your parents music is part of what makes a teenager a teenager. Ad learning to appreciate it again is part of becoming an adult.

[@ringodaisy7]

Well said and I agree ❤️

[@chellepatino1675]

I love this. Its so true

[@kevinlance1813]

As a 7th generation North Carolinean let me try to explain in just a coulpe of words how much this great artist and person means. Ask any native of Carolina and they will tell you that whenever they leave home for business or pleasure this is how they feel until they return. Home. If you're one of us you get it.

[@valeriesuttonpayne7413]

OMG! Love this musician. Fifty years plus. Still wonderful. There’s no one else like James Taylor.

[@sorenpotthoff3705]

North Carolina is my home. This song evokes the feelings I have for the state.

[@PaisleyPatchouli]

Love James Taylor...

[@sarahbrinnsmith]

It probably was a funeral. Listen to the song. I've been away from NC since 2018 and whenever I hear this song I remember family and each hour of passing time when life is so short. I've gone to Carolina in my mind.

[@JoshuaSobel]

As a Carolinian, it's my civic duty to like this song.

[@WyattWinters]

Good man :). I grew up in NC listening to James Taylor and his music never fails to make me miss those days

[@fairterr]

@@WyattWinters N.C. is always on my mind...homesick everytime I hear James...thank God for memories

[@johnnyrotten6191]

Hehehe.....that's funny, right there...

[@teaberrywmn]

I lived in Mars Hill for awhile up on a mountain top with some wonderful prople. This song brings back such sweet memories.

[@Jack.333]

Thank You James Taylor. I am still a fan

[@sadiqmohamed681]

Back in the 70s I played bass in a semi-pro covers band, and the keyboard player liked James Taylor, so we learned "Fire and Rain" to do as a slow number to end a second set. It would go down a storm, and I have been a fan ever since. He writes great lyrics, and tunes that are more difficult than they sound. He also love to talk about music. A real musicians musician.

[@FLJohnson]

The simple bass line on Carolina is masterful.

[@sadiqmohamed681]

@@FLJohnson I agree. The thing was I liked to embellish and would get into trouble for playing fills. We did learn Carolina, and my girlfriend at the time was a music student and would bring a friend to rehearsals so we had two female backing vocals. The drummer even learned to play with brushes but unfortunately we never got to play it in public.

[@tinysteelorchestra]

You're absolutely right. You see the chords of JT songs written down, and you think ah, D, G, A, Em, no problem... Then you try and play it like he does and you realise what a great guitarist he actually is - it's much harder than he makes it look!

[@funkdragon7659]

Sweet baby James baby!! He is an American treasure✌️🔥❤️❤️

[@jackvaughan7577]

And a World Treasure Funk Take care Jack Vaughan Tipperary Ireland

[@maryjbelle]

Legend and those were the days. The people he knew the places he went. It won’t ever be like that again. Nostalgia

[@vivelaresistance3239]

Every year at commencement, a UNC a capella group sings Carolina and it’s the best part of the ceremony.

[@ncsatorialgent178]

I agree. Watched it a few weeks ago inside Kenan Stadium.

[@Alexalini]

My mom grew up in the same neighborhood as James Taylor, he’s so great and so authentic! ❤️❤️#MorganCreek #CarolinaOnMyMind

[@susiejohnson4530]

saw him and Bonnie Raitt in Tupelo MS in PRE COVID 2019. He was SOOOO awesome and energetic!! he was bouncing around like a teenager. So glad we went to see them IN PERSON.

[@RosablueHandMade]

He was just as lovely and genuine at 42 as he is now at 72. The real ones are consistent 😉

[@traciklaus9639]

I love James Taylor 2021

[@crissugar1016]

He's so very great 👍 enjoy his stories & all his songs.

[@crissugar1016]

Just visited last weekend for our grandson's wedding to his beautiful bride, had the DJ play " Carolina on my mind" the song is so,so special for us who have to live far from our family in NC.👌❤

[@jonschmidt9845]

carolina is one of the best songs on earth.

[@globalwarmhugs7741]

What a delightful interview. 😁

[@ruthlewis5311]

Oh my God Seth, please stop cracking jokes while one of the greatest singer/songwriters tells the story of one of his most iconic songs.

[@Datsunofthebeach]

Chill.

[@jeremiecollier-freed3170]

No he’s right like literally shut up lmao they aren’t even in the same tier in terms of importance and James Taylor deserves a different level of respect

[@usefulidiom]

Exactly!

[@rattified]

Exactly what I'm sayin, Ruthie!!

[@timwooten6776]

Agreed!

[@sokratissuckacockalus2408]

James Taylor changed my life

[@klarastern5597]

He's so very pleasant

[@play-fool]

James is sharper than Seth here. Dreamy as hell I love him so much

[@ravineseder3133]

What Taylor is trying to convey to Seth is that, at the time, it was no big deal to be an artist on the Apple label. It didn't mean anyone had to live up to a higher ideal, it's just a label. Apple began as the Beatles' project to give unknowns a chance at getting recorded. The Beatles had years of painful experiences with record label sharks and gatekeepers, and so Apple was a way they could stick it to the man and maybe change the way things were done. But as Taylor says, it didn't last long and the Beatles lost a lot of money on it. But too bad Meyers wastes this opportunity to talk with Taylor by focusing on the Apple thing.

[@janiceandrus3109]

This is one of the most beautiful songs he's ever written so back off

[@janiceandrus3109]

❤❤❤❤❤❤😂❤❤😂😂😂

[@teresaweaver1012]

Raising my sons on the Carolina coast was the happiest time of my life.

[@JayJoJonny]

JT we’re all going to Carolina with you!😎

[@YahuconanBell5344]

I love your music brother I was born in 1960 I'm right along with you

[@kansaspeach7727]

Signing with "The Beatles " just a Prelude of JT "To Come." I'm so glad I was nosy, curious, and bought my first CD at a McCrory's five and dime 35 years ago❤❤ Standards is ane "Ace."

[@krishnakumarnair4315]

When James Taylor sings, indeed in my mind I'm going to Carolina.....( Anyway for me from India it could be a fairy land on the other side of Jupiter )

[@wynnssecret8584]

Krishnakumar.....I feel the same exact way ( and I live in So. California)

[@gregdahlen4375]

maybe there's places in india like it although idk cuz india may be more densely populated everywhere and a little more tropical.

[@denisehedden5108]

🥀Amazing interview with James Taylor he's amazing and I haven't met a song of his that I didn't like or love🥀☝️🥀

[@gabeg2434]

I finally had a reason to watch a Seth Myers video just because he had James Taylor on.

[@patriciawilliams7107]

Wow! Thanks for sharing this!

[@thomassicard3733]

Apple Records. That was such an awesome time!!! The music industry is brutal, but thankfully there are things that happen, along the way, that are blessed WAY beyond the almighty dollar!

[@timfrazier3033]

I’m so upset with North Carolina over cannabis. And I hear this song and just relax.....

[@Cyril_Squirrel]

JT was always good visually.

[@gregdahlen4375]

i do miss when james had the longer hippy hair. in my mind i'm going to those days lol

[@naldino1]

I was on Formentera for a couple of years in the early '70's. Formentera is only 12 miles long and a 1/2 mile to a mile wide at different spots. The island had no access to the Spanish mainland, the only way to get here was to take a small ferry (the Joven Delores) from the much larger Ibiza. Ibiza had plenty of hostels and hotels, Formentera, not so much. I believe James got the islands mixed up, as I heard this story before, in a recording of one of his concerts. It was very common for people (who had come over for the day from Ibiza) to miss the last ferry, get stranded, and wind up staying all night at one of the only bar/restaurants there at the time, called Fonda Pepe. It is exactly as he described it, but I think the passage of years made his recollections a little foggy. Fonda Pepe is still there, although a little more upscale these days. Formentera is still a beautiful Island, but more overnight options now as well. When I meet James, I will try to jog his memory a bit, LOL. Either way, great song.

[@yrulooknatme]

I got to see Jackie Lomax in Louisville. He opened for Steppenwolf. He was using Eric Claptons fool guitar.

[@dougfielding8215]

What, you cut the video off without the performance?

[@mitchrodee]

Doug Fielding , that’s a separate video.

[@fleadoggreen9062]

Exactly wtf

[@KraftyKathi]

Stop interrupting him!

[@comkid459]

It was so annoying the interruptions.

[@orbodman]

He is a pain in the ass. Let JT talk.

[@Caperhere]

Break Shot: My First 21 Years. JT’s audio memoir.

[@danielgregory9564]

This interview would have been so much better if Seth had just shut up.

[@comkid459]

Seth is not good with this interview. Too bad

[@stevekritzer1030]

I love that song, and find James very friendly and approachable in interviews. However, on this show does the audience laugh on cue or what? I don't think a lot of what he was saying was meant to be funny. I very likely won't watch this show again

[@DerekDominoes]

God that audience is irritating. Seth too.

[@dieselheart1]

What's with the inappropriate laughter?

[@victoriasakos6777]

JAMES AND SETH YOU FN BLOW...XOXO

[@YahuconanBell5344]

James I had no idea you had to go through all that crap

[@sambac2053]

Why not let the song play? Shaking my head

[@varietyyachtsvessels6769]

Sharp dresser that James Taylor, at least here he is.

[@gregdahlen4375]

after all his last name is tailor

[@Tommy_Mac]

Not sure why the audience is clapping and laughing inappropriately while JT is trying to tell a great story,,,

[@jefolson6989]

They are laughing because he so casually talks about the Beatles. Carolina is a Beatles record if you look at the personnel. Johm on bass, Geoge singing background. JT is a gentle soul, a humble genius.

[@Tommy_Mac]

@@jefolson6989 okay. That makes sense. I'm old, maybe a bit out of touch. I bought Sweet Baby James when it came out. 1970, I think.

[@jefolson6989]

@@Tommy_Mac I'm old too but bought the greatest hits album in 77. The version of "carolina" that I am used to comes from that- rerecorded with different personel because JT couldnt get the rights to the original. They are quite different! The later version got more airplay and its what most people know. The original with McCartney on bass and George singing backup has added strings and sounds very much like a Beatles tune.

[@katieshappell7586]

I was super confused too.

[@Count-Roflmfao]

First! Also Carolina in my Mind. 👍👍👍👌👌

[@jackshannonmusic7564]

Seth sure knows how to mess up an interview

[@veleo13]

This interviewer is a little bit annoying

[@michaelmerck7576]

He needs to let James Taylor talk and only ask questions when james can finish his sentence

[@quad1000]

JT...no dummy.

[@myenglishprofessor9189]

Dear God the laugh tracks are annoying AF

[@ConservativeAnthem]

Seth isn't a great interviewer...too distracted by Trump.

[@comkid459]

I agree. His interruptions were all about the Beatles. He has James Taylor in front of him and he's more interested in the Beatles. Seriously....

[@michaelmerck7576]

@@comkid459 very disrespectful to his guest

[@Theinformation8073]

Want a beautiful man💛💚

[@marcomontalvomusic]

Please watch my alternate version of Carolina In My Mind called “California In My Mind”. Thank You! 🙂 KZbin Link: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y2HOdnqwmK9gaac

[@gordiesings]

This could've been a great interview but Seth Meyers just had to keep opening his big mouth, interrupting and derailing James Taylor. A good interviewer knows when to speak and when not to.

[@Caperhere]

Maybe he was star struck. When Colbert first got his hosting gig, he interrupted every person he interviewed. It didn’t take him long to correct that.

[@marywalton8428]

Are Seth and James Taylor related??

[@chrismineo1788]

fake cackle

[@andybaldman]

Why is he dressing like a 1920’s homeless English boy?

[@francescopucci7340]

james taylor è bravo

[@johntao6822]

Bald men and their hats prove the inexorable vanity of men

[@KimSuecutie]

Or bald heads are cold and hats are warm.

[@dmc8092]

You lead a very sad life.

[@pamelacass9642]

You're worried about being bald yourself, Mr. Tao? Or, are you president of the Hair Club for Men and are trying to recruit? Good grief.

[@bobb7993]

The studio is very cold and having a hat on keeps us older bald guys warm.

[@JoshuaSobel]

Or some people just like hats. You worried about something? I sense projection.

[@dmc8092]

I love him so much!