FIRE AND RAIN - JAMES TAYLOR

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Fire And Rain - JAMES TAYLOR

"Fire and Rain" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter James Taylor, released in August 1970 by Warner Bros. Records as the second single from Taylor's second studio album, Sweet Baby James. The song follows Taylor's reaction to the suicide of Suzanne Schnerr, a childhood friend, and his experiences with drug addiction and fame. 

In that same account, Taylor said he had been in a deep depression after the failure of his new band the Flying Machine to coalesce (the lyric "Sweet dreams and Flying Machines in pieces on the ground"; the reference is to the name of the band rather than a fatal plane crash, as was long rumored). Taylor completed writing the song while in rehab.

After its release, "Fire and Rain" peaked at number two on RPM's Canada Top Singles chart and at Number Three on the Billboard Hot 100.

Carole King played piano on the song. Drummer Russ Kunkel used brushes rather than sticks on his drum kit, and Bobby West played double bass in place of a bass guitar to "underscore the melancholy on the song".

Live at the Troubadour is a live album by Carole King and James Taylor released in 2010. The album was recorded at The Troubadour in West Hollywood in November 2007 to celebrate the venue's 50th anniversary. It was also the first venue that King and Taylor played together in November 1970.