Sweet Baby James (studio album)
by James Taylor

Sweet Baby James by James Taylor
Year: 1970
Overall rank: 1,532nd   
Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 327 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1970 (41st)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (296th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,532nd)

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Product Details
Availability

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1970s VG+ James Taylor Sweet Baby James 1843 LP33
Condition: Used


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James Taylor-Sweet Baby James 180gm Vinyl LP Warner Bros 1st singer-songwriter
Condition: Used


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James Taylor - Sweet Baby James Vinyl LP Good
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$100.00


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James Taylor bestography

Sweet Baby James is ranked as the best album by James Taylor.

James Taylor album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (1,532nd)
Sweet Baby James
Lower ranked (2,875th) »
Mud Slide Slim And The Blue Horizon

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

Upcoming concerts

Jan
03
Sat
19:30
Sweet Baby James: The #1 James Taylor Tribute
VBC Mars Music Hall, Huntsville, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
07
Wed
18:30
The Carole King & James Taylor Story
Blue Note Hawaii, Honolulu, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jan
07
Wed
21:00
The Carole King & James Taylor Story
Blue Note Hawaii, Honolulu, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Sweet Baby James on YouTube

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Sweet Baby James track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 80 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track
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1.
Track pick (850 - 82 votes)
Average Rating: 85 (82 votes)Comments: View 1
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2.
Average Rating: 78 (61 votes)Comments: View 0
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3.
Average Rating: 79 (59 votes)Comments: View 0
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4.
Average Rating: 78 (69 votes)Comments: View 0
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5.
Average Rating: 82 (72 votes)Comments: View 0
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6.
Average Rating: 78 (61 votes)Comments: View 0
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7.
Track pick (890 - 102 votes)
Average Rating: 89 (102 votes)Comments: View 3
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8.
Average Rating: 80 (61 votes)Comments: View 0
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9.
Average Rating: 77 (57 votes)Comments: View 0
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11.
Average Rating: 78 (60 votes)Comments: View 0
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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Sweet Baby James rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 1,532nd | 1970s rank: 296th | 1970 rank: 41st

Sweet Baby James collection

Sweet Baby James ratings

Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 327 votes)
   Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 327 ratings for this album.

Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
75/100
 !
1 hour ago AledJames   1,44969/100
 
65/100
 !
12/09/2025 03:18 Exist-en-ciel   4,41670/100
 
80/100
 !
10/03/2025 10:18 Tamthebam   22,85769/100
 
95/100
 !
09/24/2025 14:08 Martini   73396/100
 
90/100
 !
08/13/2025 20:43 DommeDamian   7,29649/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 76.9/100, a mean average of 76.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.1/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.4.

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Sweet Baby James comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 26 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
85/100
From 02/24/2025 13:37 | #307761
Shortlisted for album of the year at the 1971 Grammy Awards. The Winner that year was Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 02/29/2024 14:11 | #302302
James Taylor's best album - by far. It is filled with lovely songs, many of them classics. I could do without "Steamroller Blues" and "Oh Baby Don't Lose Your Lip on Me". They send me running for the skip button every time.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 09/06/2022 16:03 | #289345
Solid
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 12/27/2021 10:36 | #278046
Impecable colección de James Taylor en su momento más inspirado.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 04/22/2021 19:24 | #268873
remarkable distinct voice and songs
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 01/01/2021 17:53 | #263584
It's calm and relaxing, but at the same time very passionate.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 12/01/2020 05:27 | #261714
A pleasant listen, but not enough strong material for a truly great album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 07/12/2019 21:22 | #239390
I hear the full album and you can clearly the soul in his voice. Every song was good and i can recommend it for all who want to buy it. Fire and Ran is the best song on the album and the song he is best known for
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 07/09/2018 11:01 | #217969
Sweet Baby James is James Taylor's best known studio album and indeed his finest one too, the title track and Fire And Rain are among his very best songs, but there are plenty of others here well worth a listen - Country Road, Sunny Skies, Blossom, and Streamroller Blues in particular.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 05/21/2018 04:11 | #215329
This is most certainly not normally in my musical wheel-house but having watched a most excellent documentary on JT's life and times I just had to hear 'Sweet Baby James' which is considered his best album

And what a lovely listen it was , beautiful melody's , earthy lyrics , that JT harmony and highlighted by the absolute classic "Fire and Rain"

My one and only gripe would be track 6 "Oh, Suzannah" which TBH is a bit a shocker , luckily the remaining tracks paper over this misfire

Troubadour JT

60/100
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1970
1. Paranoid by Black Sabbath
2. After The Gold Rush by Neil Young
3. All Things Must Pass by George Harrison
4. Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel
5. John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band by John Lennon
6. Bitches Brew by Miles Davis
7. Moondance by Van Morrison
8. Cosmo's Factory by Creedence Clearwater Revival
9. Led Zeppelin III by Led Zeppelin
10. Fun House by The Stooges
11. Let It Be by The Beatles
12. Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath
13. Loaded by The Velvet Underground
14. Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek & The Dominos
15. Déjà Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
16. American Beauty by Grateful Dead
17. Deep Purple In Rock by Deep Purple
18. Abraxas by Santana
19. Morrison Hotel by The Doors
20. Tea For The Tillerman by Cat Stevens
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