SANTA CLARITA, CA - Singer and songwriter James Taylor recently released his 19th album. The album, titled American Standard, opened up a dialogue for Taylor to discuss his past struggles.
During the span of his 54-year career, Taylor says he struggled with an opioid addiction. His addiction to both heroin and meth lasted from the 1960s to 1983.
This forced him to turn to a 12-step program for recovery. This program, he says, was the only way to rid him of his vices.
“The thing that is so difficult about early recovery is how physically uncomfortable it is for people,” Taylor states. Physical exercise to the point of exhaustion aided him in subsiding his discomfort.
However, while going through withdrawal he claims music is what gave him renewed purpose. Taylor believes finding a source of positivity and encouragement during this low is what kept him going.
“Music was that for me. It’s such a positive thing for me that I didn’t want to lose it.”
His advice to others going through recovery is to find what drives them forward and to cling to that passion.
Taylor has created a wide array of music throughout the years, also pulling inspiration from American classic songs. But he says preparing songs for American Standard was different; it forced him out of his comfort zone and helped him channel his creativity in a new direction.
His determination shows in the success of his career and the many awards he has accumulated. Taylor has sold over 100 million albums throughout his career, won five Grammy Awards, been inducted in the Rock & Roll and Songwriters halls of fame, gotten the Presidential Medal of Freedom and Kennedy Center Honors.
By Savanna Birchfield
Contribution from Nick Krewen- The Star
Photo by Norman Seeff
Audio by Savanna Birchfield
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