James Taylor

"The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time."

• Born March 12, 1948, in Boston

• James Taylor achieved commercial success in 1970 with "Fire And Rain," which went to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. His album Sweet Baby James, released the same year, reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200.

• Taylor earned his first GRAMMY nominations for 1970, including Record and Song Of The Year ("Fire And Rain") and Album Of The Year for Sweet Baby James. He won his first GRAMMY for 1971 for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male for "You've Got A Friend." He made his GRAMMY stage debut at the 45th GRAMMY Awards in 2003 and performed "Sweet Baby James" with cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

• Taylor almost retired from performing in 1985, but changed his mind after playing for an adoring audience in Rio de Janeiro. He wrote the song "Only A Dream In Rio" immediately after the show.

• Taylor was honored as MusiCares Person of the Year in 2006 where artists such as Carole King, Bruce Springsteen and Sting paid tribute to him at a ceremony held during GRAMMY Week. The annual Person of the Year gala raises funds for MusiCares, which provides services and resources that cover a wide range of financial, medical and personal emergencies for music people.

• The GRAMMY Museum hosted Taylor for an installment in their An Evening With series in 2015 for a discussion of his life and career, as well as an acoustic performance. 

• During their Troubadour Reunion Tour, Taylor and his longtime friend King raised more than $1.5 million for the Natural Resources Defense Council, Alliance for the Wild Rockies and 75 other charities.