Night Owl (James Taylor song)
| "Night Owl" | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Single by The Flying Machine | |
| B-side | "Brighten Your Night with My Day" |
| Released | 1967 |
| Format | 7" |
| Recorded | Late 1966, Select Sound Studios, NYC |
| Genre | Folk rock |
| Length | 2:25 |
| Label | Rainy Day Records |
| Songwriter(s) | James Taylor |
| Producer(s) | Chip Taylor, Al Gorgoni |
| "Night Owl" | |
|---|---|
| Song by James Taylor | |
| from the album James Taylor | |
| Released | December 6, 1968 |
| Recorded | 1968 at Trident Studios, London |
| Genre | Rock, R&B |
| Length | 3:38 |
| Label | Apple Records |
| Songwriter(s) | James Taylor |
| Producer(s) | Peter Asher |
"Night Owl" is a song written by James Taylor that was originally released as a single by Taylor's band the Flying Machine, which also included Danny Kortchmar in 1967. Taylor later rerecorded a solo version of the song for his Apple Records debut album James Taylor in 1968. Subsequently the Flying Machine version was released on the album James Taylor and the Original Flying Machine. It has also been covered by such artists as Alex Taylor, Carly Simon and Anne Murray.
"Night Owl" was inspired by the Night Owl Cafe in Greenwich Village in New York City, where the Flying Machine often performed. The Flying Machine version was released as a single backed by "Brighten Your Night with My Day." Taylor and the other group members were dissatisfied with their performance on the recording, considering it "mediocre." Although it got some regional radio play in the northeast United States, the label declined to fund further recordings by the band. Author Stephen Davis described the song as "a rollicking R&B number."Tony Orlando claims to have been particularly struck by the song. Taylor later rerecorded "Night Owl," along with several other songs he wrote for the Flying Machine, such as "Knocking 'Round the Zoo," for his self-titled solo debut album on Apple Records.Allmusic critic Lindsay Planer rated it as one of the "notable inclusions" on the James Taylor album. The James Taylor album included instrumental interludes between songs, and James Taylor biographer Timothy White describes the brass instruments that were used for the interlude introducing "Night Owl" as "ungainly" and sounding like the overture to a Broadway musical. White does feel that the brass instruments were used better accompanying the song itself.
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