A patchwork of dulcet-toned pop, folk, and rock icons helped burnish James Taylor's mellow gold. His strummed ballads blend Joni Mitchell's Laurel Canyon romance with Laura Nyro's raw intimacy; his politicized pop infuses The Beatles' delectable choruses with Buffalo Springfield's anti-establishment twang; his confessional cuts frame Gordon Lightfoot's yarn-spinning skills in the clouded-over soul of The Ronettes.