John Denver Album: “Reflections: Songs of Love & Life”

This is a wonderful compilation featuring songs examining life and love written and sung by John Denver. This is one of the first of the posthumous releases of many his best-known songs. Included are many of the monster hits that propelled him into amazing popularity and superstardom in the early 1970s. In his heyday no one was outselling his albums or out-booking John for concert appearances, and considering the incredible talents on the scene at the time, that is a pretty good indication of just how popular he was, and just how universal John Denver's appeal was. No one else sang of the wide-open possibilities and seemingly limitless possibilities for a good life awaited those who would free themselves from the bonds that confined them and just dare to soar along with him in the wild open spaces.

Many of the tracks here are terrific, from "Annie's Song", to "Rhymes And Reasons" to "How Can I Leave you Again". John, more than any of his contemporaries, actively caught the public's imagination regarding the wonders of the natural environment, and in a time when environmental concerns were splashed all over the headlines and the evening news, John's vision of popular concern for and stewardship of the natural world was immensely important. I love a number of the songs here, including "You're So Beautiful" to "I'm Sorry", to "Sunshine On My Shoulders", to "Goodbye Again", and my own personal favorite, John's cover of "Let It Be', which in his hands becomes a quite different take from the Beatles version of the song. This album represents a wonderful overview of the work of John as he thrilled a whole generation with his own perspective of a meaningful life lived in the natural splendor of nature. I know you will enjoy this as well as all of his other albums. Far out!

Many of the tracks are terrific and can be listened to again and again without listener fatigue. One of the best albums released after John's untimely death. Some of the songs here are just terrific including: Let It Be, I'm Sorry, Sunshine On My Shoulders, How Can I Leave You Again, and Goodbye Again.

(Wallingford)