Country Road - STEVEN R. TABOR

Country Road

"Country Road" is a song written and performed by James Taylor. It appears on his 1970 second album, "Sweet Baby James". The song was inspired by Somerset Street in Belmont, Massachusetts, a wooded road running adjacent to the land owned by McLean Hospital where Taylor had committed himself in 1965 to receive treatment for depression. The song has been described as an ode to the happiness and freedom that comes from just being alone.

The song "Country Road" makes me think of wandering down a gravel road shaded by tall trees. Where one is headed on such a country road doesn't seem to matter at all. What matters is the calm and serenity that comes from just "walking down a country road".

This series contains images were taken on a mid-summer's day on a small road in Līgatne, a small town in the province of Cesu, Latvia. Līgatne is an old mill town with colorful, painted wooden houses that are nestled deep in the woods, abutting the banks of the Gauja river. I shot this series as I meandered up and down this small country road, admiring the patterns that the shadows made, enjoying the cool breeze, and that quiet feeling that comes from being alone and walking down a country road.

If you'd like to see the full series, download the PDF catalog here.