James Taylor visits 'my fellow addicts' in Clearwater

Five-time Grammy winner James Taylor addressed a group of drug offenders today as "my fellow addicts" during a speech to a local rehabilitation program's graduation ceremony.

Taylor, whose song "Fire and Rain" harkens to his own history of drug addiction, spoke to the program's hundred latest graduates inside a Pinellas courtroom.

First, though, he heard a group of young singers serenade him with his other top song from 1970s, "You've Got A Friend."

Taylor received a standing ovation after his introduction by Circuit Court Judge Dee Anna Farnell, who manages the widely acclaimed drug court program in Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court.

Nearly 3,000 offenders have graduated from the program since it started 10 years ago as an alternative to incarceration.

Taylor, a former heroin user, told the crowd he is 30 years into his own recovery.

He praised the local drug court and what he called "a caring community."

"It's amazing to see addicts treated as patients and not criminals," said Taylor, 63, who appeared here on a day off between concert stops in Alabama and Orlando.

"I do believe the only game in town is 12 step recovery."

He advocated physical workouts as a means of dealing with the anxiety of recovery.

"I finally got comfortable in my own skin when I began exercising," he said.

He told the graduates never to lose hope.

"What seems like the darkest hour is actually somebody turning on the light in your lives."

The first graduate in the procession line was a backup singer for Taylor. She got a diploma and a big hug from the singer-songwriter.

Taylor's appearance wasn't made public in advance, but the courtroom – the same one where a jury was picked for the Casey Anthony murder trial under way in Orlando – was jammed with onlookers.

They included Pinellas Sheriff Jim Coats and State Attorney Bernie McCabe.

Taylor, a Boston native, had his first No. 1 hit with "Fire and Rain" in 1970, followed by the No. 1 "You've Got A Friend" in 1971.

Early in his adult life, Taylor suffered bouts of depression and became addicted to drugs.

His career has gone through peaks and valleys, and in recent years, he has appeared before national audiences on what was to have been the final episode of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" in 2009 and on the Academy Awards in 2010.

Mdouglas@wfla.com

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