So I just re-listened to TA in its entirety, as mentioned above. My observations:
1. I think I would have really enjoyed the overall production they did. I wouldn't have traveled on a work night to go see it (which means I would have missed it anyway), but I think it probably came across better in the live setting.
2. The standalone tracks I liked from my first two listens to it remain. I can't name them, except for a few -- Moment of Betrayal, Our New World, Gift of Music -- but there are more than those three, for sure.
3. the story line (as much as I can focus on it while working and listening to it in the background, which isn't much) isn't very deep, but I'm wondering if the novel will actually help me appreciate it a bit more...if TA was actually the soundtrack to a larger story, rather than the story itself, if that makes sense.
4. James' performance is woefully underrated on the record.
Overall, I like it a lot more than I did when I first checked it out, for sure. The problem I have, is that it has to be such an engaged listen. I couple of times I did look over to see just where I was in terms of getting through it, which tells me some of it could have been cut. But hey, I'm just the listener, not the artist.
In comparison to legendary works like The Wall, Tommy, Mindcrime, etc., TA falls a bit short of those. I actually think SFAM is a better overall conceptual record. But TA also stands apart a bit, because it's not just a concept album. It's a broadway production in audio form. A unique piece of DT history that has rankled the fan base some, but I think over time will become much more appreciated.