He provided the commentary of the technical story behind the recording of actual cannon fire and carillon for the famous 1954 Mercury Records album, by Antal Dorati and the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra, of Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture"—still one of the most highly regarded recordings of that piece, and the best-selling classical LP of the 1950s. Taylor also recorded commentary for other Mercury recordings: Benjamin Britten's "The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra"; the 1958 stereophonic re-make of the "1812 Overture" and Frederick Fennell's ground-breaking two-album "The Civil War," which featured original music played on period instruments and sound-montages, narrated by Taylor, of period weaponry and music.