FEATURE:
Born at the Right Time
PHOTO CREDIT: Frank Ockenfels
Paul Simon at Seventy-Eight: The Ultimate Playlist
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TODAY is National Album Day…
IN THIS PHOTO: Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel/PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images
and many people are explaining which albums mean the most to them. As the theme of this year’s National Album Day is ‘don’t skip’, I have been listening a lot to an album that I cannot skip through: Paul Simon’s Graceland. It is one of the finest albums ever and one that, every time I listen to it, brings something new and wonderful. Look back at Paul Simon’s solo career and work with Art Garfunkel and you are staggered by his genius! He is seventy-eight tomorrow and, to mark that, I have compiled a playlist that spans his entire career (his last album was 2018’s In the Blue Light; ten Paul Simon originals reworked by the master). Before then, I want to bring in an interview from late last year, where Simon was asked about his back catalogue and his legacy:
“With his most recent and possibly last album, "In the Blue Light," he has dusted off some of his back catalog, rearranging and revising some of his favorite songs.
"These are songs that I thought were well written -- good songs that were overlooked, or people didn't notice them when I put them out," he said.
If this indeed proves to be his last album, Simon considers that very much his own choice.
"It's not like I couldn't do another album now at the same qualitative level as I've done the last two or three albums -- which I think are as good as I can do, as I've ever been. I think I could do that, but I'm not sure that's the most interesting choice for me."
So, what of his musical legacy? It's an inheritance he's more reluctant to assess.
"I don't believe in legacy," he told Amanpour. "I don't believe that there's any importance to it.
"I've already left a great deal of my thinking. I just turned 77, so I've already left my thinking through these songs -- some of which are very, very well-known -- so it's good to stop and see what else will I think of. Or maybe I won't. Maybe I'll just take a rest".
Not only does it now seem that Simon has no plans to record music, we will not see the man tour again - he has not completely ruled out doing the odd performance, perhaps. Although he embarked on a farewell tour last year, I think has done one or two dates since then. When reviewing his ‘farewell’ show at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, NME quoted Paul Simon – he explained his reasoning behind the location:
“Explaining the reason behind his decision to play his final concert in Flushing, Simon said: “It feels more like fate than coincidence that I should do the final show on the final tour at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.”
He added: “I could have ridden my bike from home to the park in about 20 minutes when I was a kid. But this is less a goodbye than a farewell. Thank you all for the ride, I had a great time”.
It seems hard to accept we will not see him play and record anymore but, when one considers his music, just look at what he has given the world! From his early days in Simon & Garfunkel to his varied solo albums, there is no other songwriter like him! As we say happy birthday to the New Jersey-born legend, use the chance to play his music and experience Simon in all his glory. To experience his music is to immerse yourself in something safe, fantastic and utterly moving. When I listen to a Paul Simon song, I open my mind, close my eyes and…
FOLLOW wherever he goes.