Tag: Paul Simon

Paul Simon’s Graceland, plus 25

When the Graceland album comes out in the fall of 1986, there are a lot of positive reviews, though there is some discussion of cultural imperialism, talk Simon occasionally faced directly,

On June 5, the 25th-anniversary edition of the landmark Paul Simon album Graceland will be released. It has a few demo or alternate tracks, plus something described as “The Story of ‘Graceland’ as told by Paul Simon,” which could be interesting. But what is really intriguing is the DVD that comes with it, Under African Skies, directed by Joe Berlinger, which I saw on A&E a few days ago. It not only discusses the making of the album, and shows the reunion of many of the artists; it also addresses the huge controversy over the album and the subsequent tour.

There was a United Nations cultural (and other) boycott of South Africa at the time of the recording of Graceland, because of the oppressive apartheid policies of the government. Paul Simon’s record label guy Lenny Waronker said that the African music Simon had been listening to could have been produced by studio musicians; Warnoker says that Simon looked at him as though he were crazy.

From HERE:
“I was very aware of what was going on politically,” Mr. Simon says in the film, though later he admits he really wasn’t. Harry Belafonte had urged him to get the blessing of the African National Congress before going, which he didn’t do. Mr. Simon bristled at such constraints and decided that the welcome and cooperation he got from black musicians was all the approval he needed.

The album gets made, but the release date is pushed back. Simon is already scheduled to appear on Saturday Night Live, and does so, with Ladysmith Black Mambazo, performing “Diamonds on the Soles of Their Shoes”, to thunderous applause.

When the record comes out in the fall of 1986, there are a lot of positive reviews, though there is some discussion of cultural imperialism, talk Simon occasionally faced directly, as shown in the film. Then he decided to go on tour:

From HERE (And check out the videos):

Nearly 25 years ago Paul Simon staged one of the most controversial pop shows in history. When he performed in April 1987 his Graceland concert was seen by some as an affront to a United Nations and African National Congress (ANC) cultural boycott on the apartheid-era in South Africa.

Others saw it as a celebration of the country’s rich musical diversity. At the time Simon was joined by South African musicians Hugh Masekela, Miriam Makeba, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. But outside leading musicians joined protestors which included Billy Bragg, Paul Weller, and Jerry Dammers, famous for writing the anti-apartheid anthem, Nelson Mandela. Together they demanded an apology from Simon.

Graceland ends up winning the Grammy for best album. Moreover, Simon eventually gets invited by the Mandela government to perform in South Africa after the boycott was over.

From HERE:

At the end of the film, Simon reflects on the controversy with Dali Tambo, founder of Artists Against Apartheid and son of the late African National Congress (ANC) president Oliver Tambo. He is still convinced Simon was wrong to break the cultural boycott, and Simon remains firm in his belief that art and music are a force for good that should never be repressed.

They end their debate with a hug, but you can see that this debate may never be resolved.

Lots of good insights in this film from Belafonte, Masakela, Paul McCartney, and Oprah Winfrey, who initially supportive of the boycott of the album until she heard the music, which transformed her life. I also had a bit of ambivalence over the album at the time, and I was really happy to see Simon’s rationale at the time.

I’m always loath to get an album that I’ve gotten before, in this case, on both LP and CD. But if you haven’t gotten the CD, or your LP is starting to skip, the documentary Under African Shies makes the purchase worthwhile. the film is also available separately, on Blu-Ray, for a price twice that of the CD/DVD combo.

The Boy in the Bubble – Paul Simon

February Rambling: Military Draft, Muppets and Graceland

“’Soul Train’ was the first and only television show to showcase and put a spotlight on black artists at a time when there were few African-Americans on television at all, and that was the great vision of Don.”

 

When I mentioned the military draft earlier in the month, I may not have been very clear. Think of a large goldfish bowl with 365 or 366 balls with every date for the year represented. The first date for a particular year pulled would be the first selected for military service, the second date pulled the second selected, etc. There would be a cutoff number, based on the need for the war effort. Check out this article and then this one.

The food stamp President; note that Arthur had this BEFORE MoveOn.com helped propel it viral. He also remembers the first anniversary of the Christchurch, New Zealand earthquake, the 50th anniversary of John Glenn’s flight aboard Friendship 7, and the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens.

Rosa Parks Did Much More than Sit on a Bus

The Stories I Tell: “Like most of us I was raised to tell the truth and be honest. This can present a minor dilemma for resellers.”

How a mom used Star Wars to answer life’s questions

Marvel/Disney wages petty, vicious war against Ghost Rider creator. Yeah, there are two sides to this story, but Disney’s treatment of writer Gary Friedrich is still most unfortunate. Here’s a more nuanced piece that links to a donate to Gary site. Incidentally, in the comments to the former piece, someone was complaining that Friedrich was selling the art of Mike Ploog, penciler of Ghost Rider. I don’t know about the specifics of this case, but as former Marvel editor-in-chief Jim Shooter explained here and here, art pages, which previous to the 1970s were rarely returned at all by comic book companies, were distributed to various participants of the story; this included the writer, though they usually got last dibs. Shooter does explain Marvel’s likely point of view, and here’s a Marvel rebuttal.

I swear I had the same problem as Mitch O’Connell.

I read in Entertainment Weekly about this website that has the feature If 2012’s Oscar-nominated movie posters told the truth. This one riffing on The Help is funny, but so are several others.

I was saddened by the death of “Soul Train” host Don Cornelius of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. From the LA Times: “Don Cornelius’ legacy to music, especially black music, will be forever cemented in history,” said Clarence Avant, former chairman of Motown Records. “’Soul Train’ was the first and only television show to showcase and put a spotlight on black artists at a time when there were few African-Americans on television at all, and that was the great vision of Don.”
But I also remember tuning in when unlikely guests would show up, such as David Bowie performing Fame and Golden Years.

Read about comic book legend John Severin, who died at the age of 90, here and here and here.

The Wicker Muppet and A Muppet phenomenon and REALLY early Muppets.

The film trailer for “Under African Skies,” “the documentary from award-winning filmmaker Joe Berlinger. Paul Simon travels back to South Africa 25 years after his first visit, chronicling the creation and lasting influence of his groundbreaking album, Graceland. Simon revisits the making of the record, surveying from the vantage of history the turbulence and controversy surrounding the album’s genesis.”

HOW TO mix a grody-looking Alien Brain Hemorrhage cocktail
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ROGER AT OTHER BLOGS

Interestingly, on most of these, I don’t get many comments. But I DO get an occasional LIKE on Facebook or retweet on Twitter, so it’s all good. Oh, and speaking of Facebook, I now have but one Facebook account. So if you want to “friend” me, it needs to be this account, the one with the duck logo.

Obviously, we’re still working on that “change the world” thing – also noting Graham Nash’s 70th birthday.

The GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT! The GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT!

Secrets of the public bathroom

Caring about Multiple Things Simultaneously, which is less about Whitney Houston, and more about people who think other folks shouldn’t care about Whitney Houston’s death

Alan Moore’s Twilight Proposal. Flashmob Fridays’ final outing.

Even a Megaphone Might Have Helped: Albany’s Black History Month bit

Scott Ritter is…complicated

In the spirit of Woody Guthrie. Well, maybe funnier.

The City of Albany didn’t even know the sign was missing until someone – OK, I – pointed it out.

2011 Revisited

The zoo that is the Republican Presidential race. Quite entertaining.

One of those year in review quizzes from Jaquandor.

Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Technically, I didn’t make any, in that I didn’t write any down. But probably not. Haven’t figured how to do more exercise without it feel like exercise. Probably played racquetball a half dozen times in 2011; used to play 200 times a year before the local Y closed, but dropping off the daughter at school then needing two buses (or a bike and a bus, if the weather’s decent) to get to work has made getting to play at Siena College difficult.

I keep threatening myself to stop blogging; what I HAVE done is to blog (slightly) shorter, especially in December.

Did anyone close to you give birth?

Actually, yes. My co-worker/fellow librarian Amelia and her husband Brian had baby Charlie on October 9. I won the office pool. Charlie was due October 8. I picked the 9th day of the 10th month of the 11th year at 12:13 pm; Charlie arrived at 12:51 pm. My pick REALLY ticked off the guy who picked 12 noon. “Who picks 12:13?”

Did anyone close to you die?

Well, yes. There was this guy named Chris Ringwald. We weren’t close, I suppose, but his death affected me deeply.

Robin Ashley was a guy whose house we’d go to every Christmas and sing carols. He developed ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) two or three years ago. One of the rather neat things is that he had this machine that would type words by him looking at the particular letters. It was slow, and exhausting for him, but it was a way for him to communicate when he otherwise could not.
And then there was my mom.

What countries did you visit?

O Canada! (see several posts in September.)

What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?

More massages, more patience – might be a relationship there.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?

I reached out to the alumni at my library school, and they invited me to participate in some workshop.

What was your biggest failure?

I did a couple of webinars on Census’ American Factfinder for work and had techno difficulties each time. I realize that I HATE doing webinars. I prefer doing things where I can look at people’s faces.

What was the best thing you bought?

I bought a couple of older Hess trucks from my friend Mary that used to belong to her late husband Tom. It was a nice connection with him for both of us.

Whose behavior merited celebration?

Arab Spring people. The fuzzily focused, but necessary Occupy people, who at least drew attention to the disparity of income.

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

Congress generally. I mean they can’t pass a budget, hardly ever, just a series of continuing resolutions.
Birthers, climate change deniers, any number of conspiracy theorists.

Where did most of your money go?

The house, in repairing the roof, insulating the attic, fixing the foundation. Jaquandor: are you SURE you want to buy a house?

What did you get really excited about?

The zoo that is the Republican Presidential race. Quite entertaining. And, speaking of zoos, the trip to Canada, including the Toronto Zoo.

What song will always remind you of 2011?

The Afterlife by Paul Simon

Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?

Sadder. I’m an adult orphan.

Thinner or fatter?

More or less the same.

Richer or poorer?

Slightly poorer because the Wife is working fewer extra hours, which is good, and because of the aforementioned house and my mother’s funeral, which is not.

What do you wish you’d done more of?

Going to movies, for sure.

What do you wish you’d done less of?

Thinking. Melancholy. Insomnia.

How did you spend Christmas?

Went to church, bifurcating the gift thing.

Did you fall in love in 2011?

Yes. One of the best things that happened on Thanksgiving is that the Wife and I stayed in bed, TALKING, for over an hour, with no interruptions; what a luxury. Grandma had fed the Daughter and her cousins, and she could hang with them.

How many one-night stands?

As many as last year.

What was your favorite TV program?

The Good Wife, The Closer, CBS Sunday Morning, The Daily Show.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

No, but I have a lot of contempt for Newt “let’s get rid of child labor laws” Gingrich, Herman “which one is Libya” Cain, and Rick “the third department is…” Perry, greater than last year at this time.

What was the best book you read?

Complete Peanuts, 1950-1952.

What was your greatest musical discovery?

Adele. OK, so I’m behind the curve; so sue me.

What did you want and get?

I wanted music, both singing and buying recordings.

What did you want and not get?

Some dedicated time to blog. It’s still catch as catch can.

What were your favorite films of this year?

The Muppets; and Midnight in Paris; and Crazy, Stupid Love.

What did you do on your birthday?

Not work. Went to an Indian buffet.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?

“Fashion” is silly.

What kept you sane?

Writing; singing; listening to music; learning new stuff; and then I suddenly realized that the question ASSUMES that I AM sane, which may or may not be the case.

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Gabrielle Giffords; Jon Stewart; the CBS Sunday Morning reporters; Scott Pelley of CBS News.

What political issue stirred you the most?

The gay marriage vote in New York. Actually watched the end of that vote in real time on TV.

Who did you miss?

I miss my mother.

Who was the best new person you met?

I “met” a few interesting folks online this year.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011:

Do what you think is right; the rest of the world might catch up, or not.
Democracy may work, eventually.
Libraries are wonderful.
I have better relationships with some people I’ve never met face-to-face than I do with people I see nearly daily; that is fascinating to me.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:

We come on the ship they call the Mayflower
We come on the ship that sailed the moon
We come in the age’s most uncertain hour
and sing an American tune
But it’s all right, it’s all right
You can’t be forever blessed
Still, tomorrow’s going to be another working day
And I’m trying to get some rest
That’s all I’m trying to get some rest

-American Tune, Paul Simon

Legendary albums from a world dominated by kittens…Photo recreations by Alfra Martini of aymvisuals.
infoATaymvisualsDOTcom

Arthur Garfunkel: “How terribly strange to be 70”

“Old Roger draft-dodger, leavin’ by the basement door, Everybody knows what he’s tippy-toeing down there for”

I have a strong recollection of our household getting the five Simon and Garfunkel studio albums, and it wasn’t in chronological order of their release.

First, there was Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme (PSRT-1966), the third album, which my father purchased for himself. That album included Cloudy, which was covered in a more cheerful manner by The Cyrkle; The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy), covered even more pep by Harpers Bizarre; The Dangling Conversation; and my dad’s favorite, 7 O’Clock News/Silent Night. The latter always bothered me because the newscaster says that there were nine student nurses killed in the July 1966 massacre but there were ‘only’ eight killed, with the ninth one hiding under a bed.

Then I bought Sounds of Silence (SOS-1966), the second album, which featured We’ve Got a Groovy Thing Goin’, Blessed, and Richard Cory. We read the Edwin Arlington Robinson poem upon which the latter song was based, in 7th or 8th grade. We were all perplexed that that “I wish I could be” Richard Cory, even AFTER he put a bullet in his head.

The next purchase was Bookends (B-1968), the fourth album, which featured America (“We’ve all gone to look for America”); Fakin’ It (“not really makin’ it); Punky’s Dilemma (“Old Roger draft-dodger, leavin’ by the basement door, Everybody knows what he’s tippy-toeing down there for” – took a lot of razzing over that!); Mrs. Robinson (took me 40 years to see the Graduate – the folks I hung with at the time found the only movies that were acceptable to be from Disney – and I STILL don’t know what it means); and A Hazy Shade of Winter, which always felt like a potential Mamas & the Papas song.

Eventually got around to buying Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. (1964), the first album, which is more a folk collection, though it has the original version of Sounds of Silence.

Finally, there’s the masterpiece, Bridge Over Troubled Water (BOTW-1970), with El Condor Pasa and The Only Living Boy in New York.

 

On my Top 12 list, the top four were no-brainers – links to the songs.

12. I Am A Rock (SOS) – “And a rock feels no pain, and an island never cries.” I related to this at the time far more than one could imagine.
11. My Little Town – this is a bit of a cheat, for it appears on Paul Simon’s solo album Still Crazy After All These Years AND Art’s solo album Breakaway. It reminds me of my hometown of Binghamton, NY, hardscrabble and shrinking.
10. Old Friends/Bookends (B)- I can’t separate the two. The title of the post comes from Old Friends. Have you noticed how melancholy a lot of these songs are?
9. A Simple Desultory Philippic (Or How I Was Robert McNamara’d into Submission) (PSRT) – so this is probably the LOUDEST S&G song in the canon. And as mentioned before, this tease of Bob Dylan may have led to Dylan’s AWFUL version of The Boxer.
8. At the Zoo (B) – I wrote a whole blogpost about this song!
7. Patterns (PSRT) – I especially love the intro, which sounds like a guitar being tuned, and the effect over the lyric “until the rat dies.”
6. Cecilia (BOTW) – this is, astonishingly, practically biographical of me; that’s all I’m gonna say.
5. Homeward Bound (PSRT) – one of the greatest songs about the life of a performer.

4. Scarborough Fair/Canticle (‘The Graduate’ soundtrack, originally PSRT). When Simon and Garfunkel seemed to be slow going commercially, Simon went to England and recorded an album called The Paul Simon Songbook. Many of the songs showed up on later S&G albums. The lyrics to the song The Side of A Hill from that early album was incorporated into this tune.
3. The Sound Of Silence (SOS) – If a producer hadn’t taken the Wednesday Morning 3 A.M. version of this song, which sounds much like this live acoustic version, “overdubbed the recording with electric guitar… electric bass.. and drums… and released it as a single without consulting Simon or Garfunkel,” musical history would have been much different.
2. Bridge Over Troubled Water (BOTW) – from Wikipedia: “This song’s recording process exposed many of the underlying tensions that eventually led to the breakup of the duo…Most notably, Paul Simon has repeatedly expressed regret over his insistence that Art Garfunkel sing this song as a solo, as it focused attention on Garfunkel and relegated Simon to a secondary position. Art Garfunkel initially did not want to sing lead vocal, feeling it was not right for him.”
Are they kidding? Art Garfunkel’s ethereal voice on this track is one that practically brings me to tears.
1. The Boxer (BOTW) – yet it is this song, the single before the long-awaited album, which I think is about perfect. This version, that is. Not the live version with that “changes” verse. Peculiarly, some spammer left me a rather detailed description of The Boxer which I will use:
“Simon’s acoustic guitar tracks are exquisitely detailed… Set upon the implacable heartbeat of the kick drum, they dance and flutter like solemn butterflies. Very few major artists could get away with the opening line to this song, but Simon’s delivery not only suspends mundane reality, it welcomes the listener into a story so matter-of-factly that one simply assumes its authenticity. Garfunkel’s intimate, intuitive harmony is so finely crafted and performed that it’s nearly transparent; like the guitars, it focuses attention on the song, rather than itself. The inclusion of the bass harmonica compliments and emphasizes the narrative so well, that it achieves an aura of inevitability. It is nearly impossible to imagine the song without it.
Then one comes across that ephemeral guitar solo. Because the guitarist uses the volume knob or foot pedal to allow the notes to swell into being, the solo appears to glide into and out of awareness; a ghost moving serenely through the mist.

Simon stated, in a long-ago interview, that he was initially opposed to an extended ending for this song. At that time, Hey Jude had just recently taken that concept to the limits of pop utility (and then some!)and he didn’t want to appear to be contrived. Fortunately, Garfunkel and producer Roy Halee convinced him otherwise. And so it is, that after one of Simon’s most profoundly moving verses (listen to the restrained delivery on the last quatrain…..it HURTS), we are treated to layer upon layer of sonic textures, opening upon some facet of the many emotions implicit in the song. Simon DID prove his instincts were correct when, at the very end, everything drops out, save the acoustic guitars and a brief, haunting voice that seems to be singing to itself.”

NOT SHY question

The title song of Simon and Garfunkel’s Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme is Scarborough Fair/Canticle.

I happen to catch the song Magnet and Steel by Walter Egan at my bank, which is also a Starbucks You can LISTEN to it HERE. The backstory: Stevie Nicks sang on this track, and provided inspiration for the lyrics.

I’m a sucker for albums that have a title song but isn’t the title of the album. The album title is Not Shy, a reference in the song. “With you, I’m not shy.”

In Kill to Get Crimson by Mark Knopfler, the lyrics of Let It All Go include “I’d kill to get crimson on this palette knife.”

The title song of Simon and Garfunkel’s Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme is Scarborough Fair/Canticle. Negotiations and Love Songs, and Shining Like A National Guitar are collections of Paul Simon’s songs. The titles are taken from lines in the songs Train in the Distance and Graceland, respectively.

And of course, Nevermind by Nirvana is in reference to a word/words? in Smells Like Teen Spirit. (Oh, speaking of that song, a cover by 2 Cellos.)

Got any other examples of lines of songs that provide the title of an album?

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