PAUL SIMON

Pop/Art Song/Folk / Jazz Related Soundtracks • United States
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Paul Simon is one of the most successful and respected songwriters of the second half of the 20th century. Rising to fame in the mid-'60s, Simon's songs were mature and literate, but also melodically engaging, and spoke to the concerns and uncertainties of a generation. As the 1960s gave way to the '70s and '80s, Simon's work tended to focus on the personal rather than the larger world, but he also expanded his musical palette, and helped introduce many rock and pop fans to world music.

Paul Frederic Simon was born in Newark, New Jersey on October 13, 1941. His father, Louis Simon, was an educator who also led a small jazz combo, while his mother, Belle Simon, taught English; when Paul was a few months old, they moved from Newark to Queens, New York. Paul grew up with a passion for baseball and music, particularly jazz and folk, and as
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PAUL SIMON Discography

PAUL SIMON albums / top albums

PAUL SIMON The Paul Simon Song Book album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Paul Simon Song Book
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1965
PAUL SIMON Paul Simon (aka Mother And Child Reunion) album cover 4.25 | 2 ratings
Paul Simon (aka Mother And Child Reunion)
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1972
PAUL SIMON There Goes Rhymin' Simon album cover 4.50 | 1 ratings
There Goes Rhymin' Simon
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1973
PAUL SIMON Still Crazy After All These Years album cover 4.46 | 3 ratings
Still Crazy After All These Years
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1975
PAUL SIMON One-Trick Pony album cover 3.25 | 2 ratings
One-Trick Pony
Jazz Related Soundtracks 1980
PAUL SIMON Hearts And Bones album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
Hearts And Bones
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1983
PAUL SIMON Graceland album cover 4.10 | 5 ratings
Graceland
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1986
PAUL SIMON The Rhythm Of The Saints album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
The Rhythm Of The Saints
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1990
PAUL SIMON Songs From The Capeman album cover 1.00 | 1 ratings
Songs From The Capeman
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1997
PAUL SIMON You're The One album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
You're The One
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2000
PAUL SIMON Surprise album cover 1.50 | 1 ratings
Surprise
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2006
PAUL SIMON So Beautiful Or So What album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
So Beautiful Or So What
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2011
PAUL SIMON In The Blue Light album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
In The Blue Light
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2018
PAUL SIMON Seven Psalms album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Seven Psalms
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2023

PAUL SIMON EPs & splits

PAUL SIMON live albums

PAUL SIMON Live Rhymin' album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
Live Rhymin'
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1974
PAUL SIMON Paul Simon's Concert In The Park album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
Paul Simon's Concert In The Park
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1991
PAUL SIMON Complete Unplugged album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Complete Unplugged
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2017
PAUL SIMON The Concert in Hyde Park album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Concert in Hyde Park
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2017

PAUL SIMON demos, promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs)

PAUL SIMON re-issues & compilations

PAUL SIMON Collected Works album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Collected Works
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1981
PAUL SIMON Negotiations And Love Songs (1971-1986) album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
Negotiations And Love Songs (1971-1986)
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1988
PAUL SIMON Paul Simon 1964/1993 album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
Paul Simon 1964/1993
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1993
PAUL SIMON Play Me A Sad Song album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Play Me A Sad Song
Pop/Art Song/Folk 1993
PAUL SIMON Over the Bridge of Time: A Paul Simon Retrospective (1964-2011) album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
Over the Bridge of Time: A Paul Simon Retrospective (1964-2011)
Pop/Art Song/Folk 2013

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PAUL SIMON movies (DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS)

PAUL SIMON Reviews

PAUL SIMON Still Crazy After All These Years

Album · 1975 · Pop/Art Song/Folk
Cover art Buy this album from MMA partners
Matti P
If anyone, PAUL SIMON is an artist who needs no introduction -- but surprisingly he has no reviews here yet! Billboard chart topper Still Crazy After All These Years was his third solo album after the extremely succesful Simon & Garfunkel partnership (the 1965 debut The Paul Simon Songbook is usually forgotten, partly because most of its songs later became known as S&G songs). Still Crazy also was his most succesful and critically acclaimed solo album until the milestone pop classic Graceland (1986); it won two Grammy Awards, Album Of The Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

My own relationship with Simon's solo output began with compilations rather than individual albums, so I'm not very good remembering the source albums for individual songs of the 70's, but looking at the track lists, this album is the real winner for me, too. It contains four US Top 40 hits, and apart from the rollicking and Gospel-flavoured 'Gone at Last' which I'm not so fond of, all of them would enter my own Best Of Paul Simon list. The title track about a haphazard meeting of an old lover is truly charming. Dreamily laid-back and yet very passionate, with a sophisticated arrangement featuring Michael Brecker's a brilliant saxophone solo.

The biggest hit (No. 1 in the US) was '50 Ways to Leave Your Lover' where the failed affair melancholy is cleverly contrasted with a catchy chorus of amusing rhymes ("Hop on the bus, Gus", "Drop off the key, Lee", etc.). And No. 9 hit 'My Little Town' was a nostalgic re-union of Simon & Garfunkel.

The rest of the album also has great songwriting. 'I Do It for Your Love' is a peaceful ballad in the vein of the title song, admittedly minor in comparison but too forgotten, for it has some really beautiful melodies in it. The hit-filled first side ends with another forgotten little gem, 'Night Game'. Even Toots Thielemans' harmonica solo is frail enough not to ruin the exceptional nocturnal delicacy.

I'm personally fond of the slow and moody 'Some Folks Lives Roll Easy' and its arrangement featuring romantic strings. 'Have a Good Time' was the album's only song I now had no clear memory of. Well, it is pretty mediocre and forgettable, and I'm not great friends with the sharp horns. 'You're Kind' is a small and ironic song about a brief affair, and my second least fave. The last song 'Silent Eyes' has Gospel-oriented passion almost comparable to 'Bridge Over Troubled Water'. Leon Pendarvis on piano is excellent, and so is Paul Simon himself on vocals backed by a Gospel choir. A bit cheesy perhaps, but beautiful.

This finely produced album is a definitive classic and a must in Paul Simon's impressive body of work, counting also Simon & Garfunkel.

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