Paul Simon:
`Mainstream popular
music is mostly about a
very young demographic.
But mainstream popular
music isn't the whole
world."
albums were," he says. "I
don't really know, to tell you
the truth. It's not the kind of
question I ask myself.
"Because I don't have
those feelings; I don't think
anything I do is bold. I just
get an idea that interests me.
And if the idea draws upon
another culture, well, so be
it. And that's the way it had
been over the past 15 years,
almost, since Graceland. And
this is now really back to
songwriting and melody and
rhythm, and [me] playing
more guitar."
The role of Simon's band
was extremely important in
making his new album.
He usually works mostly on
his own to write and hone his songs before entering the record-
ing studio. But for You're the One he interacted almost from the
start with the members of his talent-rich band, which features
such veteran Simon collaborators as drummer Steve Gadd and
guitarist Vincent Nguini and such relative newcomers as percus-
sionist Jamey Haddad and multi-instrumentalist Mark Stewart.
"It was a band that started this album," Simon said. "I had
the sound of a band in my head and went looking for it, to
find the players to make up that band. And once I had that
sound, [the goal] was to play for the fun of it, and we did.
"The music started to evolve from that, and had its own
quality And it also sounded a lot like the other albums I've
done. It had both qualities, and that felt pretty comfortable.
The process was one of the most enjoyable albums I've made
and, actually, one of the quickest, even though I started two
years ago. With one or two exceptions, all the lyrics came light-
ning-like for me, in a day or two. That's very fast, and consider-
ably faster than the pace of Graceland or Rhythm of the Stints."
Simon has long preferred to let his songs speak for them-
selves, so that listeners can have their own interpretations.
But he's happy to discuss the musical ingredients of his
work, the distinctive mix of Buddy Holly-inspired guitar work
and polyrhythmic Afro-Cuban drumming that opens "Old,"
a wry song [and the first single] from his new album.
"That guitar part came first and it sounded like Buddy
Holly, and that's why I started to sing about [Holly's] 'Peggy
Sue,"' Simon explained. "That was the jump-off point. The
first line is so important in a song. And I always try and make
the first line as if it were two lines that were connected, but
then going at an angle, going off in the distance at some kind
of angle, the light of the angle
"You open up [a song] in a certain way, and say, 'That's
interesting, but I don't really know how it ends.' Now if you
started with the first line and knew how it would end, you'd be
in trouble, because then how would you hold your interest?
"That's very important, that whole sense of How do you
keep interest? How do I personally keep my interest, and keep
from being bored and boring others?"
.
Simon's constant quest for surprise and originality is com-
mendable.
But, sadly, it's all too rare in this age of talent-challenged
teen-pop groups, dial-a-rant rap-rockers and all-image/no-
content pap-pop confectioners. And that should be a serious
concern for any veteran musician — be it Joni Mitchell, Don
Henley, Tracy Chapman or Simon himself — who refuses to
pander to the fleeting attention spans and superficial aesthet-
ics fostered by MTV and myopic pop radio programmers.
"I sort of preceded my contemporaries in that category,
since no one played me on the radio for a long time. They
didn't even play Graceland that much on radio," Simon said.
"I think about it, and here's what I think: Mainstream pop-
ular music is mostly about a very young demographic. But
mainstream popular music isn't the whole world. There's a lot
of music going on in the world that's very, very interesting,
and it's going on all over the world. It's not withering at all.
"I know a lot of musicians who are extraordinary players and
composers, and they are not selling the amount of records that
the top-of-the-chart artists are. But they're working at getting
better, and the impact they are having is probably more power-
ful than whoever the latest teen act is, simply because, well,
how powerfully can you have an impact on a 7- or 8-year-old?"
Perhaps thinking of his own young children, Simon laugh-
ingly corrected himself
"Well, as I say that, I think, pretty powerful," he continued.
"But on another level, for more mature listeners, there's plenty
of music that is nourishing enough. So for artists who were
once on the charts — and now it's tough to get radio-airplay
and maybe you won't be on top of the charts — if that's the
case, you have to think: Is that what I'm really doing?
"Am I in the top-of-the-charts business, or am I in it for the
music? If you're at top of charts, and in it for music, then it's
both. But if the chart success goes away, I don't think, 'This is
terrible.' I'm in it for the music. I'm not interested in being
No. 1 and repeating myself
"I'm only interested in what I like. I can't help it. It's nice to
have a hit, but as far as the work goes, it doesn't matter if it's a
hit. How others feel about your work is more what counts.
That is what counts. That's the only concern: Is the work
good? You can't be distracted by the fact it was 5 million peo-
ple, and now its 500,000 [that buy your albums]. The record
company might be, but the artist shouldn't.
"It's the journey that's important. The record charts and radio
[airplay] are a big distraction. On the other hand, we're busy
human beings and we've got to get distracted, otherwise we
don't know what to do with ourselves. I like to be part of an
audience, too, and to be surprised. I don't want to know every-
thing and plot everything out, not at this point in my life.
"I'm just sort of like everybody else in my generation, I guess,
just feeling their way. And I have a full plate in front of me." 0
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The Grammy Awards airs 8-11 p.m. Wednesday, Feb.
21, on CBS. As part of the festivities surrounding the
43rd annual Grammy Awards, Paul Simon will be
honored for his artistic and philanthropic achievements
as the MusiCares Person of the Year. The event, a
fund-raiser for the Musicians Financial Assistance
Program that aids musicians in times of financial, med-
ical and personal need, will feature toasts and perform-
ances by dozens of celebrities, including Simon's wife
Edie Brickell. It airs live 9-11 p.m. Monday, Feb. 19,
on QVC. Check your local listings. For a complete list
of Grammy nominees, go to our Web site at
www.detroitjewishnews.com .
2/16
2001
79