Paul Simon: One of the greatest songwriters of all time

“If you can be my bodyguard, I can be your long lost pal…”

It started with this song, but then he told us about him and Julio down by the schoolyard, and invited us to Graceland.

Up until that point, he was best known as part of an amazing duo that had broken up in the ‘70s.

However, the ‘80s were really when Paul Simon came into his own. Or at least that’s when I came to know him.

As it turns out, I had heard some of his solo stuff before, then a bunch of that amazing music he made with Art Garfunkel.

Paul Simon came across my newsfeed the other day, and instantly my mind went back to him singing with Chevy Chase in a pretty cool music video.

Call me Al
Because I really got into music in 1984, although I had been listening since about 1982, there were some big gaps in my knowledge. A large gap happened to be one of the best-selling duos of all time.

When I heard Paul Simon put out a new album, I quickly discovered he was the “Simon” in Simon and Garfunkel. However, I really couldn’t tell you off the top of my head any of the songs they recorded.

So, my introduction to Paul Simon came in 1986, when he released the album “Graceland”, which I learned was actually his seventh studio album. The first single was called “You Can Call me Al”, and I liked it. Listening to various radio stations informed me Simon had been influenced by South African rhythms and “You Can Call me Al” definitely had that sound. What I remember most vividly was the music video. Chevy Chase, who is a foot taller than Paul Simon and towers over him, lip syncs Paul Simon while Paul Simon lip syncs the background vocals.

“You Can Call me Al” went all the way to number 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Graceland
The album also produced a number of other great singles that I recall vividly, although they didn’t seem to chart that well.

The next single was the title track “Graceland”, which peaked at number 81 on the Billboard Hot 100. That was followed by “Boy in the Bubble”, which went to number 86, and “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” which did not even chart.

However, in 1987 “Graceland” won the Grammy for Album of the Year and earned Simon a Grammy nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. In 1988, the single “Graceland” won Simon the Grammy for Record of the Year and a nomination for Song of the Year. Wikipedia reveals it was the lowest-charting song on any of the world music charts to win Record of the Year until 2009.

History lesson
When I was still on the farm, I think after my first year of university, there was this show on TV that was counting down the greatest songs of all time. The top song sounded so beautiful, and I faintly recognized it, but couldn’t tell you what it was or who sang it.

It was “Bridge Over Troubled Water”.

That Fall, I went back to university and lived on the Fifth Floor of Kelsey Hall. When I was on 5K, I recall borrowing from my floormate Lorne Zaparniuk, his copy of Simon and Garfunkel’s Greatest Hits. That’s when I discovered the musical stylings of one of the greatest folk duos of all time. I even recorded “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on a tape I was making. Incidentally, “Deep Cuts the Knife” by Helix was another song I recorded that I had borrowed from Lorne.

Anyway, that greatest hits tape introduced me to Simon and Garfunkel’s songs, and made me realize I had heard others many times before.

Those songs included “The Sound of Silence”, which peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart; “Homeward Bound”, which reached number five; “I am a Rock”, which hit number three; “Scarborough Fair”, which peaked at number 11; “Mrs. Robinson”, which went all the way to number one; “The Boxer”, which reached number seven; “Bridge Over Troubled Water”, which peaked at number one; “Cecilia”, which hit number four; “America”, which went to number 97; and others.

In October of 1988, I went on a student leadership retreat, and recall singing “Cecilia” around the fire led by my newfound friend Michel Despins.

Solo sensation
Over time, I also came to know the rest of Paul Simon’s solo career, and some of the songs from those first six solo albums.

Some of those songs, dating back to 1965, were “Mother and Child Reunion”, which went all the way to number four on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart; “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”, which reached number 22; “Kodachrome”, which hit number two; “Loves Me Like a Rock”, which also peaked at number two; “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover”, which was Simon’s first solo number one single, and one of the most clever songs I have ever heard; “Slip Slidin’ Away”, which went all the way to number five; and “Late in the Evening”, which peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100.

Paul Simon retired from touring in 2018, but continues to record music. He released his latest album in 2023.

He has also twice been elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in 1990 as part of Simon and Garfunkel, and in 2001 as a solo performer.

Parting thoughts
Listening to some of Paul Simon’s songs, both with Art Garfunkel and by himself, has just reminded me of how great a songwriter and musician he truly is.

I have always believed folk music is about telling stories, and Paul Simon’s lyrics paint some great pictures, especially with Simon and Garfunkel. What is really interesting to me is how much success and how popular their music was in such a relatively short period of time. In fact, they only released 21 singles in total.

When Paul Simon went solo, he branched out into other types of music such as gospel, soul and reggae.

I read he was named one of the 100 People Who Shaped the World by “Time” magazine, and number eight on the list of 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time by “Rolling Stone” magazine.

He has definitely earned the honours.