Born On This Day- October 13th... Singer/Songwriter Paul Simon

He has been a major musical force in my life for 45 years! I purchased,  listened to, played, & imitated all songs of the Simon & Garfunkel catalogue starting in 1964. At 11 years old, I sang, in my sweet boy alto, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme at my grade school talent show, accompanied by my own plucky guitar (a feat never to be repeated… I would insist on piano accompaniment for the rest of my life as a vocalist). His music continues to speak to me on a personal level to this day.

My favorite solo album by Paul Simon is a career low for him- Hearts & Bones (1980). This album was a very personal response to the breakup with his then-wife Carrie Fisher. The title track refers to the traveling of "one and one-half wandering Jews", but is also about love & loss in general. The album also contains one of the few songs that I can think of on the subject of numbers (& love) — When Numbers Get Serious, which evokes the beginnings of the Information Age. Also unusual is Think Too Much, actually 2 different songs with the same title & chorus line, dealing generally with the act of thinking (& love). The beautiful Train In The Distance is haunting. I have dreamed this song in the middle of my sleep while I hear the mournful train whistle of the trains near my home in Portland. My favortite track is a surreal song about the surrealist artist René Magritte & his wife Georgette, & suggests that they secretly admired the music of such early doo-wop artists as The Penguins, The Moonglows, The Orioles, & The Five Satins. The title derives from a caption to a photograph of the Magrittes, Rene and Georgette Magritte With Their Dog During the War. Simon changed "During" to "After" as it sounded better for the song lyric. The closing track is The Late Great Johnny Ace, about the recent murder of John Lennon.

I am dazzled by the sounds from Africa on Graceland & Brazil on Rhythm Of The Saints, but my all time favorite Paul Simon song, & there are so many amazing pieces by this prolific artist, is Something So Right. This song destroyes me on every listen & has been given powerful cover versions by other singers including my muse- Annie Lennox.

Paul Simon has 13 Grammy Awards, is a 2 time inductee in the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame, an Oscar winner,  A Kennedy Center Honor, & was named by time magazine as 1 of the "100 people who shaped the world."