Paul Simon?

[The Nal]

Would love to see this also, especially with Art.

Unable to go to Glastonbury this year, would be gutted if he played and I wasn't there. Of all the acts I've seen there, admittedly only the last years S & G would have been the one I would have been most excited about. I am on holiday when he plays in Manchester. May have to go to Birmingham to see him. Am tempted by the thought of a tour with them both next year though. I am sure tickets this will be expensive ( but worth it). Now City are out of the Europa League I won't have to fund a trip to Dublin so maybe?

Mardy, slightly off topic, there was a thread a month or so ago about artists not really welcome at Glastonbury ethically and you mentioned Paul Simon was on the anti-apartheid black list, I tried reading up about this, but couldn't find out why? Was he deemed to have exploited black South African musicians via Graceland, did he play Sun City? Any explanations. Judging from this thread he would certainly seem to be welcome by the majority on here.

Edited March 23, 2011 by The Nal

[gorgeousgeorge]

Saved yourself a f**king fortune there mate.

The controversy as far as I know, was that he used African base tracks, put his own buzz on it, and then released it as "Paul Simon". Kinda like what Jimmy Page did with the blues.

Anyone know anything different? I'm not aware of any exploitation or anything......

[p.pete]

Neil - any news at your end?

[stutheblue]

Thanks for the replies, but for me the Graceland album and concert in Zimbabwe brought artists such as Hugh Masakela, Miriam Makela, Ladysmith etc to my attention. They were not hugely popular to a 15 year in Manchester at the time.

[Stu H]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKOSJWpnyPA

brilliant

[karlpowell]

Oh no , all this talk of simon and garfunkel has got on to WATERSHIP DOWN , my 6 and 7 year old want to watch it but it makes me cry.

Edited March 23, 2011 by karlpowell

[Shimmy]

This is good news - I hope it's far more that a rumour. I grew up listening to the soundtrack to the Graduate.

Yeah - I'd prefer him over CLODplay too.

[karlpowell]

dont want to end up a cartoon in a cartoon grave yard

[pouxin]

some roly-poly little bat-faced girl

[Stu H]

his lyrics are genius

[whatmidlifecrisis?]

his lyrics are genius

[Mardy]

I'm really surprised at the love for Graceland. I guess for my generation it was the one we heard 'new'. Still prefer the stuff from the early 70s though.

Edited March 23, 2011 by Mardy

[Guest blackcockerel]

[tevaburger]

Saw him play a gig in some random park 20 years ago this summer … Can't remember what town it was, but I remember he drew a pretty decent-sized crowd. Didn’t charge anything, free gig.

Meandered in halfway through the opener ‘The Obvious Child’, and got our spot for the evening just as he got into ‘The Boy in the Bubble’…just to the left and not too far back from the first video screen.

A bit worried that he might pick another famous urban park on the Sunday, in-between Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks instead.

[Martin Ashford]

OMG!! That would be bloody fabulous. Surely he'd be the big draw late Sunday on the Pyramid. Absolute class!

[Wooderson]

A bit worried that he might pick another famous urban park on the Sunday, in-between Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks instead.

[stutheblue]

I'm really surprised at the love for Graceland. I guess for my generation it was the one we heard 'new'. Still prefer the stuff from the early 70s though.

[Mardy]

Me too, just downloaded first 3 solo albums, have them on vinyl in the loft, along with all my late dad's lp's. He left me a lot, my football team, my politics and some great music - every S & G album, most of the Beatles, plenty of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. I would have loved to have gone to Glastonbury with him. In the three years I have been I have watched acts I know he would have loved to have seen but never had the money to do especially Joan Baez at my first in 2008 and Crosby, Stills and Nash and Bruce in 2009. Even stuff I got him into such as the Specials and Billy Bragg.

[StoneCircle]

Me too, just downloaded first 3 solo albums, have them on vinyl in the loft, along with all my late dad's lp's. He left me a lot, my football team, my politics and some great music - every S & G album, most of the Beatles, plenty of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. I would have loved to have gone to Glastonbury with him. In the three years I have been I have watched acts I know he would have loved to have seen but never had the money to do especially Joan Baez at my first in 2008 and Crosby, Stills and Nash and Bruce in 2009. Even stuff I got him into such as the Specials and Billy Bragg.

[tevaburger]

Me too, just downloaded first 3 solo albums, have them on vinyl in the loft, along with all my late dad's lp's. He left me a lot, my football team, my politics and some great music - every S & G album, most of the Beatles, plenty of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan. I would have loved to have gone to Glastonbury with him. In the three years I have been I have watched acts I know he would have loved to have seen but never had the money to do especially Joan Baez at my first in 2008 and Crosby, Stills and Nash and Bruce in 2009. Even stuff I got him into such as the Specials and Billy Bragg.

[eFestivals]

Neil - any news at your end?

we're digging - hopefully something will come thru.

[In transit]

Seems crazy that he is playing Hammersmith, I'd have assumed he'd have been at the O2 or similar.

Maybe I'm overestimating his popularity as Sunday legend slot instinctively struck me as not being big enough. This is awesome news though. Last year I went to see Gaslight Anthem on the Tuesday after Glastonbury and it cheered me right up.

[Wooderson]

The best thing Paul Simon ever did was his cameo in The Rutles.

I would file an appearance by him at Glasters right alongside that snoozefest from Neil Diamond a few years back. He's dull as f*cking dishwater. I heard people raving about Diamond before and after that show. It aged me. What I want is a show that makes me feel younger. Paul Simon is the embodiment of that Starbucks loving chino wearing babyboomer c*nt who wouldnt know rock n roll if it put his head through a table like Dalton in Roadhouse.

If Simon got Garfunkel to come out with him I can imagine there being a lot of (not unduly misplaced) 1960s nostalgia knocking around with the 5 or 6 standards they have. Some of their songs have a beautiful harmonic quality that would be pretty feckin' awesome I'll give you that.

But without him its just some geezer in a baseball cap singing in an insipid reedy voice about middle class angst and poxy relationships. I don't get it and I don't wanna get it!

Oh and "Graceland" is everything I hate about music. Exploitative, self indulgent bongwater.

[The Nal]

The best thing Paul Simon ever did was his cameo in The Rutles.

I would file an appearance by him at Glasters right alongside that snoozefest from Neil Diamond a few years back. He's dull as f*cking dishwater. I heard people raving about Diamond before and after that show. It aged me. What I want is a show that makes me feel younger. Paul Simon is the embodiment of that Starbucks loving chino wearing babyboomer c*nt who wouldnt know rock n roll if it put his head through a table like Dalton in Roadhouse.

If Simon got Garfunkel to come out with him I can imagine there being a lot of (not unduly misplaced) 1960s nostalgia knocking around with the 5 or 6 standards they have. Some of their songs have a beautiful harmonic quality that would be pretty feckin' awesome I'll give you that.

But without him its just some geezer in a baseball cap singing in an insipid reedy voice about middle class angst and poxy relationships. I don't get it and I don't wanna get it!

Oh and "Graceland" is everything I hate about music. Exploitative, self indulgent bongwater.

[Wooderson]

Funny, but quite a silly post all round. Grateful Dead moaning about musicians being self indulgent!