Featured In
ALBUMSeven PsalmsPaul Simon
Albums by Paul Simon
ALBUMSeven PsalmsPaul Simon
ALBUMIn the Blue LightPaul Simon
ALBUMGraceland - The RemixesPaul Simon
ALBUMStranger To Stranger (Deluxe Edition)Paul Simon
ALBUMSo Beautiful or So WhatPaul Simon
ALBUMSurprisePaul Simon
ALBUMYou're the One (Bonus Tracks Edition)Paul Simon
ALBUMSongs from The Capeman (Bonus Tracks Edition)Paul Simon
ALBUMThe Rhythm of the Saints (Bonus Tracks Edition)Paul Simon
ALBUMGracelandPaul Simon
Paul Simon's Popular Music Videos
You Can Call Me Al
Paul Simon
Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard
Paul Simon
Graceland (from The Concert in Hyde Park)
Paul Simon
Father and Daughter
Paul Simon
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) [Live]
Paul Simon
Kodachrome (from The Concert in Hyde Park)
Paul Simon
The Boxer (with Jerry Douglas) [from The Concert in Hyde Park]
Paul Simon
Diamonds On the Soles of Her Shoes
Paul Simon
Mother and Child Reunion (from The Concert in Hyde Park)
Paul Simon
Fast Car (feat. Paul Simon)
Wyclef Jean
Artist Playlists
Paul Simon Essentials
He fused ‘60s angst with worldly influence to change the course of American music.
Paul Simon: Deep Cuts
His percussive pop and wry tales prove he's no one-trick pony.
Paul Simon: The Songwriters
The great American songwriter has earned himself a wide pantheon of admirers.
Inspired by Paul Simon
Modern pop mavens draw on his harmonies and global palette.
Paul Simon: Influences
The folk, pop, and Latin rhythms that made the man.
Artist Biography
There are musical storytellers—and then there’s the low-key but wildly ambitious Paul Simon, who copyrighted his first song with partner Art Garfunkel when they were in their early teens. Born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1941, Simon mixed the mass appeal of ’50s rock ’n’ roll with the introspection of the singer/songwriter era, opening up a universe of emotional terrain previously unexplored in popular music. (Just listen to the playful poetry of 1968’s “Mrs. Robinson” or the existential ache of “The Sound of Silence”—songs you could whistle along to, or subject to rigorous literary analysis.) Though he was originally associated with folk, Simon is a remarkably eclectic artist, drawing variously on gospel and jazz, Brazilian batucada, and, perhaps most famously, South African township music. His landmark 1986 album, Graceland, helped build a bridge for his collaborators Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Hugh Masekela, and Miriam Makeba during the height of apartheid. For as uplifting as his music can be (think: the chorus chant of “Cecilia,” the rocksteady of “Mother and Child Reunion,” and the bright horns of “You Can Call Me Al”), at its heart is a profound bittersweetness. Embarking on his farewell tour in 2018, Simon celebrates an inimitable career spent mining themes of aging, separation, and loss with a muted reserve, suggesting that all things—good and bad—do pass.
Hometown
Newark, NJ, United States
Genre
Pop