Graceland
🎵 The story of Graceland by Paul Simon
I love origin stories. I also love music. This week we’re going to listen to the origin story of a pretty special one, as told by the original artist. Let’s jump in.
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🎙 The Story
I am going to turn this over to Paul Simon to tell the story in his own words. The story is 9m37s but totally worth it to hear how this track came together with a cast of musicians. Really. If you’re a non-musician like me, it’s utterly fascinating to hear how the creative process unfolded.
Go ahead and get yourself a cup of tea or coffee and find a comfy chair to settle into before you start it. I’ll wait.
Okay, drink in hand? Good. Now tap play.
I am also embedding the YouTube link for those that may not have a Spotify account to ensure everyone can hear the entire 9m37s story as told by Paul Simon.
Paul Simon set off for South Africa and recorded five tracks there. Graceland, Paul Simon says, is a “a very good example of a how a collaboration works even when you’re not aware it’s occurring.”
“In South Africa, we had no opportunity,” recalled saxophonist Barney Rachabane in 2012, “You could have dreams, but they never come true. It really destroys you. But Graceland opened my eyes and set a tone of hope in my life.” (source)
The interplay between African rhythms and American country sounds on the album and this track is really magical.
Paul Simon recalls the drums being like a traveling rhythm in country music. He references early 1950s Sun Records music. Paul Simon is a big Sun Records fan.
“Track has a beautiful emptiness to it.” - Paul Simon
When he returned home, he was working on the track and kept singing Graceland as a placeholder. (He had been in South Africa in February or March and was in the American South in May to record the zydeco tracks). He asked himself:
“What’s Graceland got to do with South Africa, right? That’s got to go.”
But what was he going to replace it with?
“I don’t know, maybe I’m supposed to go to Graceland. I’ve never been…”
And so he went on a trip to see what he was writing about.
🎵 The song
Now that you have heard how the song came together, here is the finished product:
How does it sound to you?
It’s one of my favorite Paul Simon tunes. Its opening lines paint such a vivid picture.
The Mississippi Delta
Was shining like a national guitar
I am following the river
Down the highway
Through the cradle of the Civil War
-Paul Simon (source)
🎵 The documentary
In 2012, Joe Berlinger directed a documentary, Paul Simon - Under African Skies, that explored the journey of the Graceland album. Here is the trailer (2m27s).
Go deeper:
Paul Simon’s Amazing Graceland Tour (Rolling Stone, 1987)
Paul Simon on Making ‘Graceland’ (NPR, 2012)
Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’: 10 Things You Didn’t Know (Rolling Stone, 2016)
😂 The bonus
I love the witty word play in another track on this album, You Can Call Me Al, which includes these lyrics:
A man walks down the street
He says, "Why am I soft in the middle, now?
Why am I soft in the middle?
The rest of my life is so hard
I need a photo-opportunity
I want a shot at redemption
-Paul Simon (source)
What I never knew until doing a little background reading for this issue was the source of the song’s title. It’s pretty funny:
While the irresistible riff came flowing out of Ray Phiri’s guitar one day in Ovation Studios, the inscrutable lyrics of “You Can Call Me Al” stemmed from an incident that took place at a party Simon had attended years before with his then-wife, Peggy Harper. During the evening they had chatted with fellow guest Pierre Boulez, the French composer and conductor. As Boulez prepared to make his exit, he tapped Simon on the shoulder. “Sorry I have to leave, Al,” he said with utmost civility. “And give my best to Betty.”
Simon found the faux pas extremely funny. “Ever since then, Peggy would call me Al, and I would call her Betty,” he said years later during a seminar at Rollins College. “It became a running joke.” When penning lyrics for Phiri’s riff back in Montauk, he remembered the moment. (source)
Ah, to be a songwriter and incorporate sounds and snippets from all over your life! Here’s the track for your enjoyment. I guarantee your toes will be tapping before long.
I hope you have an extra bounce in your step this weekend.
Be well,
-Bryce
Thanks so much for this, Bryce! xo