Track Listing
DISC 1:
1. Mother and Child Reunion
2. Loves Me Like a Rock
3. Me and Julio Down by the School Yard
4. Duncan
5. Kodachrome
6. 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover
7. Slip Slidin' Away
8. Gone at Last - (with Phoebe Snow & The Jessy Dixon Singers)
9. Something So Right
10. Late in the Evening
11. Hearts and Bones
12. Take Me to the Mardi Gras
13. That Was Your Mother
14. American Tune
15. Peace Like a River
16. Stranded in a Limousine
17. Train in the Distance
18. Late Great Johnny Ace, The
19. Still Crazy After All These Years
DISC 2:
1. Graceland
2. Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes - (African Languages)
3. Boy in the Bubble, The
4. You Can Call Me Al
5. Under African Skies
6. Obvious Child, The
7. Born at the Right Time
8. Coo, Cool River, The
9. Spirit Voices
10. Adios Hermanos
11. Born in Puerto Rico
12. Quality
13. Darling Lorraine
14. Hurricane Eye
15. Father and Daughter
16. Outrageous
17. Wartime Prayers
| Details | | Playing Time: | 148 min. | | Producer: | Paul Simon, Phil Ramone, Roy Halee, Russ Titelaman | | Distributor: | WEA (Distributor) | | Recording Type: | Studio | | Recording Mode: | Stereo | | SPAR Code: | n/a |
Album Notes
Personnel: Cissy Houston, Deirde Tuck, The Dixie Hummingbirds, Renelle Stafford, Von Eva Sims (vocals); Hucks Brown, Wallace Wilson, David Spinozza, Los Incas (guitar); Hugh McCraken, Jimmy Johnson , John Tropea, Pete Carr (electric guitar); Charango (flute); Larry Knechtel (piano); Neville Hinds, Ken Asher (organ); Russel George, David Hood, Jackie Jackson (bass guitar); Roger Hawkins, Steve Gadd, Winston Grennan (drums); Airto Moreira, Ralph McDonald, Denzil Laing (percussion); Patti Austin, Valerie Simpson, Phoebe Snow (background vocals).
Additional personnel: Phoebe Snow & The Jessy Dixon Singers.
Recording information: 1972 - 2006.
Are 36 songs enough to truly encompass the "essential" items in the catalog of a master craftsman like Paul Simon? Probably not, but it's a healthy dose, and a damned fine anthology regardless. Roughly chronological in sequence, THE ESSENTIAL PAUL SIMON focuses exclusively on the folk-rock hero's post-Garfunkel days, and follows his maturation as a songwriter and record-maker. In retrospect, it quickly becomes apparent that the cross-genre concoctions of his celebrated 1986 album, GRACELAND, had been part of his modus operandi all along: see the reggae lilt of "Mother and Child Reunion," the salsa flavor of "Late in the Evening," and the gospel glow of "Loves Me Like a Rock." Whatever the musical mode, every song on this satisfying collection is powered by Simon's rocket-science harmonic know-how and vivid poetic imagery, making this a powerful musical snapshot of an artist constantly in motion.
Editorial Reviews
4 stars out of 5 -- Several fine songs from 2006's SURPRISE prove that Simon still remains a master of his craft.
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