Venue
Venue
Venue
Venue
Venue
Venue
Venue
Venue
A beloved folk rock singer-songwriter who was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, Paul Simon has become one of the most respected songwriters in rock music. He grew up in Queens, New York and developed an interest in baseball and music at an early age. Along with childhood friend Art Garfunkel, they formed Simon & Garfunkel in 1964 and scored a deal with Columbia Records, releasing their debut Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. They later won ten Grammy Awards and put out four more studio albums including 1966’s Sounds of Silence and 1970’s Bridge Over Troubled Water before parting ways that year. Simon’s self-titled solo album came out in 1972, instilling Latin and reggae flavors into his soft rock in its singles "Mother and Child Reunion" and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard". 1973’s pop-folk album There Goes Rhymin’ Simon incorporated gospel and R&B and its follow-up, 1975’s Still Crazy After All These Years, reached number one on the Billboard charts and had four Top 40 hits including "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover" and "My Little Town" with vocals from Garfunkel. In 1986, Simon released his seventh studio album Graceland, expanding his musical palette by infusing African textures and collaborating with South African musicians including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, which went on to sell over 5 million copies in the U.S. and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. His Brazilian music-tinged The Rhythm of the Saints was released in 1990, achieving commercial and critical success, as well as introducing world music to a broader audience. His latest album, the acclaimed 2011’s So Beautiful or So What was touted as one of the year’s best. He has toured successfully through the years, as a solo artist as well as jaunts with both Bob Dylan and Sting, selling out concerts to ticket holders across the globe.
Set 1: Seven Psalms
Set 2: Hits and Deep Cuts
Encore
Encore 2
Encore
Encore
Given the catalogue of hits Paul has to draw on it was mystifying why he would play so much new material and deep tracks that many had never heard. Didn’t make for a very interesting or enjoyable show.
It was a nice quiet show. The band was amazing. It would have been nice to take a picture though.
A quiet symphony perfectly describes the experience of this show. What a beautiful night listening to a legend
That is the coolest old man I have ever seen in my entire life.
This was the most incredible thing I’ve ever seen. Paul had an amazing stage presence and performed perfectly. His playing was incredibly impressive and I loved every song. First he played seven psalms which I’ve only heard about 3 times. The first time I heard the studio recordings I thought they were good but hearing them live was crazy. I wish they would sell a live album of him performing it because I loved the live performance more than the studio recordings. Especially my professional opinion! The sound of the live performance was SO GOOD!!!! I would pay to see this 50x over. Was amazing! There was a little girl in the row next to me who was about 7. She was engaged and interested the entire time.
I am 21 years old and dragged my 40 year old mother who is NOT a Paul Simon fan to this concert. It was the best concert ever and I would buy tickets to every performance if I could. I am so serious about that. The concert started out with his Seven Psalms which were so interesting. My mom was not a fan. She compared it to a if a fairy garden had a scary jug band. I LOVED IT THOUGH! I thought the music was so cool and the performance of it was truly amazing. He made only one mistake during one of the psalms. Wasn’t noticeable at all unless you really knew the material though. Then we had a brief intermission. So my mother and I explored the venue. THE RYMAN IS AWESOME!!!! Paul came back on and played several hits and a couple of deep cuts. In between the songs Paul was very comfortable with the audience and had us all laughing. He played wonderfully and sang very very well. He played Homeward Bound and upon after receiving applause told us he would tell Artie that we liked it. Naturally, we laughed. He the ASSURED US he was actually going to tell him we liked it. I still wonder if he will actually tell him. He also played Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard. Which is HILARIOUS at the Ryman as it was previously a church. Paul had us all singing about breaking the law and going to jail in a church. I love that for him. He had an amazing band too. My moms favorite was the bass player from the original Graceland recordings. He was very fun to watch and is obviously living his best life. He was very very good!!! My mom said there was a point in one of the songs where Paul had to come in after him but really could not hear when exactly he was supposed to so he had to work entirely off of visual cues. The man looked at Paul when he was supposed to come in and then Paul would play. He did so seamlessly because Paul never missed a beat. There were also two guitarist on stage right which were really incredible. When he came back on for an encore the audience was shouting songs for him to sing. He responded by saying that he knew people were saying things but he couldn’t really hear what they were saying but the entire point was irrelevant because they were just going to play what they had planned to play anyway. He played two more songs then was left all alone on stage to play the final song The Sound of Silence. His performance was PERFECT. I’ve seen many recordings of him playing this song from several different years and this was by far the best arrangement. The song moved my mom to tears. Keep in mind she is not a Paul Simon fan. When I told her I wanted to see Paul Simon she thought he was some actor guy and had no idea he was the same guy from Simon and Garfunkel. I cried when he left. This was the best concert ever. I LOVED every song and Paul did an incredible job as always. My favorite part was every time Paul was on stage. I wish I could come to every night. I am dead serious. I would come to every show. 50000000/5 stars from me.
5 stars for Paul Simon. 0 stars for his sound crew he maybe forgot to turn on the speakers.
I have been fortunate to see Paul Simon perform several times. Often, he has toured with other noted performers such as Brian Wilson, Sting and of course, Art Garfunkel. Each was memorable in a special way. This tour was special because it truly featured Paul, himself. Seeing the entirety of Seven Psalms performed as one set was reminiscent of seeing Pink Floyd play the entirety of Wish You Were Here as one song. It tells the listener a story that is more vibrant as a whole. Perhaps the highlight for me was seeing Paul alone at the edge of the stage perform Bridge Over Troubled Water as the final encore.
What a delight to see this musical genius perform.
My husband is a die-hard Paul Simon fan and has seen his concerts multiple times over the years. He thought this was his best concert ever. The music was great, his voice was good, and his song choice selection was varied. Would see him again!
