Upon its release in August of 1986, I immediately purchased the album and listened to it from start to finish three times on that day. I was so ready for a new direction that would enable me to musically escape the mindset of mope rock, alternative rock, and REM which up until then defined my recently departed college music scene. This record was literally what the doctor ordered.
Paul Simon successfully incorporated an eclectic mix of world music genres to create a masterpiece which subsequently was added to the National Recording Registry as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically important”. Fugheddaboudit.
The dominant genre, however, and what the record is most noted for, is it’s bow to Sowetan pop music. I had been introduced to this genre thru Johnny Clegg and his band Juluka via their 1982 release “Scatterlings”. Anyone who loves bass and drum groove immediately falls in love with Sowetan pop music….including Mr. Simon.
The record opens with a tricked up accordion accompanied by a powerful war drum which lays down the groove for the unbelievable “Boy in the Bubble”. “It was a slow day, and the sun was beating on the soldiers by the side of the road. There was a bright light, a shattering of shop windows, the bomb in the baby carriage was wired to the radio”. The lyric, thru symbolism and metaphor looks at commercialization, exploitation, and modernization of African culture through the lens of Western culture. “These are the days of lasers in the Jungle..staccato signals of constant information, A loose affiliation of millionaires and billionaires” The brilliance of the lyric is how Simon so accurately describes the catalysts that will come to define the early part of the new millennium.
These were not dreamy, Ritalin laced lyrics of the mope rock and college crowd…the entire album is a face slap with real, descriptive lyrics that force you to evaluate your own self:
- “A man walks down the street . He says ‘Why am I soft in the middle, now when my life is so hard’ – You Can Call Me Al
- “You don’t feel you can love me but I feel you can” – Gumboots
- “Losing love is like a window to your heart. Everyone sees your blown apart…everyone sees the wind blow” – Graceland
- “She looked me over and I guess she thought I was all right, all right in a sort of limited way for an off night” – I Know What I Know
- “He’s a poor boy empty as a pocket, empty as a pocket with nothing to lose” – Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
- “Well, that was your mother and that was your father, before you was born dude, when life was great. You are the burden of my generation. I sure do love you, but let’s get that straight. – That Was Your Mother
- “Fat Charlie the Archangel sloped into the room. He said, I have no opinion about this and I have no opinion about that” – Crazy Love
The title track, “Graceland”, opens with a jangly and jaunty acoustic guitar which is accentuated by a haunting electric guitar riff with just a taste of reverb and wah-wah to stir Scotty Moore. “The Mississippi Delta was shining like a national guitar…” Damn straight it was. Simon’s winsome lyric takes the listener thru a father-son road trip to Elvis’ estate, which morphs into the spiritual yearning of “I believe we all will be received in Graceland”.
Another outstanding and memorable track is “Under African Skies” which Simon duets with Linda Ronstadt. Like Stevie Nicks, Linda Ronstadt’s voice pairs so well on duets, and with Simon, it’s like a sweet Fonseca. It is a hummable hymn that effortlessly transitions into a power pop chorus. The tribal drums and slick bass line make it distinctly African. This is Simon at his commercial best.
The album was released to some controversy given the sanctions against South Africa’s apartheid regime which Simon was accused of transgressing. Much of it was overblown, taken out of context, and/or misconstrued…judgement journalism of the worst kind. Simon defied the critics, paid 3x’s union wage, and gave song writing credit to contributing band members so they could participate in the royalties.
I saw Simon perform the album at Radio City Music Hall in April of 1987 and to this day, it ranks as one of the best shows I’ve seen….but with a musical score like this, even the mope rockers would have gleefully grooved a few doors down to grab a Reuben at Lindy’s after the show.