Graceland by Paul Simon (1986)

I've always struggled with this album. It is often heralded as a classic and the pinnacle of Paul Simon's long and highly distinguished career. This is saying a lot for someone who, in Simon & Garfunkel and solo, became known for making perfect slices of Americana in musical form. Songs like 'Mrs. Robinson', 'The Sound of Silence', 'The Boxer, and 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' are synonymous with America itself, in the same way that Elvis Presley, or the Marlboro Man, or John Wayne, has become. So, when you're going into this record knowing that this is considered the best thing that man has ever done, well, it sets a high bar.

At the time of this album's release, Simon's career was faltering. He'd put out albums with increasingly lacklustre sales and critical responses, but somehow during this time he was made hip to the music of South Africa, eventually leading to a desire to partner up with the musicians he'd been listening to in their native land. At this time, there was a boycott on South Africa due to it's policy of Apartheid and racial segregation but, showing a rather large set of brass balls on the matter, Simon went anyway. This move was criticized quite heavily at the time but I would argue that collaborating with the very people being oppressed by this movement was a quite brave and revolutionary step - flying in the face of an altogether horrendous regime of the time. 

So why have I struggled with it? Well the first few listens I just did not get it. As we know, Paul Simon largely deals with the loves and lives of the American people, usually in minute detail, and here he puts together two ideas that completely should not work - the inner workings of average American life and the music of South Africa. A strange brew to be sure, and one that just seemed to fly over my head. However, in recently re-visiting this album I have learned to appreciate it more. Maybe it's middle age creeping in, who knows, but managing to blend the vocal stylings of The Gaza Sisters with lyrics about meeting girls at 'the cinematographers party' is no mean feat and a very bold move, considering he was coming off the back off of the biggest artistic and commercial flop of his career. It is this and a combination of great musical ability that has begun to grow on me. In the words of Morpheus, I feel I might be "starting to believe". 

'The Boy In The Bubble' sets the tone immediately. It is an uptempo number commenting, poignantly as ever, on the times in which these songs were written. The lyrics "The way the camera follows us in slo-mo, the way we look to us all" sound eerily prophetic given where we are today. In terms of African influence, this dips the toe-in slowly, allowing us whiteys to ease our way into this new sound being brought forth. Title track 'Graceland' takes a step further into African influence and is really the perfect example of Americana meets Africa. He is, after all, singing about going on a pilgrimage to the home of the King. But the music behind it conjures up images of sunrises over safari landscapes more than the muddy waters of Memphis. 

The next stretch of tracks really start to take this album to another level and seem to suddenly burst forth with all the exuberance and joy you'd expect of someone having the time of their life collaborating with artists from another world breathing new life into your soul. 'I Know What I Know' is the afforementioned song featuring the Gaza Sisters and is positively joyous. This is followed by 'Gumboots' which thumps along, blasting us with delicious horn blasts for the chorus. You could be in Soweto or Greenwich Village at any moment. Then there is the classic 'Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes' which offers the first real contribution from Ladysmith Black Mambazo. They open the song with improvised harmonies that accompany Simon beautifully, leading us into the song proper - another joyful, horn led number. Then we go into one of the greatest songs of the 80s, 'You Can Call Me Al'. This will be most people's most familiar track and is quite simply just a brilliant song. When I used to hear this on the radio as a kid, it never struck me as a particularly African piece, but here in this suite of music, it sounds right in keeping with everything else. It also features the all-time lyric of "Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard". A timeless song and, still, the highlight of the album. 

This run of songs is so uplifting and sublime that it's almost impossible to sustain. Indeed 'Under African Skies' slows things a little and underwhelms, despite some nice melodies. But Ladysmith Black Mambazo reappear on the next song, an entirely accapella piece called "Homeless" which is probably the most jaw-dropping moment of the album and feels like a glimpse into why Paul Simon fell in love with South African music in the first place. 'Crazy Love, Vol II' picks the pace back up and that tempo continues through the next track 'That Was Your Mother', probably the only departure from the African vibe presented in general and by far my least favourite track on the album. It sounds like a Disney version of Louisiana Blues. Not good. Album closer 'All Around the World' goes fully-uptempo and that's that. 43 minutes that catapulted Paul Simon back into the upper echelons of the music game. Indeed the legacy of this album is that it quickly became the benchmark for artists looking to reinvent (or reinvigorate) themselves. It topped almost every 'album of the year' list in 1986 and continues to be considered one of the best albums of all time. 

I would not consider it as such. I used to rank this as the most over-rated album of all time. However, as mentioned earlier, it's tentacles have worked their way into my being over the past couple of months and, while I can appreciate it, and certainly appreciate that tracks 3-6 are particularly good, it still doesn't land in the same way for me as it does for apparently many others. For one, and this is a problem for most things created in the eighties in general, it sounds very much 'of it's time'. Secondly, the last three tracks of the album seem, to me at least, to just sort of plod along. After such a beautiful and unique song such as 'Homeless', things just seem to peter out. 

What most, if not all, classic albums seem to possess is that ability to transport you from everyday life and take you on a journey. For the most part, this album achieves that feat. It just doesn't quite hit the heights the entire time through, which I always find disappointing. Maybe more listens will change my opinion on this, after all I keep coming back for some reason, but I can't see a future where I will think 'That Was Your Mother' is a good song. Regardless, Paul Simon cares not for my opinion and nor should you. You should, of course, listen and make up your own mind, for I am certainly in the minority here. As a comeback album, very few have bettered it. As a showcase for the largely undiscovered music of South Africa, it works wonders. As a flawless suite of music, I just can't give it the billing that others have. Even though there are some classics on here. Maybe I should take Simon's own words to heart - "these are the days of miracle and wonder" - and enjoy myself more. Wouldn't be the first time that idea has been put forth, and won't be the last.