“Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” (“Graceland,” 1986) Oh, that opening. We may not know exactly what the mama pajama saw, but it really doesn’t matter. I listen and I imagine myself on a street corner in New York City watching this cast of characters go about their lives. “Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard” (“Paul Simon,” 1972) This jaunty little number, with its Brazilian percussion, does a really great job of evoking place. Use it as a starting point to build your own list – or check out “Paul Simon – The Concert in Hyde Park,” released earlier this month – and get ready for Friday’s show.ġ. The list is available on Spotify (search for “Carolyn Lamberson”). (Simon & Garfunkel fans will be happy to know that Simon has been playing some of those songs on this latest tour, including “America,” “The Boxer,” “The Sound of Silence,” and “Homeward Bound.”) And I kept it to Simon’s solo catalog – no “Bridge Over Troubled Waters,” “America” or “The Boxer,” songs he recorded with Art Garfunkel. (That’s hard to do with “Graceland,” so I picked three from it). I tried not to include more than two songs from any one album. I created a list of 12 songs – although it could easily be double that. Instead, I opted to go the Spotify playlist route. In the old days, I would have made her a mixtape of my favorite Simon tunes. Of all the songs on “Graceland” to recognize, it’s my least favorite. That last one struck a chord with my co-worker, and I shook my head.
“ ‘50 Ways to Leave Your Lover’? ‘You Can Call Me Al’?” “Surely you’ve heard ‘Me and Julio Down By the Schoolyard.’ ” But the conversation got me thinking: If you were to reply to such a remark with a song title, what would you say? Obviously my young friend, who is otherwise engaged in the world and very bright, has heard Paul Simon’s music, even if she couldn’t match a song title to his name. That was the sound of my head hitting my desk. “I’m really not familiar with his music.” A conversation with a twenty-something colleague in the newsroom about Friday’s Paul Simon concert at the Spokane Arena elicited this unexpected response from my young co-worker.