MUSIC TODAY

Paul Simon - You're the One

by Paul Rosner

 

On the cover of his first non-Broadway album in 10 years—You're the One—Paul Simon stares calmly into the world's eyes, appearing equally comfortable with himself and with his admirers. Maybe that's because, much like his peers Stevie Wonder, Peter Gabriel, and Sting, Simon was born into a Utopian world without borders; a society without constraints, where only the bare essence of the human spirit is necessary. These song sculptors write tunes that speak so deeply to a listener's soul, they make our differences meaningless and render us all the same. You're the One accomplishes this feat through a series of stories reflecting on relationships, human nature, and the insistent pull of time.

"I'm bound to tell a story/that's where I belong," Simon croons on the album's opening track. He proceeds to prove his point on the epic "Darling Lorraine," the story of a frustrated wife and her disbelieving husband. The twist on this comically bitter script occurs when Lorraine develops a life-threatening illness, briefly reuniting the lovers before her death. Conversely, "Pigs, Wolves and Sheep" is a light-hearted barnyard animal murder mystery. Brilliant musical accompaniment from Simon's frequent collaborators Vincent Nguini, Bakithi Kumalo, Steve Gadd, Jamey Haddad, and Steve Shehan makes this entire album eminently listenable. Simon's voice is mixed up-front and clean, beautifully capturing its delicate, soulful nature. This unaffected approach, although sometimes off-putting, opens a window into one man's heart, as Paul Simon bares his humble chest for the world to see; it is this vulnerability that makes him so compelling.

You're the One is Paul Simon at his rhymin' best. Although some may question his continued reliance on rhythms of the Southern Hemisphere, it is a successful formula that is obviously comfortable for him. Simon is not an artist focused primarily on selling records (the album's only potential single is "Old," a defiant two minute, eighteen second repudiation of Father Time). Instead, he attempts to put a collection of short stories to deeply moving music. In this light, You're the One is every bit as engaging as Graceland, The Rhythm of the Saints, or any of Simon's previous efforts; the richness of its tales is proof that Paul Simon does indeed belong in the pantheon of master storytellers.