Bittersweet - The Sounds of Paul Simon

Last night, an 84 year old man stepped out onto the stage at the Bank NH Pavilion on the shores of Lake Winnepesaukee, Gilford, New Hampshire. The capacity crowd of 9000 or so dutifully greeted him with a standing ovation. 

The man began to speak. He outlined what the audience could expect in the way of a show. It would be a two part show. The first part would be his latest music from his latest album, "Seven Psalms".  He was specific, the first act would be 33 minutes long. There would be a short intermission. The second act he promised, would consist of many hits from his earlier years. The crowd roared their approval.

I cannot speak for the audience, but my initial impression of his first set was shock. I am not sure what I expected, but it wasn't this old man who was one of my musical heroes from the time I first heard "Sounds of Silence" in the1960s. He was a frail man. His tired voice sang songs wrapped in religious questions and faith. I was not disappointed. I was reminded that even Heroes grow old; Time makes no concessions for anyone.

I felt sad during that first set; selfishly sad I guess. Paul was onstage singing his heart out and I thought of my own situation. The crowd was polite. It was possibly from shock similar to mine. We offered luke warm claps after each song.

Intermission

The first set had given me a chance to accept that Paul had lost a step or two. I adjusted my expectations after the intermission.

The concert had started right on time at 8:30 PM. With the 20 minute or so intermission, Paul and the excellent 9 or 11 musicians ( Lis and I weren't sure ) who had his back played for a total of 2 1/2 hours I guess. Paul found his stride, his voice grew stronger, and his renditions of older hits created a new appreciation for the greatness of the music this man created over his 60 plus years as a giant in the American music scene during the second half of the 20th Century. 

His songs humbled me, caused some tears, and left me awestruck. Paul is still plying the trade he adopted so long ago. I came away with a one word summation of what I thought of the concert...... Bittersweet. 

I had no problem deciding what  group or artist to highlight for this post. But which rendition do I pick? The period when Paul was part of the duo, Simon and Garfunkel, or the Solo Paul who continued to pump out meaningful and lyrical music for many years after?

There were so many songs I love from both phases of his career. After some thought, I picked the song, "Baby Driver", from his time with Art Garfunkel. If I had to pick a favorite, it could easily be "The Boxer". That he performed it last night cinched it. Enjoy.