Page "Paul Simon" Paragraph 21

As he commented years later, after the disappointing commercial performance of Hearts and Bones, Simon felt he had lost his inspiration to a point of no return, and that his commercial fortunes were unlikely to change.

While driving his car in late 1984 in this state of frustration, Simon listened to a cassette of the Boyoyo Boys ' instrumental " Gumboots: Accordion Jive Volume II ".

Interested by the unusual sound, he wrote lyrics to the number which he sang over a re-recording of the song.

It was the first composition of a new musical project that became the celebrated album Graceland, an eclectic mixture of musical styles including pop, a cappella, isicathamiya, rock, and mbaqanga.

Simon felt that he had nothing to lose.

He travelled to South Africa in an attempt to embrace the culture and find the most comfortable environment for recording the album.

Sessions in Johannesburg took place in February 1985.

Overdubbing and additional recording was done in April, 1986, in New York.

The sessions featured many South African musicians and groups, particularly Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Simon also collaborated with several artists of his own culture, singing a memorable duet with Linda Ronstadt in " Under African Skies ", and playing with Los Lobos in " All Around the World or The Myth of the Fingerprints ".

Warner Bros. Records had serious doubts about releasing an album of this eclecticism to the mainstream, but when it did in August 1986, Graceland was praised by critics and the public and became Simon's most successful solo album.

Slowly climbing the worldwide charts, it reached # 1 in many countries, including the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and peaked at # 3 in the US.

It was the second-best-selling album of 1987 in the US, selling five million copies and eventually reaching 5x Platinum certification.

Another seven million copies were sold internationally to become his best-selling album.

Much of the success of the album was due to the lead single, the upbeat " You Can Call Me Al ", whose lyrics describe a man experiencing an identity crisis.

The track featured many memorable elements – a catchy synthesizer riff, an easy whistle solo, and an unusual bass run in which the second half was a reversed recording of the first half.

" You Can Call Me Al " was accompanied with a humorous video featuring actor Chevy Chase, which introduced Simon to a new audience through MTV.

In the end, the track reached UK Top 5 and the US Top 25.

Further singles, including the title track, " The Boy in the Bubble " and " Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes ", were not commercial hits but became radio standards and were highly praised.