Paul Simon: A Life - Hardcover

Eliot, Marc

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0470433639 ISBN 13: 9780470433638

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2010

Synopsis

The definitive biography of legendary singer–songwriter Paul Simon. Paul Simon, one of the country′s most popular musicians, has been a dynamic creative force for more than half a century. Now New York Times bestselling biographer Marc Eliot draws on extensive research and original interviews to trace the incredible life and career of this iconic musician. Along the way Eliot examines Simon′s early struggles to succeed as a singer–songwriter, the ups and downs of his decades–long collaboration with Art Garfunkel, his at–times obsessive admiration and competitive drive with Bob Dylan, his musical triumphs such as Still Crazy After All These Years and Graceland , the spectacular failure of his Broadway musical The Capeman , and much more. The first comprehensive biography of Paul Simon and his music Explores the complex relationship between Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel through years of their musical breakups and reunions Reveals personal details, with interviews, of Simon′s life away from music Includes dozens of exclusive photographs, several published for the first time Whether you grew up listening to classic Simon and Garfunkel songs or came to love Paul Simon′s music through his solo albums, this highly entertaining biography will give you a new understanding of this talented artist and the many surprising twists and turns of his life and work as a songwriter, a performer, and an icon of Boomer Generation.

About this title

Product Description:

Paul Simon The definitive biography of legendary singer-songwriter Paul Simon. Paul Simon, one of the country's most popular musicians, has been a dynamic creative force for more than half a century. Full description

Review:

"If Dylan was the undisputed poet of the sixties, Paul was its resident diarist" offers Eliot (American Rebel), biographer of cultural icons, as he turns his spotlight on Simon. While younger audiences may know him mostly as a solo artist, fans of Simon & Garfunkel will appreciate the attention Eliot gives to the early years. A child of musicians, Simon began singing with Garfunkel as a young man; the two have performed together, off and on, for most of their lives, and Eliot details their numerous songs, concerts, and breakups while never neglecting Simon′s private life. Readers will lean about the music industry, the inspiration behind many of Simon′s songs, and his musical friends and rivals as Eliot follows Simon from schoolboy to musical innovator. From efforts that came before "The Sounds of Silence" to the failed stage production of The Capeman and beyond, Eliot almost obsessively chronicles aspects of every song with prose that is smooth and lively, if at times slipping toward purple. Fans of any era of Simon′s long career will appreciate the attention to detail. ( Publishers Weekly , November 8, 2010) "Were Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel lovers? No, but Marc Eliot′s serviceable biography of the duo′s more prolific, more successful, shorter half gets kudos for raising that question about two folk superstars who loved the sound of bickering more than the sound of silence. "′Several of the songs on [the album "Bridge Over Troubled Water"] explicitly point the accusatory finger of abandonment at Artie,′ writes Eliot, who has also published books about the Eagles and Bruce Springsteen. ′To some, the finished album had a whiff of homoeroticism about it, as much of it seemed to be about the romantic breakup of a couple.′ But if Garfunkel spent too much time away from music dabbling in film, perhaps it was only because Simon had been trying to go solo since at least 1957, when as teenagers the pair scored the hit ′Hey Schoolgirl′ under the pseudonyms ′Tom & Jerry.′ "Simon, of course, got the last laugh, composing and writing the quintuple–platinum masterpiece ′Graceland′ (1986) not long after Garfunkel′s acting career had gone from ′Catch–22′ to B–movies like ′Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession.′ "Eliot is less than convincing when he criticizes ′the sociopolitically correct media lions forever waiting for celebrities at the arrival gates of every politically incorrect airport′ who dared question Simon′s decision to write ′Graceland′ in apartheid South Africa. But the author does pin down the source of his subject′s notorious crankiness: ′Paul was, and always would be, self–conscious about his height.′ Maybe all it takes to sell 5 million records is a robust Napoleon complex and a tall partner." (Washington Post Review) If Dylan was the undisputed poet of the sixties, Paul was its resident diarist" offers Eliot (American Rebel), biographer of cultural icons, as he turns his spotlight on Simon. While younger audiences may know him mostly as a solo artist, fans of Simon & Garfunkel will appreciate the attention Eliot gives to the early years. A child of musicians, Simon began singing with Garfunkel as a young man; the two have performed together, off and on, for most of their lives, and Eliot details their numerous songs, concerts, and breakups while never neglecting Simon′s private life. Readers will lean about the music industry, the inspiration behind many of Simon′s songs, and his musical friends and rivals as Eliot follows Simon from schoolboy to musical innovator. From efforts that came before "The Sounds of Silence" to the failed stage production of The Capeman and beyond, Eliot almost obsessively chronicles aspects of every song with prose that is smooth and lively, if at times slipping toward purple. Fans of any era of Simon′s long career will appreciate the attention to detail. ( Publishers Weekly Review , October 2010)"

About this edition

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Ltd
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0470433639
• ISBN 13: 9780470433638
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320