Lyrics 1964-2008

by Paul Simon

A landmark compilation of popular music, this collection contains Paul Simon's lyrics from his first album in 1964 to the present, now with 2011’s So Beautiful Or So What?

Genres: Poetry, Music, Nonfiction

408 pages, Hardcover

First published November 7, 2008

About the author

Paul Frederic Simon is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and musician. Simon is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, both as half of the folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel and as a solo artist. In 2006, Time magazine called him one of the 100 "people who shape our world." As of 2007, he resides in New Canaan, Connecticut.

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Susane Colasanti]

1988: Wrote Paul Simon lyrics all over my Keds way before doing that kind of thing was accepted as cool (I was nerd chic like that). Had this thing where I'd trace my hand with a metallic outliner on my binder cover and write Paul Simon lyrics inside. Obsessed with visions of streetlights and city sounds and sunsets sifting through trees and every other picture Paul Simon painted in his songs. Felt the magic of New York City in his songs and knew it would feel like home to live there (here). Wished for a book of Paul Simon lyrics so I could cherish them all together.

2008: My wish came true.

[Sherrie]

Nearly all of Paul Simon's lyrics are gathered in this beautiful book, the few omissions I noted were his early 60's bubblegum songs such as "Hey Schoolgirl", "Dancing Wild" and "The Lone Teen Ranger". Among his folk period songs, the only song that I noticed missing was "Carlos Dominguez". The most interesting features are scans of some of the original handwritten lyrics, showing the evolution of some of Simon's best known songs. It is a joy to read the lyrics free of their musical accompaniment, though on several occasions I was shocked to find that I've been mishearing phrases for over 30 years! Reading this book today has returned a handful of songs to my memory that I hadn't thought about in years, I'll be listening to a lot of Paul Simon music in the near future.

[Elizabeth]

Thanks to Holly C. for recommending this terrific book! I always knew that Paul Simon was poetic and sensitive. Reading his lyrics only confirms that! It is a different experience than hearing the lyrics set to music. But what a tribute to a great talent and thinker. Pick up this book and see how the words touch you. Some of the songs are so memorable from a point in your life! Excellent book!

[Iwan]

Ik kocht dit boek ooit bij Fame in de Kalverstraat voor € 15 of zo. Als liefhebber van de muziek én de teksten van Paul Simon heb ik geen spijt van deze uitgave. Dit koffietafelboek is bovendien subtiel geïllustreerd met foto's en afbeeldingen van aantekeningen uit het songtekstschriftje.

[David Timms]

Paul Simon is sure to be remembered as an important voice of the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and on until he's gone. I ove his words. I love his music. And this book allows me to not misquote him.

[A.]

Loved reading this, even though I know most of them by heart already. Another great way to experience Simon's poetry.

[Sue]

Mock me if you will, but the man is a poet.

[Doris Raines]

NICE TITLE AND LYRICS.

[Victoria & David Williams]

“For Emily, Whenever I May Find Her
What a dream I had
Pressed in organdy
Clothed in crinoline of smoky burgundy
Softer than the rain
I wandered empty streets
Down past the shop displays
I heard cathedral bells
Tripping down the alley ways
As I walked on

And when you ran to me
Your cheeks flushed with the night
We walked on frosted fields
Of juniper and lamplight
I held your hand

And when I awoke and felt you warm and near
I kissed your honey hair with my grateful tears
Oh, I love you, girl
Oh, I love you

Music is forever; music should grow and mature with you, following you right on up until you die. ”
― Paul Simon

There are those of us who have grown old(er) alongside Paul Simon.
And found life to be better for it.

"
Old friends
Old friends
Sat on their park bench
Like bookends
A newspaper blown through the grass
Falls on the round toes
On the high shoes
Of the old friends

Old friends
Winter companions
The old men
Lost in their overcoats
Waiting for the sunset
The sounds of the city
Sifting through trees
Settle like dust
On the shoulders
Of the old friends

Can you imagine us
Years from today
Sharing a park bench quietly?
How terribly strange
To be seventy

Old friends
Memory brushes the same years
Silently sharing the same fear

Time it was,
And what a time it was
It was . . .
A time of innocence
A time of confidences

Long ago . . . it must be . . .
I have a photograph
Preserve your memories
They’re all that’s left you
"

[Dr. Carl Ludwig Dorsch]

Without Mr. Simon’s musical virtuosity these lyrics are rather flat on the page. This volume includes 85 pages from the libretto of Simon’s 1990s musical play ‘The Capeman,’ written with the poet and 1992 Nobel laureate Derek Walcott, though Walcott’s involvement is only evident here in the copyright listings of the end material.

Tell us all a story
About how it used to be
Make it up and write it down
Just like history
About Goldilocks and the three bears
Nature in the cross hairs
And how we all ascended
From the deep green sea
When it’s not too hot
Not too cold
Not too meek
Not too bold
When it’s just right and you have sunlight
Then we’re home,
Finally home
Home in the land of the homeless
Finally home

Oh what are we going to do?
I never did a thing to you
Time peaceful as a hurricane eve
Peaceful as a hurricane eye

A history of whispers
A shadow of a horse
Faces painted black in sorrow and remorse
White cloud, black crow
Crucifix and arrow
The oldest silence speaks the loudest
Under the deep green sea

[…]

You want to talk, talk, talk about it
All night squawk about
The ocean and the atmosphere
Well I’ve been away for a long time
And it looks like a mess around here
I’ll be away for a long time
So here’s how the story goes
There was an old woman
Who lived in a shoe
She was baking a cinnamon pie
She fell asleep in a washing machine
Woke up in a hurricane eye

From the song ‘Hurricane Eye’

[M. Sarki]

There are so many lyrics for songs written by Paul Simon that to name a favorite is impossible. Simon gave us The Sound of Silence and Bridge Over Troubled Waters not to mention The Boxer and I Am a Rock. Far too many to list here, and for what? There is nobody who comes even close to the music and lyrics of Paul Simon except for Bob Dylan. But Simon took his music even further than Dylan, in my opinion. There isn’t a genre that Simon did not execute remarkably. The same cannot be said for dear Bob.

There is one song I will mention in closing that affected me a bit more than any others, wordwise. But because the song never had the appropriate hooks that Simon’s more famous ones did, it likely has failed to be noticed for its brilliance on the page. The song Quiet from the album You’re the One supposedly was written while under the influence of ayahuasca and is therefore discounted a bit due to the drug being used to write a song rather than its purer spiritual intention. Regardless, the song is remarkable for its lyrics.

[John]

Reading Paul Simon's song lyrics as poetry on the printed page - a fun exercise.

Of course, with the refrains that are embedded in every song, there is some repetition in most of the poems. And some poems inevitably lose an intangible "something" - a depth of impact, without the accompaniment of music. (for example, consider "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Thyme". That's not necessarily a criticism - some of the poems were enjoyable and I've never heard the recorded song. In any case, exactly WHICH Paul Simon poems you enjoy the most will likely differ a lot, depending on sound or paper.

If you are a fan of Paul Simon, a songwriting enthusiast, or just a fan of urban poetry, you might enjoy this one.

[Richard Thompson]

I had some reservations about suggesting this book as a read-aloud. I knew I wouldn't be able to sing the lyrics — many of the songs I had no memory of having ever heard — but I knew that I would be tempted to try the ones I was familiar with. I told Maggee: "I am going to work really hard at reading. If you catch me trying to sing, stop me." We both agreed that the lyrics worked just fine as poetry. Maggee commented that she tends not to really hear the lyrics of songs — she gets caught up in the music and misses a lot of the words; hearing the words of familiar pieces read aloud was a revelation to her in a lot of cases.

We went to YouTube listened to the musical version of a number of the songs that we were didn't remember.

This book was # 15 on our 2016 Read-aloud list.

[David Ward]

Paul Simon Lyrics 1964 – 2008 by Paul Simon (Simon & Shuster 2008) (782.4216). This compilation consists of all of Paul Simon's lyrics from his first album through his last album prior to the date of publication in 2008. Everybody loves something that Paul Simon has written; he's a genius. My rating: 7/10, finished 2009.

[Donald]

I got this book because I wanted a book that I printed. Simple really. And you know? Paul Simon wrote a lot more than I thought he did. This is an interesting book that goes back to his beginnings.

[Scott]

Paul Simon Lyrics 1964-2008 by Paul Simon (2008)

[Dave]

The man can write songs....Thats all I have to say about that...And you can call me AL

[Renee]

Sing ta na na Ta na na na

[Rory]

A masterpiece. All of it.