Dave and I saw Paul Simon in concert in Edmonton in 1991; it was the Born at the Right Time tour and he and his band played a bunch of songs from Graceland (Ladysmith Black Mambazo wasn't a part of this tour, but there was some fancy stomping footwork by the band) and a bunch of Simon & Garfunkel hits and it was simply a joyful and memorable experience for us. So when we saw that Paul Simon, now in his 80s, was touring last year, I told Dave I wasn't really interested in going; I'd rather remember the wonderful show we saw when Paul Simon was closer to his peak.
But, knowing that Dave was disappointed by that, when I saw that he was touring again this year, I told Dave that we should go. And when I told our kids that I had bought second row tickets for me and their Dad to see Paul Simon in concert, they both said, "Without us? You raised us on Paul Simon and you're going to see him without us?" So, I then bought tickets for them, too; not second row, but that's life, lol.
This was called the Quiet Celebration tour, and apparently, as Paul Simon has recently suffered profound hearing loss, the volume was down on the concert: certainly enough sound to fill the indoor/outdoor RBC Amphitheatre, but not quite loud enough to drown out those who would talk throughout the concert behind us (at Kennedy and Mal's seats, it was the young security guards yakking nearby through the concert that annoyed them.) The performance was in two halves: the first thirty minutes was Simons' recent hymnlike work Seven Psalms, and I was delighted when his wife, Edie Brickell, joined him on stage for the higher pitched, and the whistling, parts (I honestly didn't know they were still together; I admit that I got a bit of a thrill from seeing her walk out onto the stage.) After a brief intermission, Simon returned to perform the familiar hits and the crowd went wild.
Yes, his voice isn't where it was when we saw him thirty-five (!) years ago, but Simon kind of embraces that; there's a kind of knowing maturity to the performance that saves it from being sad. And when the thousands in the audience are singing along, the joy is still there. When he started performing Father and Daughter, and Dave recognised it as the song that Kennedy had chosen as their first dance at her wedding, he turned to me with tears in his eyes and said, "I can't believe he's playing this, it's such a deep cut." (And on the other hand, Mal had been hoping to hear Call Me Al because that's their token karaoke song with a "Call Me Mal" twist, and was disappointed that it hadn't made it to the setlist.) Overall, it's the sharing of this experience — albeit somewhat separately — with the kiddos that made this experience the most special to me. That, and standing stage-side, directly in front of Paul freaking Simon as he performed Bridge Over Troubled Water, solo, during his encore, was pretty freaking cool. (There was no particular reason I chose this mournful song other than it mentions "mother and child", and is a banger.)
