Homeward Bound

October 31, 2016
As Carlin (Bruce) points out in this often tuneless critical biography, Paul Simon has been chasing his musical muse since his childhood, when he first heard the Crows’ “Gee” on the radio. Drawing on a wealth of research as well as interviews with some of Simon’s friends and fellow musicians, Carlin nimbly chronicles Simon’s life and music. The saga starts with Simon’s youth, which might have foreshadowed Simon’s lifelong curmudgeonly personality—“There was a sadness about the boy from the beginning”—and childhood, in which he took on his father’s willfulness and sarcastic nature. He and Art Garfunkel formed the duo Tom and Jerry. Following their ascent to the musical stratosphere as Simon & Garfunkel in the late 1960s, their relationship became contentious, but his solo career was mostly successful. Carlin provides colorful details of the events surrounding the recordings of many of Simon’s albums, such 1973’s There Goes Rhymin’ Simon, which he recorded in the famed Muscle Shoals studio where so many of his favorite soul songs had been recorded. The book is lackluster, painting a portrait of Simon with which fans are already familiar: a creative genius whose reticence is often mistaken for misanthropy, whose gleeful humor is often mistaken for sarcasm, and whose desire to discover the perfect lyric or chord or hook is insatiable.

A biography of the singer/songwriter who helped define the cultural landscape of the 1960s as half of the folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel and who later achieved massive success as a solo artist.At an impromptu school assembly in 1952, Paul Simon (b. 1941) first heard his classmate Art Garfunkel sing, though they didn't know each other at the time. The experience made an impression on the young Simon, who saw in Garfunkel his nascent desire to become a singer and star. As freelance journalist and veteran music writer Carlin (Bruce, 2012, etc.) observes in his nuanced, fascinating portrait, Simon's friendship with Garfunkel would be the defining relationship of his life, both professionally and personally. Their brotherly and often contentious friendship would see them rise during the 1960s from humble wannabes with second lives in law school and a graduate program in mathematics to pop superstars. Growing up in a musical household--his father, Louis, was a professional bass player--Simon's musical interests were encouraged, and he received early lessons in the business, which would influence his shrewd approach to making deals. As Carlin notes, however, Louis would become resentful of his son's success and would harangue him to give up his career to become a teacher despite being a world-renowned pop star. This feeling of inferiority would fuel Simon's lifelong identity crisis, as he adopted many pseudonyms throughout his career, notably Jerry Landis, and constantly struggled with fame and his own abilities. Carlin expertly tracks Simon's professional career, from the earliest days with Garfunkel when they were finding their footing as performers, through the climax of their career as a band with their 1970 album "Bridge Over Troubled Water," to Simon's solo artistic peak with the 1986 release of "Graceland." Simon's music career defies easy categorization--much as his relationship with Garfunkel does--but in Carlin's portrayal, his legacy as an innovative songwriter and musician is undeniable. An absorbing and layered study of "one of the most influential voices in Western popular culture." COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 15, 2016
While attending Forest Hill High School, under the moniker Tom and Jerry, they got a brief taste of fame with a minor Everly Brothersinspired hit, Hey, Schoolgirl, in 1957. However, it wasn't until seven years later, when producer Tom Wilson, unbeknownst to Simon and Garfunkel, added folk-rock instrumentation to the acoustic version of The Sound of Silence, that the duo had a hit record, forever changing the trajectory of their careers and the history of pop music. Carlin (Bruce, 2012) covers in detail Simon's life story: growing up in Queens, the challenging relationship with Garfunkel, breakups, reunions, breakups, reunions, hit records, Simon's family life, as well as Simon's solo recordings, including his tremendous breakthrough with Graceland (along with the political backlash for ignoring the cultural boycott of South Africa), his stab at filmmaking (One Trick Pony), and theater (The Capeman), and his ongoing sonic adventures with his more recent recordings. Although Simon sometimes comes off as argumentative, self-important, and self-serving, throughout this highly readable biography Carlin depicts an artist who is tough, smart, uncompromising, audacious, and incredibly talented.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)