This is the second of three mini-runs this month for Simon at BAM. The first was a concert version of his Broadway musical, "Capeman." The next and last will be more traditional Simon fare such as "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and solo hits.
But the night was all about Simon’s amazing musical journey with African musicians, showing the roots for the "Graceland" and "Rhythm of the Saints" albums. Filmmaker/PR guy Dan Klores, who was Simon’s press agent for years, convinced his friend to help raise money for BAM on for its anniversary.
The program is called "Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon." Ken Starr and Diane Passage helped produce the event.
Among the guests at the star-studded event: Susan Sarandon with powerhouse movie producer Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas; plus Steve Buscemi and wife, Jo; Cynthia Nixon; Suzanne Vega and hubby, Paul Mills; famed artist Chuck Close; chef Mario Batali; Ed Schlossberg (husband of Caroline Kennedy); Eddie Simon (Paul’s manager brother); Edie Brickell (Mrs. Simon); and producer Phil Ramone, who gave the event its lush and perfect sound (as usual).
The highlights were many, but ex-Talking Head David Byrne’s solo performance of Simon’s "You Can Call Me Al" was a tour de force. Byrne remains an ingratiatingly awkward performer. For "Al" he did a kind of ostrich dance and mambo, winningly singing off-key and totally captivating the audience. It was just genius.
Other guests included Ladysmith Black Mambazo with the amazing African singer Vusi Mahlasela, who solo’d the vocal on "The Obvious Child," aka "These Are the Days of Miracles and Wonder," with aplomb.
A star is born! The very pregnant Brazilian jazz singer Luciana Souza also got cameos and much applause, particularly for Simon’s lesser-known songs "Further to Fly" and "Can’t Run But…," each, like "Obvious Child," from the underrated "Rhythm of the Saints."
I counted 10 musicians in Simon’s band, seven instrumentalists and three background singers. They sounded as if they were 10 times as strong in number. That’s how rich, textured and precise the orchestrations were.
Simon, himself, is center stage all through the show. He’s very much there, leading the cheerfully historic Ladysmith Black Mambazo through a bunch of songs they did together, such as "Graceland," "Homeless" and "Diamonds on the Souls of Her Shoes." Simon still gets a good rousing hometown cheer for the couplet "There’s a girl in New York City/Who calls herself the human trampoline."
And he even got a little personal, telling the audience: "There are so many people here who I’ve worked with over the years, I’m a little emotional."
