Paul Simon is 82 as I write this. More and more of the people I have known, and some I have just admired, have become part of history instead of part of the world. Soon enough, both Paul Simon and I will move into the first category. I fear to even read the news these days.

Wikipedia’s thumbnail description of Paul Simon is “musician – singer – songwriter – actor”. I respectfully disagree. I think of him as America’s greatest poet.

Through the corridors of sleep
Past the shadows dark and deep
My mind dances and leaps in confusion.
I don’t know what is real,
I can’t touch what I feel
And I hide behind the shield of my illusion.

So I’ll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.

The mirror on my wall
Casts an image dark and small
But I’m not sure at all it’s my reflection.
I am blinded by the light
Of God and truth and right
And I wander in the night without direction.

So I’ll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.

It’s no matter if you’re born
To play the King or pawn
For the line is thinly drawn ‘tween joy and sorrow,
So my fantasy
Becomes reality,
And I must be what I must be and face tomorrow.

So I’ll continue to continue to pretend
My life will never end,
And flowers never bend
With the rainfall.

In an interview with American Songwriter, Paul Simon tells us, “The music always precedes the words. The words often come from the sound of the music and eventually evolve into coherent thoughts. Or incoherent thoughts. Rhythm plays a crucial part in the lyric-making as well. It’s like a puzzle to find the right words to express what the music is saying.” As hard as that is for me to accept, it does make sense. To me, rhythm and meaning is the difference between poetry and prose. I’ve always thought that too much of what people want to call poetry is just punchy, short lines of meaningless, rhymeless prose. To me, Simon was a great musician, but he was a greater poet. His poetry always sends me into a paroxysm of thought.

Always alert for opportunities for producing revenue, the Grammy Awards organization aired a two-hour special:  Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon on December 21 of 2023 during the runup to Greedyday. In addition to other performers, Paul Simon himself was part of the show. They have announced that the well isn’t dry yet so the show will re-air on Wednesday, May 31, at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CBS, and will also be available to stream on demand on Paramount+.