Peter Sprague Plays Paul Simon — Bridge Songs

I’ve been a huge fan of Paul Simon’s music ever since I first heard the opening chord sequence of “Scarborough Fair” and the way the vocals start expanding into majestic counterpoint. All the way from there,  20 years later, we arrive at a situation where a man’s contemplating why he’s soft in the middle when the rest of his life is so hard. He sings “I can call you Betty and Betty, when you call me, you can call me Al.”

Paul Simon’s lyrics are something special to behold. I heard him talk about his process and one of the stages involved bouncing a ball against a wall and going over and over the words and phrases until they were just right—never settling for a cheap rhyme or solution. It shows, these are big league stories and big league lyrics.
Next you add the melody and the chord moves which are a steep step up from three chord justice. Yet when he was into the Graceland album and the African influence he embraced three chords as if that’s all that mattered. 

Versatile fellow and I think it’s time to celebrate his creations through our jazz lens.

For this concert we’ve got Allison Adams Tucker lined up to sing vocals along with Tripp Sprague on sax, flute, and piano; Mack Leighton on bass; Duncan Moore on drums; and me on guitar. 

Some of the songs that we’ll play include “Train in the Distance,” “Cecilia,” “Hearts and Bones,” “Sound of Silence,” and “You Can Call Me Al.” As we like to do, we’ll add our own jazz angle into the blend for a unique sonic experience.

 

See you there!