Back in the days when I first heard Paul Simon's groundbreaking Graceland album we didn't all have blogs and Twitter, etc. So back then I couldn't explode all over the Internet with hyperbole on how awesome and electrifying the sound of his music energized by some of South Africa's greatest musicians along with his stellar pop song writing.
These are the days of lasers in the jungle,
Lasers in the jungle somewhere,
Staccato signals of constant information,
A loose affiliation of millionaires
I just listened to this for the first time in more years than I care to think about. It doesn't matter-this music is timeless and vital. yes, vital-full of life. The sparks of God that exist in people and want to jump out with every opportunity they have in song, painting, music sculpture,writing,etc. Elements of the divine here on earth for us to construct/deconstruct and every one time in a million get it just right. Graceland was just that kind of work. Paul's pop genius, great timing, sophistication and openness and prescience to use musical forms that were good but under-exposed to the Billboard scene. The doors for 'world music" were thrown open by him and some people with an ear to hear started to connect the dots between earlier popular forms and their African or other "world" roots and connections.
So much brilliance in a song, the bass lines of Bakithi Kumalo exploding in my ears like sonic rubber trees bending and pulsing under the current and power of Simon's lyrics. Even some punk energy and terror hinted at:
There was a bright light,
A shattering of shop windows
The bomb in the baby carriage
Was wired to the radio,
Anyway, had I a blog in the day of Graceland's debut I would have done my ephiphanizing then. Color this making up for technological deficiencies back in the day. Let's have a listen to "The Boy in the Bubble" and for good measure "Graceland" the title track. There's so many different images that come to mind for me with both these songs, it's almost too intoxicating and volatile. Good art affects me like that.
