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3.24 AVERAGE
3.24 AVERAGE
Abandoned in favor of a Bookends relisten, which was time far better spent. Probably not the book's fault, but by now I should know better. I've read a bunch of biographies of my musical heroes and they are never even fractionally as compelling as the music. This one included.
emotional
informative
medium-paced
As a big Paul Simon fan I can say this is a pretty solid biography of Simon. It doesn’t shy away from pointing out his flaws or noting his positive attributes. Carlin covers his whole musical life and I learned quite a bit about his early years. Another great (and better) book on Simon is Miracle and Wonder by Malcolm Gladwell. I will say the Gladwell one is more a collection of conversations with Simon.
informative
medium-paced
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Carlin has built a reputation as a fine writer of music biographies and this is a worthy addition to his catalogue.
Simon is an intriguing character - a business-savvy and hugely creative artist mingled with a generous but petty-minded heart. For the many stories that demonstrate the generous side of his nature there's a few on the petty side that will make your jaw drop.
And, of course, there's his relationship with Art Garfunkel, seemingly the one man he can't simply blank out of his life however much he occasionally feels that he should.
Simon is an intriguing character - a business-savvy and hugely creative artist mingled with a generous but petty-minded heart. For the many stories that demonstrate the generous side of his nature there's a few on the petty side that will make your jaw drop.
And, of course, there's his relationship with Art Garfunkel, seemingly the one man he can't simply blank out of his life however much he occasionally feels that he should.
Homeward Bound: The Life of Paul Simon by Peter Ames Carlin caught my attention because, although I have enjoyed Paul Simon’s music for many decades, I knew very little about the man himself. This book starts at the very beginning of Simon’s life and goes from there. The book was somewhat entertaining but one gets the impression that Peter Ames Carlin is not a fan. From the humble beginnings to worldwide adulation, the songwriter and performer has reinvented himself many times over, much to the joy of his fans, from teenagers to seniors. The gossipy bits are fun and the book informs the reader of a long list of people, famous or unknown, who have crossed path with Simon along his musical journey.
Amazing book. Very well-researched, fair and unflinching.
Initially I couldn’t wait to read this book. And then I couldn’t wait to finish it. It claims to be about “The Life of Paul Simon” but that’s not quite true. It’s more of a monotonous recounting of every tiny music interaction Paul had and a constant stream of put-downs. Clearly the author does not like Paul Simon. I don’t want to read a fawning biography but I do want the author to at least be interested in his subject.
Paul’s first wife, Peggy, rates a few sentences. Carrie Fisher gets a few pages. His first son is barely mentioned and his first encounter with Edie Brickell (in 1988) shows up with just 50 pages to go. So yes, while I had to wade through the minutiae of the beginning of the book, now there are 50 pages to capture nearly 30 years.
I get the music is the central component of Paul’s life but there’s very little about his *life* in this book. He did not cooperate with the author but still. The whole thing masquerades as a legit biography but it’s really just a takedown of a pissed off author.
Paul’s first wife, Peggy, rates a few sentences. Carrie Fisher gets a few pages. His first son is barely mentioned and his first encounter with Edie Brickell (in 1988) shows up with just 50 pages to go. So yes, while I had to wade through the minutiae of the beginning of the book, now there are 50 pages to capture nearly 30 years.
I get the music is the central component of Paul’s life but there’s very little about his *life* in this book. He did not cooperate with the author but still. The whole thing masquerades as a legit biography but it’s really just a takedown of a pissed off author.
Like many gifted artists, Paul Simon seems driven by a mix of ego and insecurities. The core example of this dichotomy is his lifelong relationship with Art Garfunkel, which is richly covered by Peter Ames Carlin, from their days in grade school and early performances as Tom & Jerry to their many attempts at reconciliation through reunion tours and abandoned recording sessions.
The controversy at the heart of the landmark album Graceland is also here, with helps the reader understand how it's possible that Simon was both genuinely supporting the South African musicians whom he so admired, while also exploiting their talents. His "Graceland" studio session with Los Lobos is now infamous for similar reasons.
His attempts to win over Broadway audiences with "The Capeman" and Hollywood with "One Trick Pony" show Simon at his most vulnerable and defensive. He has been jealous of Bob Dylan for being revered as the poet of his generation, of Art Garfunkel for being seen as 'the sex symbol' of the duo, and yet he toured with Dylan in the 90's and generously supported Garfunkel spending time in Hollywood working on the film "Catch 22".
Carlin does a balanced job of presenting the many facets of Simon's personality, as well as giving a fair overview of his work as a writer and singer.
Toward the end of the book, Carlin encounters Simon at Emory University, where Simon is scheduled to do a symposium. Simon spots Carlin, gives him an icy stare, and then a dismissive wave. As this book is not authorized, Simon tells us all we need to know about how he feels about his warts-and-all career being presented on the page. That's as close as Carlin ever got to Simon. So, like all third party unauthorized biographies, there should be a huge grain of salt taken with "Homeward Bound". Simon may not be the kind of guy you'd want to have a cup of coffee with - truly, it sounds like it depends on the day. Some days, he's a real mensch, other days...not so much. But, you want him on that stage, you want him at his writer's desk, and in the studio. Because that's where he creates a transcendent magic that makes the rest of it little of our business.
The controversy at the heart of the landmark album Graceland is also here, with helps the reader understand how it's possible that Simon was both genuinely supporting the South African musicians whom he so admired, while also exploiting their talents. His "Graceland" studio session with Los Lobos is now infamous for similar reasons.
His attempts to win over Broadway audiences with "The Capeman" and Hollywood with "One Trick Pony" show Simon at his most vulnerable and defensive. He has been jealous of Bob Dylan for being revered as the poet of his generation, of Art Garfunkel for being seen as 'the sex symbol' of the duo, and yet he toured with Dylan in the 90's and generously supported Garfunkel spending time in Hollywood working on the film "Catch 22".
Carlin does a balanced job of presenting the many facets of Simon's personality, as well as giving a fair overview of his work as a writer and singer.
Toward the end of the book, Carlin encounters Simon at Emory University, where Simon is scheduled to do a symposium. Simon spots Carlin, gives him an icy stare, and then a dismissive wave. As this book is not authorized, Simon tells us all we need to know about how he feels about his warts-and-all career being presented on the page. That's as close as Carlin ever got to Simon. So, like all third party unauthorized biographies, there should be a huge grain of salt taken with "Homeward Bound". Simon may not be the kind of guy you'd want to have a cup of coffee with - truly, it sounds like it depends on the day. Some days, he's a real mensch, other days...not so much. But, you want him on that stage, you want him at his writer's desk, and in the studio. Because that's where he creates a transcendent magic that makes the rest of it little of our business.