Best Line in "Graceland"

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the 70s solo simon albums are so new york-y

horseshoe, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:19 (fourteen years ago) link

like woody allen movies they have had a debilitating effect on my adult life

horseshoe, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:19 (fourteen years ago) link

im not saying vampire weekend "should" be the new paul simon of lyrics, im just wondering if there is a 2000s paul simon

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:20 (fourteen years ago) link

like if there was ever a 'scene' that could use a self aware lyricist with a good sense of humor about 'the scene'... its brooklyn ca 2010

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:21 (fourteen years ago) link

and the thing is vw are UWS brats not brooklyn brats

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:22 (fourteen years ago) link

i think it's clear what you have to do, max

horseshoe, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:22 (fourteen years ago) link

zinging is my art

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:23 (fourteen years ago) link

not lyrics

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:23 (fourteen years ago) link

it's a fine line!!!!!

horseshoe, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:23 (fourteen years ago) link

too true, too true

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:23 (fourteen years ago) link

in a lot of ways my tumblr is my graceland

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:24 (fourteen years ago) link

i mean you dont really need a graceland when you have the ny times in 2010:

http://celebraterickysargulesh.tumblr.com/post/418545344/brooklyn-2010

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:24 (fourteen years ago) link

yeah i still think he did take a while to "mature" as a songwriter. the s+gf stuff is only intermittently good lyrically

plax (ico), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:25 (fourteen years ago) link

Come Anticipate Norah Jones's NYC Zingers.

I do think Craig Finn works at combining stuff that's never been in a song with specific snapshots of times and spaces with stream-of-consciousness, but it's not NYC.

Bag Smart, Street Stupid (Eazy), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:25 (fourteen years ago) link

the s+gf stuff is only intermittently good lyrically

― plax (ico), Sunday, August 22, 2010 5:25 PM (43 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

it's true; i don't really like simon and garfunkel that much at all

horseshoe, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:26 (fourteen years ago) link

yeah finns a good lyricist, but hes not as funny as simon i dont think, or as self aware, and, crucially, from britain or alaska or somewhere

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:26 (fourteen years ago) link

yeah i still think he did take a while to "mature" as a songwriter. the s+gf stuff is only intermittently good lyrically

^^^ my next point, actually. To be fair to both Koenig and Simon, the latter didn't stumble into his lyrical genius. S&G is often painfully, clumsily erudite.

Gucci Mane hermeneuticist (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:27 (fourteen years ago) link

Neil Tennant and Robert Forster wrote really good songs about scenes, but their time has passed, I guess.

Gucci Mane hermeneuticist (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:28 (fourteen years ago) link

yeah, thats fine. i didnt really mean to rag on VW, im just wondering if there IS a 2000s-paul-simon-of-new-york, besides me and my tumblr

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:28 (fourteen years ago) link

btw i have never seen this:

In 1988, Simon released a video for the song to promote his greatest hits compilation, Negotiations and Love Songs. The video features an introduction by rappers Big Daddy Kane and Biz Markie. The video depicts adults interacting with the youth of an inner city schoolyard where they dealt drugs. It shows Simon playing basketball and baseball with the children, and it also features basketball player Spud Webb, baseball legend Mickey Mantle, and football coach/commentator John Madden giving tips to young athletes.[1]

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:29 (fourteen years ago) link

(thats re: me and julio)

max, Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:29 (fourteen years ago) link

S+G was writing genre songs in the same way that Simon always does, but he was getting Elizabethan and Hymnal Music out of the way early, saving zydeco and (on the great "Adios Hermanos") doo-wop for later.

Bag Smart, Street Stupid (Eazy), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:30 (fourteen years ago) link

there's a making the album documentary where simon talks u through writing graceland line by line and it seems like anyone could have written that song, its kindof awesome.

plax (ico), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:39 (fourteen years ago) link

idk i think his skill is in managing to be really evocative w/ the smallest parts "the child of my first marriage" is such a banal line but it also paints a massive backstory and dovetails so well w/ the forehead hair brusher l8r

plax (ico), Sunday, 22 August 2010 21:41 (fourteen years ago) link

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

System, Tuesday, 24 August 2010 23:01 (fourteen years ago) link

the last line in this song always kills me. i'm not sure why.

we wanted lime (mike a), Wednesday, 25 August 2010 04:42 (fourteen years ago) link

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

System, Wednesday, 25 August 2010 23:01 (fourteen years ago) link

poor boys, pilgrims with families and we are going to graceland 0

^^ i dont know that this line got "robbed" buts another one where he has perfect delivery

max, Wednesday, 25 August 2010 23:02 (fourteen years ago) link

maybe he should have worked new york city into the line somehow.

got electrolytes (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, 25 August 2010 23:05 (fourteen years ago) link

she comes back to tell me she's gone 0

The declarative sentence loses.

Gucci Mane hermeneuticist (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 25 August 2010 23:11 (fourteen years ago) link

i'd just like to point out that there is a tie for first place here

all yoga attacks are fire based (rogermexico.), Wednesday, 25 August 2010 23:54 (fourteen years ago) link

Reading these lyrics out, they read like Dan Bejar lyrics.

altered boners (rennavate), Thursday, 26 August 2010 07:05 (fourteen years ago) link

The declarative sentence loses.

Which is unfortunate, because I love that line.

Brad Nelson (BradNelson), Thursday, 26 August 2010 07:16 (fourteen years ago) link

This thread has sparked a total renewed interest in this album, appreciating the lyrics like never before. Thinking I might go through some of them with my advanced TELF students next week.

rhythm fixated member (chap), Friday, 27 August 2010 23:16 (fourteen years ago) link

I remember my mom asking me to explain the lyrics to the Myth of Fingerprints to her when I was 13

I drink your milksteak (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 27 August 2010 23:47 (fourteen years ago) link

Something I wrote about this song last year.

scott pgwp (pgwp), Saturday, 28 August 2010 16:01 (fourteen years ago) link

one year passes...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPFESqwh0ks

max, Tuesday, 7 February 2012 17:33 (twelve years ago) link

omg

horseshoe, Tuesday, 7 February 2012 17:39 (twelve years ago) link

btw i have never seen this:

In 1988, Simon released a video for the song to promote his greatest hits compilation, Negotiations and Love Songs. The video features an introduction by rappers Big Daddy Kane and Biz Markie. The video depicts adults interacting with the youth of an inner city schoolyard where they dealt drugs. It shows Simon playing basketball and baseball with the children, and it also features basketball player Spud Webb, baseball legend Mickey Mantle, and football coach/commentator John Madden giving tips to young athletes.[1]

― max, Sunday, August 22, 2010 5:29 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

(thats re: me and julio)

― max, Sunday, August 22, 2010 5:29 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O859wd7H6h8

horseshoe, Tuesday, 7 February 2012 17:45 (twelve years ago) link

like i said before this was sort of the first "adult" album i started to kind of understand, it made me almost feel older, like some weird vicarious sense of 'mono no aware' when i was 11. and an epic song.

omar little, Tuesday, 7 February 2012 19:58 (twelve years ago) link

Me and Julio video is hilarious.

Graceland doc looks a little too polite, but in any case this is my all-time favorite album so I'll watch.

scott pgwp (pgwp), Wednesday, 8 February 2012 00:43 (twelve years ago) link

wow cool!

Exile in lolville (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 8 February 2012 00:47 (twelve years ago) link


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