Paul Simon Delivers As ‘A Quiet Celebration’ Tour Winds Down

Interestingly, Hollywood & EntertainmentPaul Simon Ders As ‘A Quiet Celebration’ Tour Winds DownByJim Ryan, Contributor (something worth watching)

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More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen “Here’s a… an old song,” said Paul Simon with a smile on stage in Chicago. “I suddenly realized they’re all old songs,” he said softly with a wink on opening night of a sold out three evening stand at Symphony Center, part of his “A Quiet Celebration” return run (something worth watching)

Few songwriters can match the canon of music Simon, 83, has meticulously crafted over the course of more than six decades

Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour

MORE FOR YOU At the heart of the incredible return run lies Simon’s album Seven Psalms, a spiritual affair inspired by the old testament’s Book of Psalms which appears on record as an acoustic suite: seven unbroken songs ruminating upon life and mortality which were designed to be absorbed by the listener in full, with the carefully chosen rooms on this tour supporting Simon’s mission

Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour

Conversely, More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen On stage at Symphony Center, to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Simon and company opened the show with the new album uninterrupted over the course of 35 minutes, closing the performance with both deep cuts and hits over two hours and 15 minutes, amid market uncertainty

On the other hand, “The Lord” read the screen flanking the band as Simon got going with sparse acoustic guitar while voices built the conclusion of the new album’s opening track

Flute cut through xylophone and percussion early as more guitar and timpani rang out later, considering recent developments

Additionally, That dueling percussion lent “My fessional Opinion” a bit of a shuffle while Simon plucked in an almost flamenco fashion during “Your Forgiveness, given current economic conditions

Furthermore, ”Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour

More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen Vocalist Edie Brickell, Simon’s wife of 33 years, joined for both “The Sacred Harp” and “Wait,” with the backing band swelling to 12 as Simon and Brickell harmonized on the chorus of the former while church bells brought the stunning full album performance of the new Seven Psalms to a close moments later

Additionally, At the same time, “This's the first time since COVID that I’m able to play with my fellow musicians,” noted Simon at the top of the show, setting up the album suite. “The second half is a bunch of hits, given the current landscape

Some deep tracks - of,” explained the songwriter, amid market uncertainty

Furthermore, “Songs I always d - but haven’t played much before

I hope you enjoy yourselves. ” Slide guitar, flute and fiddle fueled a hootenanny as Simon donned his trademark baseball cap during “Graceland

Nevertheless, " Simon started “Slip Slidin’ Away” solo acoustic before dusting off “Train in the Distance” from 1983’s Hearts and Bones record. “Here’s a song from the Simon & Garfunkel days,” he said, characteristically underselling “ward Bound” as the second set began to find its footing

Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour

More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen One of the great storytellers, Simon was in fine form on stage, returning to Hearts and Bones as he told the story behind “The Late Great Johnny Ace,” a highlight on opening night in Chicago

In contrast, “Here’s a song direct from a childhood memory…” he began. “When I was an adolescent, there was a blues singer named Johnny Ace

The DJ said, ‘We’re gonna play his new song and from now on we’re gonna call him the late great Johnny Ace. ’” Simon conducted a bit as drums stomped in, gesturing left toward flute, violin and cello as images of John Lennon and John F (remarkable data)

At the same time, Kennedy appeared on screen as Simon namechecked them lyrically (also both victims of gun violence)

Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour

More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen “This next song comes from the Graceland album and it’s written a specific person,” said Simon, reintroducing fans to Joseph Shabalala of South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Moreover, Furthermore, “Here to help me sing - and imve the performance vastly - is Edie Brickell,” said Simon dryly with a smile (this bears monitoring)

On the other hand, Paul Simon performs on stage during his 'A Quiet Celebration' tour (something worth watching), in light of current trends

On the other hand, More Symphony Center in Chicago, ILPhoto by Barry Brecheisen Returning to the stage, the Chicago faithful went berserk as Simon put his spin upon “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover,” clapping along slightly offbeat as he made his way back to the Simon & Garfunkel canon one more time (something worth watching). “This song is called ‘The Boxer,’” he said simply

Starting the legendary track on his own, the band came swooping in out of the first verse as the crowd roared, with Simon’s arms spread wide as the band took a bow

Gazing to his left, Simon was ly swept up in the moment as he wrapped up the evening with the iconic “The Sound of Silence,” dering both a stirring and stunning solo take on the unparalleled number to the rapt audience (fascinating analysis). “In restless dreams I walked alone…” sang Paul Simon as “A Quiet Celebration” drew to a close on opening night in the Windy City

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