Press Releases

June 25, 2001
Paul Simon Brings Out 11-Piece Band "All For The Sea"

Legendary Rock Star is Joined by Beach Boy Brian Wilson on July 23

Contact:
Darren Johnson
(631) 287 8313
Fax: (631) 283 4081

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Paul Simon will bring an international band of 11 musicians with him to Southampton College's All For The Sea benefit concert, performing the songs that have made him a pop icon over a career that has spanned over 40 years.

All For The Sea takes place July 23. Gates open at 5 p.m. and the concert begins at 7:30 p.m. rain or shine on the College's athletic field. Tickets range from $50 to $350. No tickets will be sold at the gate. Call All For The Sea's concert hotline at 631-287-8375 or visit www.liu.edu/all4sea for further information.

Paul Simon is still reinventing himself after all these years. Pop's most enduring '60s icon, he always seems to stay a little ahead of the pack, too.

His pairing with childhood friend Art Garfunkel on hits like "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "The Sounds of Silence" defined the folk era. His solo experimentation with South African and Brazilian beats in the '80s led to innovative albums "Graceland" and "Rhythm of the Saints" and a popular appreciation of the genre with performers like Sting and Peter Gabriel following suit.

By the early '90s Simon was working with so many different musicians "MTV Unplugged" had to revamp its stage in order to fit the whole band in. Later that decade, Simon took on Broadway, writing and producing "The Capeman," which foreshadowed the currently popular Latin sounds of Marc Anthony and Ricky Martin.

Now, at 59, Simon has done it again. His new album "You're the One" received four stars in Rolling Stone, taking a "worthy place in Simon's esteemed body of work." "No one weds the conversational and cosmological, or acoustic pop and ethnological studies, quite so gracefully," added Entertainment Weekly, while Time praised "You're The One" as "Pure Simon and a reminder of what pop can be."

Since he started performing, Simon has had a hit in every decade - including the '50s. As 16-year-old teen stars, he and Garfunkel performed as an act called Tom and Jerry on Dick Clark's American Bandstand on Thanksgiving Day 1958 with a song called "Hey, Schoolgirl" from their 100,000-selling single. He reunited again with Garfunkel in 1964 forming rock's most popular duo, Simon and Garfunkel, until their 1970 breakup. Simon and Garfunkel's debut single "The Sounds of Silence" was a No. 1 smash hit.

Parting with Garfunkel didn't break Simon's stride. The '70s saw Simon incorporate reggae, jazz and Latin elements into his music with hit singles "Mother and Child Reunion" and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" on his 1972 self-titled album. The next year, the LP "There Goes Rhymin' Simon" was a major hit, going gold in 1973 then platinum in 1986. It was mostly recorded in Alabama with The Muscle Shoals Sound Rhythm Section, producing singles "Kodachrome" and "Take Me to the Mardi Gras." Simon won Album of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 1975 Grammy Awards for "Still Crazy After All These Years."

Born the son of a bandleader in Newark in 1941, Simon changed course in the mid '80s and became a bandleader himself. He was a solo artist by definition only, as he typically brought whole ensembles of foreign musicians with him - a practice he has revived with new album "You're the One" and his current tour with Brian Wilson.

Soon he was ushering in what would be dubbed World Music with one of the most influential albums of the '80s, "Graceland." Awarded a Grammy for Album of the Year in 1987, "Graceland" included hits "The Boy in the Bubble," "You Can Call Me Al" and the title track.

"You're the One" has already gone gold and features the dazzling guitar and bass work of African musicians Vincent Nguini and Bakithi Kumalo. It was nominated for a Grammy, Album of the Year. After touring with Bob Dylan in 2000, Simon this year has teamed with another legendary pop composer, Brian Wilson of Beach Boys fame, for All For The Sea.

Recently, Simon played at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, joining the Dave Matthews Band at the end of their set to sing on "Me & Julio Down By The Schoolyard." The next night, Aaron Neville joined Simon to perform "Bridge Over Troubled Water."

Simon is still creative after all these years - over four decades now - because he's constantly searching for the perfect collaboration and the next great sound.

In its 10th year and after 11 concerts, All For The Sea has become a Hamptons tradition. Last year's Jimmy Buffett performance broke records with $1.2 million raised, benefiting students in Southampton College's marine and environmental science programs. All For The Sea has raised $4.8 million since its first concert in 1992. It was Buffett who began a string of consecutive sellouts with his 1996 All For The Sea show. Since then, artists James Taylor, Rod Stewart and Tom Petty have also sold out the popular venue.

Previous performers include Crosby, Stills & Nash (1992), Tina Turner (1993), Foreigner and the Doobie Brothers (1994), Tony Bennett (1995), the Allman Brothers (1996), Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band (1996), James Taylor (1997), Rod Stewart (1998), Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1999) and Buffett again last year. The marine and environmental sciences programs at Southampton College are nationally acclaimed for their excellence and have produced 32 Fulbright Scholars in the past 25 years.