BAM goes Paul Simon!
Paul Simon may been a Queens native, but he’s been right at home in Brooklyn this month. And that multi-cultural borough is perfect for the three different programs called Love in Hard Times: The Music of Paul Simon being presented by BAM. The first, for 6 nights in the beginning of April, was “Songs from The Capeman,” featuring Paul and a number of Puerto Rican musicians. The second, which took place last week, was “Under African Skies” - a celebration of Graceland and The Rhthym of the Saints - and I was lucky enough to be there on Saturday night.
The first thing you noticed when you took your seat was a panoply of percussion lined up on the stage - a clue that this was going to be a rhythm-driven evening. Actually, the first performers didn’t use any instruments at all except their voices - Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Paul’s key collaborators on Graceland, sang a couple of their songs, complete with high-stepping choreography. Then Paul was greeted by a standing ovation as he walked onstage. (Is it just me or is he looking more like Mel Brooks these days?) Joining Ladysmith and his regular band (with Steve Gadd on drums and three percussionists, including the Cyro Baptista), he launched into “Boy in the Bubble.” It made you believe that these are the “days of miracle and wonder.” After doing “Gumboots,” he brought on Kaissa, a singer from Cameroon, now living in NYC, for a duet on “Under African Skies.” She stayed on to sing “Proof” from The Rhythm of the Saints, perhaps as proof of the African connection to Brazilian music.
Paul moved on and offstage throughout the evening, not saying very much, but clearly enjoying himself. One time he did speak was to explain that Milton Nascimento couldn’t appear, as scheduled, because he’d been in the hospital. He then brought out the Brazilian-born singer Luciana Souza to perform “Dream Merchant,” the duet he’d recorded 20 years ago with Nascimento. (He also credited Nascimento with giving him the idea to record with Brazilian musicians.) Luciana, who’s married to Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell’s ex) and expecting their child, was phenomenal on “Can’t Run But” - not a complete surprise, since she’s one of the featured singers on Herbie Hancock’s Grammy-winning CD, River: The Joni Letters, and her most recent CD, The New Bossa Nova, was in my Top 10 of 2007. (Check her out at Joe’s Pub on April 30.)
Things kicked into another gear with the arrival of David Byrne, resplendent in a lime green shirt and silver hair. The herky-jerky rhythms of “I Know What I Know,” were a perfect fit for him.  And with the familiar opening notes of “You Can Call Me Al,” the crowd (mostly white and surprisingly young) was on its feet and dancing down the aisles. It took the tremulous purity of Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s “Homeless” to restore calm, until Paul returned for an exuberant “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes,” which brought down the house. That was it, except for the encores, which, of course, included “Graceland.”
What a gorgeous space to enjoy an unforgettable concert. And still to come...”American Tunes” April 23-27, with Gillian Welch, Olu Dara, The Roches, and others. A tribute to a masterful songwriter and a tribute to BAM for such creative programming! Someone please tell me they’re recording the shows for posterity.
