Paul Simon: An Evening of Old Friends
Last night’s Paul Simon concert at the grand reopening of the newly renovated Beacon Theatre wasn’t exactly a greatest hits affair, so there was plenty of pent-up energy in the room when the New York City native left the stage after his second set. Simon returned for the encore with former partner Art Garfunkel in tow and the crowd went ape-shit. There were high-fives, hugs and huge smiles as far as the eye could see.
The concert started with a speech by Cablevision President James Dolan, who got a pleasant smattering of applause until he told the crowd who he was. As soon as the “-lan” syllable came out of his mouth the audience voiced their displeasure with a hearty bronx cheer. Say what you will about Dolan’s ability to run a sports team, but he loves this city and put his money where his mouth is with the $16 million, seven month renovation of the Beacon. The jeers turned back to cheers when Paul Simon took the stage with his latest touring band including musical director Mark Stewart.
Simon found the fountain of youth during his two set performance that touched on every era of his storied career. For the more casual fan, there were a number of massive hits including You Can Call Me Al, Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard – complete with a shout out to Rosie O’Donnell – and Late In The Evening. Fans who were looking for Simon deep cuts were treated to the folky Duncan, brooding Train In The Distance and the underrated gem Proof. Paul did seem to lose most of the audience during a Capeman segment that started the second set, but I enjoyed the crisp doo-wop harmonies myself.
READ ON for more of Scotty’s Paul Simon review…
