Hearts and Bones by Paul Simon
Hearts and Bones is the sixth solo album by Paul Simon. It was released in 1983. The album was originally intended to be called Think Too Much, however Mo Ostin, president of Warner Bros. Records, persuaded Simon to change it to Hearts and Bones. The album was written and recorded following the Simon and Garfunkel Concert in Central Park in 1981, and the world tour of 1982 - 1983. Some of the songs intended for Think Too Much were previewed on the tour, and Garfunkel worked on some of the songs with Simon in the studio, with an intention that the finished product would be a Simon and Garfunkel album. Ultimately, Garfunkel left the project early on, and none of his contributions were included in the final mix.
Under-appreciated at the time of its release in 1983, and then overshadowed by the crossover magic of the African-pop influenced <i>Graceland</i>, <i>Hearts and Bones</i> has since become a much loved staple to hardcore Paul Simon fans. Simon initially conceived the record as a potential reunion album with his old partner Art Garfunkel, but for either personal or creative reasons chose to erase Garfunkel’s parts and go it alone. It’s hard to imagine these songs working in the context of the duo’s delicate harmonies, as the lyrical narratives that drive the songs are best served coming directly from Simon unencumbered. The title track is masterful, an exquisitely delineated tale of a marriage (Simon to Carrie Fisher) struggling to make sense of itself. "The Late Great Johnny Ace” confronts the somber impossible feeling that Simon felt the night John Lennon died. “Rene and Georgette Magritte with their Dog After the War” jumbles up the post-war decades into a warming doo-wop influenced look at life after wartime. Overall, <i>Hearts and Bones</i> is quiet, unassuming and deeply resonant.
