Customer Reviews

Negotiations And Love Songs (1971-1986)

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This replaced Paul Simon's Greatest Hits, etc. Sadly that does not make for an improvement. That album covered less ground with more tracks. Hence this replacement suffers not only from omissions, but Paul's odd selections.

Where are An American Tune, Take Me To The Mardi Gras, Duncan, and Gone At Last? Second, why is Have A Good Time on this?

Lastly, the CD is an abridged version of the album, resulting in the dropping of one of Paul's biggest hits, and his favorite recording--Graceland.

When the CD first appeared, the maximum length was less than 70 minutes. Now, CDs can fit over 79 minutes of music. Why hasn't Warner Brothers remastered this and restored the song?

Finally, Paul likes to edit his works. Mother and Child Reunion and Loves Me Like A Rock lose 20 seconds each.

Warner Brothers has yet to remaster any of their artists catalogs. Make Paul Simon your first, and give this best-of a needed facelift!

Paul Simon is a much revered member of the music community and has been for a long, long time. "Negotiations & Love Songs" is a great example of WHY he deserves the praise that he has showered upon him. The 16 tracks on this CD showcase not only Simon's immense talent, but also his versitility. Be it the soft beauty of "Something So Right" or the upbeat synthesizer from "You Can Call Me Al" Simon shows he knows how to write a catchy pop song. Simon's beautiful lyrics can range from moving ("Slip Slidin' Away") to hilarious and rowdy ("Late In The Evening"). I reccomend this CD to anyone who loves great pop music, and for Simon fans it is a must.

Many people have wondered here at the strange selection of the songs on this album. I've listened to it for years and always thought the theme was obvious: Simon has put together a little biography of his life, from songs written at the time. From his childhood through his years w/Garfunkle, joys of fatherhood and the arc of his relationship/marriage/divorce with Carrie Fischer, it's all here in a tidy little package. The chronicle mostly concentrates on his Fischer years; I'm not sure why he finishes up with Diamonds & Al, other than the fact that they were hits around the time the album was released and served to give it a little momentum in the stores.

Back in those days, Simon was incapable of writing a bad song. You can't go wrong buying this one, but don't treat it as a greatest hits CD -- accept it as a little story of Simon's life, which is what his songs have always been about anyway.

No one cut quite so high or bright an arc in American pop music during the late sixties and early seventies as did Paul Simon. Whether alone as in his later career or with long-time collaborator Art Garfunkel, he consistently surprised, delighted and edified his audiences with thoughtful, memorable, and amazingly durable songs and melodies that one still finds himself humming late into the night. While Paul has been uncharacteristically quiet as of late, no one will ever deny his lasting appeal or his talent as both a singer and as a songwriter.

What we have hear, then, is a selective compilation of his solo work, ranging from the haunting "Mother and Child Reunion" to the comical but lyrical "Me and Julio Down By The Schoolyard", from "Something So Right" to "Kodachrome", and from "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" to "Still Crazy After All These Years". All of these songs, as well as the many others included here, are all intelligent, sophisticated, and fun to listen to. While few have the power or meaning of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" or "The Boxer", they are all still memorable and evocative, proof positive that Paul Simon can stand alongside anyone, including Bob Dylan, in terms of depth of talent and extent of success. This is a wonderful retrospective of Paul Simon's solo work. Enjoy!

An interesting collection from 1988 that is a combination of some of Paul Simon's greatest hits with some lesser known gems. One such gem is "Rene and Georgette Magritte with Their Dog After the War," which combines a bit of folk and is wonderful song that I am unable to recall having previously heard.

Of course there are quite a number of songs for which Paul Simon is famous, ranging from early hits "Mother and Child Reunion" to later hits such as "You Can Call Me Al." While this collection is not truly a greatest hits, it certainly seems to come close to one.

Paul Simon has had a fascination with rhythmic music, perhaps epitomized by his much lauded "Graceland" album, which was both a critical and commercial success. That rhythm is well-evidenced by the selections chosen for this collection. Of course Paul Simon is much more than "Graceland" and more than just fascinated with rhythm as he has consistently created magical and beautiful music throughout his solo career.

This CD is an eclectic collection of some of Paul's more enduring and artistically created music. Worth having even in comprehensive collections.

Back in 1977 or 1978 or so, when I was about 8 years old, my dad gave me a Paul Simon greatest hits compilation album entitled, "Paul Simon's Greatest Hits, etc." This album is nowhere to be found on CD, but this "Negotiations and Love Songs" album comes somewhat close. At any rate, the "Greatest Hits, etc." album made me a lifelong Paul Simon fan, so I have all these songs from other sources, even if the songs post 1978 or so didn't appear on "Greatest Hits, etc."

I look at the track listing here and am amazed that even though I might have deleted a couple here or there or added a few in places, almost everything here is absolutely great. From the pretty and poignant reggae-fied "Mother and Child Reunion", to the fun "Me And Julio Down By the Schoolyard", to the slick "50 Ways To Leave Your Lover", to the absolutely beautiful "Something So Right" (My wife and I made this our first dance at our wedding...) and "Still Crazy After All These Years", and of course "Slip, Slidin' Away" with its heartwrenching lyrics, great tune and wonderful harmonies (from the Oak Ridge Boys, I believe....) have been favorites of mine since I've been into music (late '70s...). The other songs here are also great! I've always loved "Late In The Evening", a rollicking song with great brass runs, the bittersweet "Train In The Distance", and even the songs from the "Graceland" album are great.

I don't know if including different songs or deleting others would have made this album any better. There are few songs by Paul Simon that I really don't like and most I really, really like. It is too bad that there doesn't seem to be anywhere on CD that I know of that contains the fun, albeit lightweight "Stranded In A Limousine" which was found on the "Greatest Hits, etc." album....Just about every song is excellent on this compilation! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!

The best Paul Simon compilation to date is Greatest Hits from 1977--now sadly out of print. Not much compares with 'Heart like a Bone' and 'Mardi Gras.' That said, this album is a good second best.

1. Mother and Child Reunion
2. Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard
3. Something So Right
4. St. Judy's Comet
5. Loves Me Like a Rock
6. Kodachrome
7. Have a Good Time
8. 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover
9. Still Crazy After All These Years
10. Late in the Evening
11. Slip Slidin' Away
12. Hearts and Bones
13. Train in the Distance
14. Rene and Georgette Magritte with Their Dog After the War
15. Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
16. You Can Call Me Al

Some reviewers complained about the selection, but remember, "Greatest Hits" is not in the title. I somewhat agree with another reviewer that this CD has a kind of chronology of Paul's life and relationships from '71 to '86 woven into it. Yeah, maybe "Diamonds" and "Al" seem a little out of place, but they're still great songs. Anyway, two Pauls come to my mind when naming contemporary song writing geniuses: McCartney and Simon. While McCartney may have had the edge in the melodic department, Simon clearly had the edge in the lyrical.

Warning - Do not play this CD while driving in your car, it causes uncontrollable dancing and singing. This not only makes you a hazard to the road, but also makes you look silly while others drive by and stare.
AWESOME CD