Customer Reviews

One-Trick Pony

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4 star:		(4)
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After years of success in the folk-pop genre with Garfunkel and his own solo career, Paul Simon decided to get into acting. Bad move. I saw One Trick Pony in the theater and on video. As a movie, despite some very nice little scenes and live performances, it drags. Honestly, it is a little depressing.

However, the songs written for the movie are another matter entirely. Paul Simon took some study in musical composition, and this began to bear fruit in Still Crazy After All These Years and One Trick Pony. Everything here is pop music at the highest level, tinged with a bit of jazz -- the presence of jazz guitarist Eric Gale and keyboardist Richard Tee, the ultra-clean and always innovative drumming of Steve Gadd are an essential part of the superb mix. But the songs are heavenly, melodic, meaningful, poetic, mostly meditative, and well-crafted.

I'd have to say this is my favorite Paul Simon album. Others come close -- Still Crazy, and Rhythm of the Saints. I find this one the most consistent and most worthy of repeated listening. (Not counting the bonus tracks, which may be nice to have, but do not fit in with the original album as a whole. Most of the time you'll want to skip the bonus cuts.)

This album is a sleeper: one rarely goes to One Trick Pony when a Paul Simon mood hits you; certainly his first solo album stands as a testament to his songwriting abilities, and the many hits along the way often draw you to other albums in his catalogue.

But One Trick Pony really stands the test of time: tasteful, beautiful songwriting, a clear, effective concept album sustained through song after song, and superior songcraft and performances (jazz guitarist Eric Gale, keyboardist Richard Tee, drummer Steve Gadd) add an organic, naturally high level of sophistication to the arrangements. Some of the album tracks buried in here are among Simon's finest: "Jonah" is a great track, crying out to be covered again and revived by another artist; the closer "Long Long Day" perfectly captures the mood and feel of the album, "God Bless the Absentee" tastefully describes the drudgery and toil of the working man, sacrificing, putting in time for his family and a dream.

If you were put off by the rather weak film, or have not picked this up lately, you will be surprised. It takes active listening, but there are many rewards here to be found, and you will find yourself returning to the quiet joys of One Trick Pony.

Never saw the film, but from the moment I purchased this album new in 1980 it has always been one of my favorite LPs. The effervescent first track, "Late in the Evening," is both descriptive and not, for "One Trick Pony" is a late-in-the-evening kind of record, but one you'll remember less for its three upbeat numbers than for its seven mellow session tracks performed with a terrific ensemble and some of Rhymin' Simon's most soulful writing this side of "Rene and Georgette Magritte with Their Dog After the War." Indeed, I rarely play it before midnight anymore, and I sometimes sing the lyrics with Paul as a sort of late-night meditation. You purchase the Rhino version with the bonus tracks at your own risk, for the 10 tracks on the original are so complete, so satisfying taken as a whole, that I see no need to tamper with them.

Boom, ba ba doo doo dooom, keykey pyeiw, Boom - doo do dodo dooom, pyeiw pyeiw (first notes of One Trick Pony).
I'm in heaven! This band is tight like I don't know what. No wonder. It has Steve Gadd on drums, Eric Gale on guitar, Richard Tee on keys (and vocals), Tony Levin and Anthony Jackson on bass, Hugh McCracken on acoustic guitar, Ralph MacDonald on percussion. Oh and Paul Simon plucks some guitar strings too from time to time. Horns on Late in the Evening and God Bless the Absentee arranged by Dave Grusin, on Long, Long Day by Bob Friedman - with Patty Austin on vocals.
Any questions?
When it came out back in 1977 I was skeptical at first if Paul's voice would suit the music. When I listened to Late in the Evening, the first song on the album, all my fears were blown away in a matter of seconds. Not only did he fit the band, his songwriting is top class - and soo different from what I knew before. This has groove, yahoo!!! (but the ballads are magic too)
This remastered edition is definitely worth it. The sound is clearer than on the first cd version, the instruments separate better than before and it has more of the live-feeling intended. The Bonus songs are nice but don't add up much to the wonderful album.
Just get this. Some of the best tight playing out there.

I first got this album when I was a kid, I assume, back when it was new. My sister gave it to me, and I had no idea who Paul Simon was. But she and my other siblings knew I had come into rock music much earlier than they had, so she gave it a try. Still greatful about that, cause I loved it!

I can't really offer up any insights about this album. I am Norwegian, and at the time I may have been quite good at english, mastering the language even before scool, unlike most of my contemporaries, I still had no clue what the title reffered to, or what the songs were about. Pretty sure most people in Norway at the time didn't know that this was the soundtrack to a movie, as it sank at the box office or failed to get a theatrical release. Only years later, in my teens, when I started watching all the Woody Allen movies I could come by, was I aware that Paul Simon had even acted!

Now of course, I know about Simon & Garfunkle, Kodachrome, Me and Julio and You Can Call Me Al. Videos with Brazilian drummers, Chevy Chase, great performaces on Saturday Night Live, even greater ones in Central Park. The South African controversy etc.

Still, this album has a special place to me. It's one of the first rock albums I remember belonging to me, and not just one I had smuggled into my room beloning to one of my older siblings. I remember singing along to the songs, and feeling like I was kind of special. Hey, I digged this adult music! Meanwhile my friends listened to songs sung by hand puppets and Smurfs.

So years later, I finally got this on cd. I listened to it all over again, getting that rush you get when music trigger memories. It's just a great now as I remember it being back then. And even though I can't go into it song by song and give deep insights, I still feel I should suggest to anyone reading this, that they get this album, simply because it's so darned good!

Still, I sure would like to finally see that movie...

Firstly, the product description by Amazon is erroneous as this is a made in Japan disc and not a European one. As is the case with many soundtracks to movies, the soundtracks themselves far outshine the movies that they represent. This is definitely the case here as this entire album exudes a very cool, smooth mood making this an excellent album for nighttime listening. The opening track, "Late In the Evening", actually won a Grammy and "One Trick Pony" is an excellent single on its own behalf with a very cool groove.

This version of the album is a real treat too as not only is the mini-lp replica sleeve packaging rather well designed, but we also get all the lyrics in both English and Japanese. The sound quality is very good too reflecting a good job done in the remastering department. We also get 4 bonus tracks that are new and add immensely to the overall enjoyment of the cd. Granted, the movie wasn't that memorable but that doesn't hold true for the soundtrack. Definitely one of Paul's best works.

Recommended.

...This is the Paul Simon record, that has always stood out from the rest of the pack. "One Trick Pony" appeared quietly in the hot summer of 1980, almost five years after Paul's last recording: "Still Crazy After All These Years", it is not the Paul Simon, that everybody remembers from the early 1970's.

The single: "Late In The Evening" was getting lot's of attention because of one line in the song: "And I stepped outside to smoke myself a "J". That line was pretty daring for the standards of the day, and it gave Paul, a new more hip following, and expanded his audience...ah, the power of words, and Paul was already a master of the form.

With all the buzz (sorry!) about his great new single, Paul's LP and movie recieved a lot less attention than his cool new single did. I never have been able to understand just why this great record did not give Paul's career a big boost up, this record really slipped under the radar. It's too bad for the millions of fan's that have passed this record by, it is really one of Paul's best efforts.

"One Trick Pony" is a nice mixture of jazz, pop and even funk stylings that doesn't hide the fact that Paul, has turned in some really great songs for this. The band has Tony Levin: on bass guitar, Steve Gadd: drums, Eric Gale & Hugh McCraken: guitars and the secret weapon of Richard Tee: piano and vocals.

Paul, has delivered some of his greatest writing for this project: "Nobody", "God Bless The Absentee", "How The Heart Approaches What It Yearns" & "That's Why God Made The Movies". This crack band of players take this music to a whole nother' level, this music can be cool and detached or really funky hot, as required to set the mood. Paul, has never in his long career worked with such a great combination of players that could top these guys in the studio or live. This is as tight as only great jazz and rock veterans can be, this is just amazing music that stands right next to Paul's great words.

The live cuts: "One Trick Pony" & "Ace In The Hole" must be noted as standout recordings on a record that is packed with winners. Richard Tee, has his moments of greatness all over this record, but with: "Ace" he get's his big moment singing with Paul, and it is my favorite part of the record. Richard, is a marvel, a really fantastic talented musician, he adds so much to this music.

This version of the 1980 recording adds four bonus tracks: "Soft Parachutes" "All Because Of You" and "Spiral Highway" & "Stranded In A Limousine". The first three were recorded for the project, but couldn't fit on the record due to space limitations of the LP, "Limousine" has been featured on many of Paul's, "Best Of" & "Greatest Hits" collections.
All four bonus tracks are up to the standards of the rest of this work, and they do not detract from the flow of this great recording, it's good to have them included.

I have enjoyed Paul Simon's music for over 40 years running, this record is my very favorite by him..."One Trick Pony"
4.5 Stars!!!

Paul Simon is truly an American Icon. 'One Trick Pony' is not the first album that comes to mind in his extensive cannon. ("How terribly strange to be 70") Who would have thought that he would still be making quality, relevant music 50 years on? I ignored this album when it first came out, but that was my loss. The first song, "Late in the Evening" appears on later compilations, but it seemed pretentious to me when I first heard it. What part it plays in the movie, I don't know, but the song, and the album, has withstood the test of time. Stand out tracks include "How the heart approaches what it Yearns", "Jonah" and the bonus track "Stranded in a Limousine".

Whenever I hear Paul Simon fans talk about his music, it's usually about his duet days with Art Garfunkel, or his solo effort on "Graceland." They rarely -- if ever -- mention "One Trick Pony," which by far, is my favorite album.

I wasn't really feeling Simon before I heard "One Trick Pony." I knew his hits from the 60s, and liked them -- but at the time I was a kid. At the time, "You Can Call Me Al" was a huge hit, constantly being replayed on the radio -- and I hated it. Now, it only brings up nostalgic memories.

I came to appreciate Paul Simon's as an artist when I first watched the movie, "One Trick Pony," on Bravo in the 1990s. (At the time, Bravo was still an indie movie channel before General Electric/NBC bought them out and changed the station's format.) Although I remembered little of the movie's plot (I only know it was loosely based on Paul Simon's life) the music stayed with me. Sometimes Simon's songs were bluesy and introspective; other times, they were funky, bold and assertive (something I didn't normally think about when listening to Paul Simon's music.) The songs were really, really good -- so good, I bought the album and played it on constant repeat. My old copy finally gave away in 2000, and devastated, I went out and purchased another one.

I like this album, Simon shows his true range and mastery as an artist. His genius, in my opinion, is in his confessional storytelling style. There is a naivety, sweetness and honesty in his voice and music -- which sometimes reminds me of Greek fables, at other times bedtime stories of modern day experience. This album made me truly fall in love with Simon as an artist.

I really enjoy this album. I like Paul Simon's voice and delivery quite a bit. This medley of integrated melodic Rock and Jazz rhythms on these songs is pretty catchy and has a distinct sound all their own. There is a lot of movement here on some of these songs. "Late In The Evening" rocks and stills blow me away. "One-Trick Pony" and "Ace In The Hole" are just so cool. "How The Heart Approaches What It Yearns" is such tender and melancholic jazz. This is one of my favorite Paul Simon albums and it certainly has transcended the test of time. I always found it amusing that this was a soundtrack to his film but I cannot even remember the film any more. However, the songs still endearingly linger. I suppose it is good to have the extra tracks and this is the Compact Disc currently available but I still enjoy listening to my LP of the original release of the album.