American singer-songwriter Paul Simon announced his musical comeback at the age of 81 with a new album, Seven Psalms (Seven Psalms)which will be on sale at May 19th.
“Intended to be heard as a continuous piece, this 33-minute, seven-movement composition transcends the concept of an album,” states the artist’s website.
It is the first album that Simon has presented in five yearsAfter In the blue light (2018), in which he reinterpreted his career hits with jazz musicians.
Simon himself explains it in a video Seven Psalms It is the result of a dream he had in early 2019 and after that he got up at dawn several times a week with ideas and words he wrote down.
“The whole piece is a debate with myself about whether to believe it or not,” says the songwriter in one of the scenes, which shows the recording process with instruments and with other artists such as his wife, Eddie Brickell.
The video is a preview of a movie, In restless dreamsdirected by documentarian Alex Gibney.
Sell your catalog
In 2021, Sony Music Publishing has announced that it has purchased all of Paul Simon’s songswhose musical career spans more than six decades and who was part of the legendary duo Simon & Garfunkel.
While the price Sony has paid for the music catalog hasn’t been revealed, it is known to include both iconic songs and The sound of silence and Mrs. Robinson, from her time at Simon & Garfunkel, as pieces she has released during her solo career, such as 50 ways to leave your lover and those that are part of the album graceland.
“To be entrusted with (Simon’s) songs and the music he has recorded is a tremendous artistic privilege for Sony Music Group globally,” company president Rob Stringer said in a statement.
“Paul Simon is a once-in-a-lifetime master composer whose work has generated a lasting influence on our culture and consciousness,” said Sony Music Publishing CEO John Platt, who described his songs as “indelible.”
For his part, Simon explained in the text that he started his career at Columbia/Sony Records, so it seemed “natural” to sell his songs to the same company.
Simon thus joined other great artists who have sold all their songs to multinational record companies, such as Bob Dylan, which received $400 million from Universal Music Publishing Group; Neil Young AND stevie nick.
Since forming in 1964, Simon & Garfunkel have released five studio albums and sold more than 100 million copies.
After the duo split in 1970, Simon embarked on a solo career and received 16 Grammy Awards for his work in the music industry.
Source: Clarin
