Monday, September 7, 2009

Paul Simon: American Tune

SONG American Tune

SONGWRITER Paul Simon

PERFORMED BY Paul Simon

APPEARS ON There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), others

NOTE "American Tune" is essential to any Paul Simon collection. Anthologies without it should be avoided.

Back in 1973, when Paul Simon recorded "American Tune", Americans had much to worry about. The country remained bogged down in Vietnam while the body politic had become caught up in the throes of Watergate. Moreover, for idealists, the Sixties had ended in a wave of assassinations and violence culminating at Altamont. No wonder, then, that Simon pondered in "American Tune" that
I don't know a dream that's not been shattered
Or driven to its knees
He even speculated that the country had seen its best days:
But it's all right, it's all right
For we lived so well so long
Still, when I think of the road we're traveling on
I wonder what's gone wrong
But "American Tune" is not a memorable song because of its roots in a particular time and place: It remains a great song today because Simon successfully explores the gap between promise and reality, and he does it in a particularly skillful manner.

Listen to the song as alternating statements, in which the first and third verses represent the voice of the country itself; the second verse, Simon's personal testimony, and the final verse as the collective voice of an American choir. Thus, the song opens with the country feeling "forsaken", "misused", and "weary." The separation of America from its own ideals have left it feeling "far away from home."

Simon then interjects the personal observations about battered souls and general unease, wondering whether it might indeed be all over. America returns in the third verse looking down on itself, at first reassured by its "soul" but ultimately worried that its finest ideals have departed unfulfilled:
And high up above my eyes could clearly see
The Statue of Liberty
Sailing away to sea
Finally comes the closing statement, first invoking the power and successes of the American Dream:
We come on the ship they called the Mayflower
We come on the ship that sailed the moon
We come in the age's most uncertain hour
And sing an American tune
From the Mayflower to landing on the moon, America has served as a guiding light for the world, but if we don't remain vigilant, well...
You can't be forever blessed
Thus, "American Tune" serves as a cautionary statement about the dangers of straying too far from founding ideals. It's there -- not a refusal to play realpolitik or approve of the use of torture or tap phones -- lies the true danger to the republic. Perhaps the election of Barack Obama last fall was a public recognition of this. I don't want to place too much importance on a single event, but it may well have signaled a sea change that the country will no longer be run by the same coterie of the privileged. That kind of change is uplifting to some, frightening to others. But it may yet portend that our best days may not lie behind us.

LYRICS
Many's the time I've been mistaken
And many times confused
Yes, and I've often felt forsaken
And certainly misused
But I'm all right, I'm all right
I'm just weary to my bones
Still, you don't expect to be bright and bon vivant
So far away from home, so far away from home

And I don't know a soul who's not been battered
I don't have a friend who feels at ease
I don't know a dream that's not been shattered
Or driven to its knees
But it's all right, it's all right
For we lived so well so long
Still, when I think of the road we're traveling on
I wonder what's gone wrong
I can't help it, I wonder what's gone wrong

And I dreamed I was dying
I dreamed that my soul rose unexpectedly
And looking back down at me
Smiled reassuringly
And I dreamed I was flying
And high up above my eyes could clearly see
The Statue of Liberty
Sailing away to sea
And I dreamed I was crying

We come on the ship they called the Mayflower
We come on the ship that sailed the moon
We come in the age's most uncertain hour
And sing an American tune
Oh and it's all right, it's all right, it's all right
You can't be forever blessed
Still tomorrow's going to be another working day
And I'm trying to get some rest
That's all, I'm trying to get some rest


(Includes brief conversation with Dick Cavett after the song.)



New Orleans' John Boutte -- accompanied by Paul Sanchez on guitar -- performs a staggeringly beautiful version:

8 comments:

  1. Thanks for covering this song it has always been one of my very favourites. I remember him singing it at the inauguration of Jimmy Carter - it was very moving at the time.

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  2. It's a great tune, & thanks for your optimistic take on current events--not feeling that way myself, but very glad to hear optimism in the face of some really grisly right-wing campaigns these days. & thanks to Alan for mentioning that this song was played at Carter's inauguration. & I know you know it well (because I learned of it thru you), but have to mention the great John Boutte/Paul Sanchez version on "Stew Called New Orleans."

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  3. Thanks to both for the comments. Ditto on the Sanchez/Boutte version. Unfortunately, I couldn't track down an audio or video of it.

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  4. Correction -- I found a version of the Boutte-Sanchez version and added it.

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  5. What's also great about this song is that, like any really great poetry, it works on many levels. It's anthemic, could be sung as a lullaby, and certainly has comforted me through some hard times.

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  6. Paul Simon is one of the most talented musicians of his generation. He sings with such passion, and I hope one day I am lucky enough to see him in concert!

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  7. I've seen him a couple of times, and it's a real treat. He performs with a band comprised of top-notch musicians from around the world, plays long sets, and does pretty much everything you'd want him to. His last tour closed with a stunning version of "The Only Living Boy in New York." That was three ago, and I still find myself humming it!

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  8. Great song. Unfortunately, my hopes were shattered since 2008 and I have now become disillusioned (and fully aware) of the totalitarianism behind both parties. May the Bill of Rights be carried on not in politicians, but the public, who needs to champion every penstroke and serif of it.

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