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| Headline | Citizen Of The Planet |
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| Author | Comment |
David
Nov-06-2005, 13:10 GMT
IP:
Germany
 | Ok everybody! This song has now been out officially for about a year. By now you must all have had time to form an opinion.
For me, this song has had time to mature and grow on me in the past 12 months. To such an extent that it has become one of my firm favourites. Now at first I didn´t really like it, and placed it in my mind next to Roving Gambler, Bleus Run TG et al. But 12 months on......I just can´t stop listening to it. One of their greatest "hits"! Am I alone....? |
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Callista
Nov-06-2005, 17:49 GMT
IP:
USA - United Staates America
 | No,you are not alone. That song is the very first song I put into my ipod. I have no idea why such a fantastic song was noy a hit. (I wish there was a video for it.) |
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David
Nov-06-2005, 23:06 GMT
IP:
Germany
| Well I don´t think it was ever released as a single. In fact the only place that I believe it to have been officially availbable is at the end of the Live MSG Old Friends CD. Anybody know any better? |
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Nikki
Nov-11-2005, 03:50 GMT
IP:
Canada
 | I concur wholeheartedly. I was kind of indifferent to it at first but the more I listened to it the more i loved it. With me, that´s how it is for most of my "favorite" songs...i listen to it once or twice an think "meh, it´s alright" but as i listen to it more it´s like "damn this is a good song!" So yeah David you are definetly not alone!! |
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Denise
Nov-11-2005, 16:57 GMT
IP:
USA - United Staates America
| I read somwwhere that he sang the song but it had different lyrics. I have tried to find the song with other lyrics but have not found any. Does anyone else know anything about this? I for one always loved the song and could relate to it right away. Top song in my favorites. |
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mark
Nov-11-2005, 17:21 GMT
IP:
Netherlands
 | i think it´s a great song, very moody, and it deserves a better faith than being a bonus track on the Old Friends cd, which is, imho, a bit disapointing. but i think paul has always had a gift for ´hiding´ great tracks(Thelma, Stranded In A Limousine, etc.) |
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Callista
Nov-11-2005, 18:30 GMT
IP:
USA - United Staates America
| Denise, the song was originally written for the Hearts And Bones album. It is an "older" song that was resurrected for the Old Friends album. Perhaps at the time it was written in the early 80´s it had a few different lyrics. I am sure that Paul updated it for this era :) |
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Bodo
Nov-13-2005, 18:39 GMT
IP:
Austria
 | The only time Paul performed parts of this song was at the David Letterman show (in 1983)
It was not planned that he will play that song, David asked if Paul could play another song - and then Paul said ok, he will play an unfinished song. The song has a verses and a chorus, but I still didn´t write the chorus.
So he only sang the first verse. He said that he wants to finish the song in the next 3 - 4 weeks because he want to play the song live at some S&G concerts... but he never finished the song then :-) |
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Klausi
Nov-15-2005, 07:47 GMT
IP:
Germany
| When David Letterman had asked for another song (with a guitar not Paul Simons own, so the decision to sing at all must have been shortly before the show and Paul had trouble with this guitar when singing "The late great...", even interrupted it), Paul asked "Maybe we should sing a song together?".
"No", said Letterman, "not even if it would ensure world peace!"
"That´s funny", said Simon, "because I`m working on a song for the nuclear disarmament-movement, wasn`t planning to do this, and only have the chorus".
Then he sang it, much slower and better than in 2003 with AG (for me then in a sound planned to be similar to mid-60`s S&G-Songs).
The line "easy dreams at the end of the day" was "peaceful dreams at the end of the day", otherwise it was the same chorus.
I´m sure he finished the song around that time, but decided not to include a political song on Hearts And Bones, as he did on BOTW and excluded "Cuba si, Nixon no."
He surely did not write the verses in 2003 for a S&G-song!
He once mentioned in the 80`s "Citizen of the Planet" would have been a good song for Bob Dylan, as he is expected and got famous making political statements. |
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Ans
Nov-15-2005, 10:22 GMT
IP:
Netherlands
| Hi Klausi,
everytime I read your messages I´m amazed. You know so many details, how did you become such an expert?
Your messages give a great insight in Paul´s career. |
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Bodo
Nov-15-2005, 11:03 GMT
IP:
Austria
| You are right, he must have finished the song in that time - at least the lyrics. What I meant to say is that I think he never finished the song to perfection (the music).. he may have stopped at some point when he´s already done the melody and some rough instrument parts.
I have to admit I don´t like that new version. Because it is so strange - not much has been said official about that song in the last 2 years. And Paul´s lyrics are not new, he doesn´t sound like Paul today - his part is from the year 1983.
So what have they done to that song in 2003 - they have add ´some´ Art Garfunkel voices (and no, I can´t hear much of them) and played an (for me)uncreative and extreme easy melody to it. The whole thing sounds like as if it was made during an early afternoon session in 25 minutes. Paul was for a short moment on the toilet and the musicians finished the song meanwhile ;-)
Well, it is like taking an 40 years Old Elvis Presley tape and mix some disco-rhythm to it. Hurray, we have a new Elvis Presley song :-)
Ok - what I meant to say is: They could have made more with that song - better melody, better instruments, play it live.... a lot. |
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Klausi
Nov-15-2005, 11:19 GMT
IP:
Germany
| Thank you. In this case I simply have the show on Video in bad quality.
Paul was very (unusual) relaxed this time.
They talked about the Concert In The Park and about the dangerous situation when that guy came on stage saying "I have to talk to you..." during "The late great...".
When he was forced to interrupt the song in this show again he asked, whether he should perform this song at all.
He also said, when the "Did AG ever get on your nerves" - question came:
"Not oftenly, more periodically; I mean, when we are together, then every day"...
It was between the two sections of the big S&G-tour 1982/83, and we know, Paul really did not enjoy it. |
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Klausi
Nov-15-2005, 11:44 GMT
IP:
Germany
| Hi Bodo, my reply was to Ans and yours to mine; I think you are both at least as good experts as I am. Maybe the difference is, I am as interested in the things of the 70`s and early 80`s as in the later Simon-stuff and have a Video-recorder since 1979.
Regarding "Citizen of the planet" I share Bodo`s opinion.
It sounds like 1966, after the album "SOS" and before "Parsley...", by far not as good as "America", "Mrs. Robinson" or "The Boxer". |
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Bodo
Nov-15-2005, 12:08 GMT
IP:
Austria
| You´re memory is much better Klausi, really :-) It sounds like as if you´ve watched the Letterman show just today.
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