Paul Simon reveals ambitions to do a full-length concert despite hearing loss
Paul Simon has shared his hopes to eventually return to playing full-length concerts despite his ongoing struggle with hearing loss.
Last year, the Simon and Garfunkel songwriter shared a health update, revealing his hearing loss problems. The musician revealed that he had lost most of the hearing in his left ear “quite suddenly,” stating that “nobody has an explanation for it.”
“My reaction to that was frustration and annoyance,” Simon recalled at the time to The Sunday Times, “not quite anger yet, because I thought it would pass, it would repair itself.” Although Simon had expected the issue to resolve itself with time, it persisted, making playing shows difficult.
Last month, the singer admitted that he wasn’t sure if he would perform live again due to his ongoing hearing issues. He spoke about his usual process of taking new records out on tour after they reach completion, before admitting, “I’m not sure how I can integrate my voice with the guitars.”
Simon recently returned to the stage for an intimate performance at 241 Centre Street in New York City to fundraise for the Stanford Initiative for Hearing Loss. He played four Simon and Garfunkel classics, including ‘Mrs. Robinson’ and ‘The Sound of Silence’, as well as three songs from his solo catalogue, including ‘Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard’.
Mark Stewart joined Simon on stage for the performance, providing cello and guitar instrumentation. After this gentle reintroduction to performing live, Simon seems more optimistic about returning to the stage in the future. In fact, he hopes to one day return to playing full gigs.
The folk singer-songwriter provided a much more hopeful statement on the matter during a conversation with The Guardian. He shared, “I’m hoping to eventually be able to do a full-length concert. I’m optimistic. Six months ago I was pessimistic.”
Simon admitted that he isn’t interested in playing “extraordinary stadium spectaculars” like his peers, and would rather focus on refreshing his songwriting abilities. “I’m interested in relearning how to write songs, like I did in England, and developing new acoustic sounds,” he explained.
The songwriter suggested that this might make him a “lone wolf,” but concluded by sharing his interest in “the conclusion of where [his] thinking in music finally ends up.”
Following his performance at the hearing loss fundraiser, Simon is yet to announce any further live dates, but he seems optimistic that there will be more to come.
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