Paul Simon - Hearts and Bones

I pulled this out last night after a long absence. It's my favorite Paul Simon album. I have the original WB cd.

Well, it sounded FANTASTIC!! A great album and a reference redbook to boot! What a great sounding cd.

What does everyone think of the remaster? Is it worth picking up? I can't imagine it sounding better.

 

I think the remaster is great. I agree it is a fantastic record and with no airplay your not sick of any of the songs. Song About the Moon is one of my favorites.

 

No doubt about it! One of Simon's best!!! Very underrated, IMO!

BTW, I have a Quiex vinyl version that sounds very nice too!

 

Urban Legend?

Can someone tell the story of this album? I always heard it was supposed to be a Simon and Garfunkel reunion...but they had some kind of disagreement during the recording; Art's vocals were erased, and Paul put it out as a solo record...

If true, there must be a rough-mix cassette out there somewhere, with both Paul and Art singing...anyone ever heard it?

And if the story is complete BS, then please excuse my ignorance. But I was in college studying audio engineering at the time, and I found the whole idea quite fascinating...

Steve

 

My favorite Paul Simon album. I remember hearing prior to its release that it was originally planned as a Simon & Garfunkel album too. Don't remember any other details though.

Steve

 

Looks like it's urban reality.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearts_and_Bones

 

I got 5 stars out of 5 from Rolling Stone when it came out. For some reason did not sell. Title track is beautiful .

 

I remember hearing about the new S&G release and I was completely heart broken when I heard Paul erased Art's tracks. That was so devastating that I never forgave him and never bought a Paul Simon album again.

 

I believe only two have Artie on vocals, and only one is he really noticeable--the bridge on Song About the Moon. The tape is very hissy

 

Agreed, an underrated gem! My favorites being Rene and Georgette Magritte, the title song, and Train in the Distance.

 

I bought this CD on release and loved it immediately. It's still one of my favourites and still gets heavy airplay at the AudioEnz Towers.

I've never been able to imagine this as a Simon & Garfunkel album. Can people who have heard the S&G versions outline how they worked?

 

Also one of my favorite Paul Simon albums. Not too keen on the tracks "Allergies" and "Cars Are Cars", but otherwise a very brave, personal, and beautiful album.

Never heard about the Garfunkle involvement before. Very sad.

 

I was the manager of a record store in August 1983 when I pre-ordered 50 copies of THINK TOO MUCH by Simon and Garfunkel directly from our Warner Bros. rep.

Of course, THINK TOO MUCH became HEARTS AND BONES.

I've never heard the Artie tracks but I did see 'em on the '83 "reunion" tour and they were pretty good, if a bit distant with one another. Only performed one new song and I can't remember which one it was.

Great Paul Simon album that holds up despite its trendy '80s production values.

 

When the strings come in at the end of The Late Great Johnny Ace I swear the temperature drops 10 degrees.

 

These are my top picks too. Always loved this album, I can't understand why it actyually sank upon release. Maybe the rumours of 'a new S&G album' stopped people from buying when it didn't turn out that way. Or maybe it was the lack of an instant hit a la Late in the evening, that IMO saved its predecessor One trick pony. I think in the US Hearts and bones was the single, in my country it was Allergies, which charted briefly. Love that song as well, especially for the funny lyrics. Although the solo by Al DiMeola is pretty much out out place in this song, IMO.

 

I'm curious myself as to what the consensus is regarding the best sounding version on CD. The collector in me has been looking for a good cheap target CD for quite some time; is the target worth hunting for?

 

The remaster sounds good but the original CD is not far behind.
My two favourite songs from this album are "Allergies" and "The Late Great Johnny Ace."
The latter mentions both rhythm & blues singer Johnny Ace and John Lennon.

 

Most Paul Simon cd's in my collection are targets and they sound pretty good, Hearts and bones being no exception. The only remaster I've got is the Graceland cd. I'm having a hard time to point out if it sounds better than the original. It's certainly more detailed, but I also notice that the dynamics are somewhat squashed. For instance, on the original cd release the drum intro to The Boy in the Bubble comes off like thunder after the accordion part. But on the remaster the difference in dynamics somehow is smaller.
The remasters also come with bonus tracks, although I find those on Graceland not essential. Don't know if they are on Hearts and bones. Anyone?

 

It was Song About The Moon.
I agree Herts is one of Pauls' best and I've used it as a reference recording for many years. During the '83 tour they kept saying they were recording a new album but the story goes that Art's perfectionism over every little vocal part finally caused Paul to give up and release as a solo. As an aside Art's 2002 album Everything Waits to be Noticed is sublime even if it sold only 83 copies.

 

Hearts and Bones is also my favorite Paul Simon album. Everytime I hear it, I am transported back to 1983.

Great comment from Chris M RE: "The Late Great Johnny Ace." Like most people, I first heard the song in the 1981 Simon and Garfunkel Central Park Concert (during which the loony guy jumps the stage..."Paul, I need to talk to you..."). Both the finished master and the demo give me chills.

 

They were also performing Cars are Cars and Think Too Much by the end of the 1983 tour.

 

An absolutely great album!
One of Paul's best.

But why, oh why, did he put "Cars Are Cars" on it...

Clunker, anyone?


/Kent

 

Hugely underrated album. I admit I'm n ot a fan of Cars are Cars, however.

"an aside Art's 2002 album Everything Waits to be Noticed is sublime even if it sold only 83 copies."
I got number 83 and I agree. I thought it might have pointed the way forward for him, but the recent album does nothing for me (okay, it's a lot better than Rod Stewart's and George Michael's in the same vein).

 

Can someone post waveforms from the remaster? I read dozens of threads about the genesis remasters and had no clue about the sound quality until someone showed a few waveforms. Thanks