Surprise

Performer: Paul Simon
Engineer: Chris Testa; Claudius Mittendorfer; Dan Gross; Moffat, Derek; Ryan Simms; Zach McNees; Bryan Smith; Dan Bucchi; Laurence Brazil; Scrap Marshall; Jimmy Briggs; Mike Peters; Andy Smith; Bryan Russell; Charlie Paakkari
Producer: Paul Simon; Paul Simon
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Personnel: Paul Simon (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Paul Simon (vocals); Adrian Simon, Adriana Simon, Jessy Dixon Singers (vocals); Alex Al (bass instrument); Abraham Laboriel, Sr., Pino Palladino (bass guitar); Andy Smith (programming); Vincent Nguini (acoustic guitar); Bill Frisell (electric guitar); Herbie Hancock (piano); Gil Goldstein (harmonium, keyboards); Leo Abrahams (fretless bass); Robin Dimaggio, Steve Gadd (drums); Jamey Haddad (percussion); Brian Eno (electronics). Audio Mixer: Tchad Blake. Recording information: Capitol studios, Los Angeles, CA; Clinton Studios, NY; Lansdowne Studios, London, England; Mayfair Studios, London, England; Ocean Way, Nashville, TN; Right Track Studios, NY; sony Studios, NY; the Hit Factory, NY. Photographers: Paul Simon; Loreto Caceres; Charles Duke; Peter Zander; Foster Witt; Laurent Millet; Paul Treacy; Jason Todd; Erika Larsen; Geoff Spear; Michael Vitti. As a master craftsman of song, Paul Simon takes his time between albums. SURPRISE arrived six years after its 2000 predecessor YOU'RE THE ONE, but proved to be well worth the wait. In the realization of a process that was already beginning on that earlier album, SURPRISE fully assimilates the international influences of GRACELAND and RHYTHM OF THE SAINTS into a style that's equally polyrhythmic yet indebted to no lone cultural tradition. It doesn't hurt that this is a historic collaboration with producer Brian Eno, who's been delving into pan-ethnic waters since 1981's MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS. For his part, Eno adds more electronics to the mix than Simon has ever employed before, but like the former's trademark, they're of a warm, organic nature. Ultimately, they add as much propulsion to the tunes as Simon's world-music percussionists of yore did, and they're fully integrated with Simon's own graceful acoustic guitar patterns. A continually evolving artist, Simon leaves structural convention ever further behind; the vocal syncopations and poetic imagery are unmistakable, but they consistently flout expectation. Lyrically, SURPRISE makes its post-9/11 and post-Katrina allusions clearly but subtly, joining with the electro-acoustic musical approach in making this an album of, but not bound to, its time.

Rolling Stone (p.229) - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "Eno outfits some of Simons' most elegant songs with spacey accouterments..." Entertainment Weekly (p.75) - "[W]ith moments of stellar songwriting....Eno finds a smart way to accent Simon's worry lines." -- Grade: A- Q (p.114) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Eno's washes of sound are present and correct. He also appears to have given Simon's still bittersweet voice a deeper, warmer timbre." Q (p.123) - Ranked #32 in Q Magazine's "100 Greatest Albums of 2006" -- "A timely reminder of the power of thinking; positive or otherwise." Mojo (Publisher) (p.100) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "Though couched in arrangements that sometimes camouflage their immediacy, the tunes are dependably strong."

Besides being one-half of pop's legendary duo Simon & Garfunkel would be enough for most people, but Paul Simon went on to reap just as much acclaim and success as a solo artist. In the 1970s, he was at the vanguard of the singer-songwriter movement, marrying brainy lyrics with sophisticated pop music. In the '80s, he was one of the first pop artists to successfully combine world music into his sound, resulting in the South African flavor of Simon's landmark GRACELAND album, and subsequent flirtations with Brazilian and Latin styles.

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