Editing Paul Simon (section)

===1986–1992: ''Graceland'' and ''The Rhythm of the Saints''===
[[File:Miriam Makeba and Paul Simon, musicians gtfy.02537.jpg|thumb|[[Miriam Makeba]] and Simon (1986)]]

In 1986, Simon was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Music degree from [[Berklee College of Music]], where he had served on the board of trustees.<ref>{{cite web|last=Hochschild|first=Rob|title=Honorary Degree Recipients|url=http://www.berklee.edu/about/honorary.html|access-date=May 17, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Berklee Board of Trustees|url=http://www.berklee.edu/bios/trustees/|access-date=May 17, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120511182914/http://www.berklee.edu/bios/trustees|archive-date=May 11, 2012}}</ref>

Simon decided to record an album of South African music after hearing a [[Bootleg recording|bootlegged]] tape of ''[[mbaqanga]]'', South African street music,<ref name="10 Things2">{{cite magazine |last1=Runtagh |first1=Jordan |date=August 25, 2016 |title=Paul Simon's ''Graceland'': 10 Things You Didn't Know |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/paul-simons-graceland-10-things-you-didnt-know-105220/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]}}</ref> and in 1986 he traveled to [[Johannesburg]] and recorded with African musicians. Additional sessions were held in New York.<ref name="sos">{{cite web |first=Richard |last=Buskin |date=September 2008 |title=Paul Simon 'You Can Call Me Al' – Classic Tracks |url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep08/articles/classictracks_0908.htm |access-date=November 21, 2014 |work=[[Sound on Sound]]}}</ref> The sessions featured many South African acts, particularly [[Ladysmith Black Mambazo]], and Simon also collaborated with several American artists, singing a duet with [[Linda Ronstadt]] in "Under African Skies", and playing with [[Los Lobos]] in "All Around the World or The Myth of Fingerprints".<ref name="nyt862">{{cite news |first=Stephen |last=Holden |date=August 24, 1986 |title=Paul Simon Brings Home the Music of Black South Africa |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/24/arts/paul-simon-brings-home-the-music-of-black-south-africa.html |access-date=November 22, 2014}}</ref> Before leaving for Johannesburg, Simon contributed to "[[We Are the World]]", a [[Charity record|charity single]] for African famine relief.<ref name="nyt862"/>

The resulting album, ''[[Graceland (album)|Graceland]]'', became Simon's most successful studio album and his highest-charting album in over a decade. It is estimated to have sold more than 16 million copies worldwide.<ref name="salon">{{cite news |first=Ethan |last=Zuckerman |date=November 29, 2014 |title=The internet is not enough: Paul Simon's ''Graceland'', Malcolm Gladwell and the importance of real connections |work=[[Salon (website)|Salon]] |url=http://www.salon.com/2014/11/29/the_internet_is_not_enough_paul_simons_graceland_malcolm_gladwell_and_the_importance_of_real_connections/ |access-date=February 4, 2015}}</ref> ''Graceland'' won the [[1987 Grammy Awards|1987 Grammy]] for [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]]. In 2006, the album was added to the United States' [[National Recording Registry]] as "culturally, historically or aesthetically important".<ref>{{cite web |title=Complete National Recording Registry Listing |url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/national-recording-preservation-board/recording-registry/complete-national-recording-registry-listing/ |access-date=May 16, 2020 |website=Library of Congress}}</ref>

Simon was accused of breaking the [[Apartheid#Cultural boycott|cultural boycott]] imposed by the rest of the world against South Africa's [[apartheid]] regime<ref name="tg12">{{cite news |first=Robin |last=Denselow |date=April 19, 2012 |title=Paul Simon's Graceland: the acclaim and the outrage |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/apr/19/paul-simon-graceland-acclaim-outrage |access-date=November 21, 2014}}</ref> by organizations such as [[Artists United Against Apartheid]],<ref name="jones2">{{cite web |last1=Jones |first1=Lucy |date=May 31, 2012 |title=Should Paul Simon have defied a UN boycott to make Graceland in South Africa under apartheid? |url=http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture/lucyjones/100063781/should-paul-simon-have-defied-a-un-boycott-to-make-graceland-in-south-africa-under-apartheid/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120601104926/http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture/lucyjones/100063781/should-paul-simon-have-defied-a-un-boycott-to-make-graceland-in-south-africa-under-apartheid/ |archive-date=June 1, 2012 |access-date=September 28, 2013 |website=[[telegraph.co.uk]]}}</ref> anti-apartheid musicians (including [[Billy Bragg]], [[Paul Weller]] and [[Jerry Dammers]]),<ref name="denselow">{{cite web |last=Denselow |first=Robin |author-link=Robin Denselow |date=March 16, 2012 |title=Paul Simon brings Graceland back to London, 25 years after apartheid boycott row |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/mar/16/paul-simon-graceland-london |access-date=September 28, 2013 |website=[[theguardian.com]]}}</ref> and [[James Victor Gbeho]] (Ghana's [[Ambassador to the United Nations]]).<ref>{{cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=November 16, 1989 |title=100 Best Albums of the Eighties: Paul Simon "Graceland" |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-best-albums-of-the-eighties-20110418/paul-simon-graceland-20110330 |access-date=September 28, 2013 |website=[[rollingstone.com]]}}</ref> Simon denied that he had gone to South Africa to "take money out of the country" and said he paid the black artists and split royalties with them and was not paid to play to a white-only audience.<ref name="10 Things2"/> The United Nations Anti-Apartheid Committee supported ''Graceland'', as it showcased black South African musicians and offered no support to the South African government, but the [[African National Congress]] protested that it was a violation of the boycott.<ref name="jones2"/> The Congress voted to ban Simon from South Africa and he was added to the United Nations blacklist,{{sfn|Eliot|2010|p=190}} from which he was removed in January 1987.{{sfn|Eliot|2010|p=195}} In 1989, Simon appeared on [[Dion DiMucci|Dion]]'s song "Written on the Subway Wall"/"Little Star" from ''[[Yo Frankie (album)|Yo Frankie]]'', which peaked at number 97 in October 1990.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/search/singles/written-on-the-subway-wall_slash_little-star-ep/|title=written on the subway wall/little star ep &#124; full Official Chart History &#124; Official Charts Company|website=Officialcharts.com|access-date=March 24, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/videos/dion/59130/written-on-the-subway-wall.jhtml |title=Written on the Subway Wall &#124; Dion &#124; Music Video |publisher=MTV |date=January 1, 1989 |access-date=August 20, 2014 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140821014704/http://www.mtv.com/videos/dion/59130/written-on-the-subway-wall.jhtml |archive-date=August 21, 2014}}</ref>

After ''Graceland'', Simon extended his roots with the [[Culture of Brazil|Brazilian]]-flavored ''[[The Rhythm of the Saints]]''. Sessions for the album began in December 1989 in [[Rio de Janeiro]] and New York and featured guitarist [[J. J. Cale|J.J. Cale]] and Brazilian and African musicians. The album's tone is more introspective and low-key than that of ''Graceland''. Released in October 1990, the album received excellent reviews and sold well, peaking at number 4 in the U.S. and number 1 in the UK. The lead single, "The Obvious Child", featuring the Grupo Cultural [[Olodum]], became Simon's last Top 20 hit in the UK and appeared near the bottom of the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]]. Although not as successful as ''Graceland'', ''The Rhythm of the Saints'' received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. Simon's ex-wife [[Carrie Fisher]] wrote in her autobiography ''[[Wishful Drinking]]'' that the song "[[She Moves On]]" is about her: "If you can get Paul Simon to write a song about you, do it. Because he is so brilliant at it."<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o5L4qkuXdZQC&q=wishful+drinking | title=Wishful Drinking |via=Google Books | isbn=9781439153710 | access-date=July 15, 2011| last1=Fisher | first1=Carrie | date=September 8, 2009 | publisher=Simon and Schuster}}</ref>

The success of both albums allowed Simon to stage another concert in New York. On August 15, 1991, he gave a second concert in Central Park, with African and South American bands. The concert's success surpassed all expectations, and 48,500 people are estimated to have attended.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Giles|first1=Jeff|title=The Story of Paul Simon's Massive Central Park Concert|url=http://ultimateclassicrock.com/paul-simon-central-park/|website=Ultimate Classic Rock|accessdate=8 August 2017}}</ref> He later remembered the concert as "the most memorable moment in my career". Its success led to a live album and an [[Emmy]]-winning TV special. Simon embarked on the ''Born at the Right Time Tour'' and promoted the album with further singles, including "Proof", which was accompanied by a humorous video featuring [[Chevy Chase]] and [[Steve Martin]]. On March 4, 1992, Simon performed in his own episode of ''[[MTV Unplugged]].'' Simon and Garfunkel were inducted into the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] in 1990.<ref name="rockhall1" />