Paul Simon is beloved by folk fans everywhere. Both his collaborative tracks as part of Simon & Garfunkel and his solo material are seminal works. However, not everyone feels the same affection for Simon, including the three musicians, below.
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[RELATED: Making the Case for Paul Simon’s Underrated ’80s Album ‘Hearts and Bones’]
1. Patti Smith
Despite Patti Smith and Simon somewhat being cut from the same cloth–in terms of intentional songwriting– Smith has gone on record dismissing her fellow musician. “Paul Simon,” Smith once said. “I don’t even like Paul Simon. I could be extremely negative about what I think about Simon & Garfunkel songs. I just don’t like them.”
Despite her wayward feelings toward the “The Boy in the Bubble” singer, she did cover that song in 2007. “I laid aside my feelings about Paul Simon songs and did the song because I thought the lyrics said something important,” she continued in the same interview.
2. Joni Mitchell
Both Joni Mitchell and Simon could be chalked up as prosaic writers. Neither of them is too terribly worried about making their songs quippy and succinct. Despite that connection, Mitchell once explained that she felt Simon took the onslaught on lyrics too far–so much so that it had her rethinking her own songwriting.
“Paul Simon started piling up a lot of words, more than the bar could handle, and I stopped,” she explained. “If that’s what it sounds like. I better cut that out.”
3. Bob Dylan
The feeling is mutual between Simon and Bob Dylan. Both artists have taken their jabs at one another. Given the similarities between their two musical styles, it seems only apt that they might have an air of competition.
Dylan’s side of things came as he mocked Simon throughout a performance in England. Naturally, that didn’t sit well with the “Kodachrome” singer. Simon’s dig came in the form of a song, “A Simple Desultory Philippic.” In the track, Simon tries his hand at a Dylan impression, both with his voice and sonic direction.
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