Re: Paul Simon's music--and Cab Calloway's

[Robert Cohen <rlcm17...>]

Is this (1st paragraph) statement about Paul Simon's "The Boxer" actually 
factual--i.e., known--or offered tongue-in-cheek?  Because, interestingly, 
Cab Calloway's scat singing  started when he forgot the words (as opposed 
to, but surely parallel to, not coming up w/ new ones) to a song he was 
singing on live radio; the (live, radio) audience loved his improvisatory 
filling in (apparently somewhat inspired by the cantorial singing he heard 
in his childhood Baltimore), so he "kept it in," as they say in show biz, 
and thence was a career made. -- Robert Cohen  P.S.  I don't quarrel w/ the 
2nd-paragraph statement about Paul Simon as Jew (i.e., in his music), but 
his song "Silent Eyes" is, overtly, "about" Jerusalem.  (I hope I have the 
title right.)

>From: Velaires (at) aol(dot)com
>Reply-To: jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org
>To: World music from a Jewish slant <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
>Subject: Re:  lie-lie-lie vs. die-die-die
>Date: Sat, 30 Oct 1999 20:21:13 EDT
>
>Actually, Paul couldnt think of a lyric to put there, so the nonsense
>syllables he was singing to fill the space stayed.
>
>Why is this question even being theorized upon? Paul Simon's never exactly
>been much of a Yiddishist, and nothing he's said would lead anyone to 
>believe
>there's some hidden specifically-Jewish message in his lyrics.
>
>SH
>
>

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