There Goes Demoin’ Paul Simon Spotify Playlist

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Paul Simon this week announced the upcoming release of a new album called Stranger To Stranger. The 11-track standard edition and 16-track deluxe edition will be released via Concord Records on June 3. A master of composition, Simon’s process for creating new songs is the theme for this week’s Saturday Stream Spotify Playlist.

For Stranger To Stranger Simon teamed with longtime collaborator Roy Halee, producer on such popular solo Simon albums as 1972’s Paul Simon, 1973’s There Goes Rhymin’ Simon and 1986’s Graceland. Those three LPs, as well as selections from 1975’s Phil Ramone co-produced Still Crazy After All These Years and 1990’s self-produced The Rhythm Of The Saints, serve as sources of early iterations of many of Simon’s most well-known songs found within the playlist.

Still-developing recordings of “Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard” and “Duncan” from Paul Simon are featured along with There Goes Rhymin’ Simon demos of “American Tune” and “Love Me Like A Rock.” Work-in-progress artifacts of “Gone At Last” and “Slip Slidin’ Away” from the Still Crazy After All These Years sessions can be heard alongside demos for “Homeless,” “You Can Call Me Al” and “Crazy Love” from Graceland, as well as “Born At The Right Time” from The Rhythm Of The Saints.

Each presented in various forms of completion, the 10 songs below offer a look into the creative process of one of the greatest songwriters to ever grace the land with his tunes. Following the demos are the fully completed versions of the tracks as they were originally issued, listen here: