Seven years after wrapping up his Homeward Bound Farewell Tour with a hometown concert in Queens, New York, Paul Simon is returning to the road. He’ll be supporting his 2023 LP Seven Psalms, which is a single 33-minute acoustic track divided into seven distinct segments. The tour kicks off April 4 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and wraps up Aug. 3 in Seattle, Washington. Ticket sales begin Feb. 21.
According to a press release, the show will feature the first live performance of Seven Psalms along with “a celebration of his timeless classics.” He’ll be backed by Caleb Burhans (viola), Jamey Haddad (percussion), Gyan Riley (guitar), Mick Rossi (piano, keys), Andy Snitzer (saxophone), Nancy Stagnita (flute), Mark Stewart (guitar), and Eugene Friesen (Cello). Steve Gadd and Matt Chamberlin will alternate on drums.
Simon lost most of the hearing in his left ear a couple years ago and feared he’d never be able to play live again. But working with the Stanford Initiative to Cure Hearing Loss, and his own production team, Simon has created a new monitor setup that makes it possible. The tour is solely hitting intimate theaters with pristine acoustics since the setup wouldn’t be practical in larger spaces.
When Simon announced his farewell tour in 2018, he indicated that he’d never again hit the road. “I’ve often wondered what it would feel like to reach the point where I’d consider bringing my performing career to a natural end,” he said. “Now I know: it feels a little unsettling, a touch exhilarating, and something of a relief.” Like many artists before him, he had a change of heart once the tour came to and end. Just one year later, he headlined the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco, and played a pair of shows in Maui.
Last year, he played a seven-song Soho Sessions set in New York. And just a couple of days ago, he opened up Saturday Night Live’s 50th Anniversary Special by performing “Homeward Bound” with Sabrina Carpenter. Simon reunited with Garfunkel on the second episode of SNL back in 1975, but his old partner didn’t make a repeat appearance even though they recently mended fences after a decade-long estrangement.
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In a November 2024 interview with Rolling Stone, Garfunkel said he’d be interested in performing live with Simon at least one last time. “You never know,” he said. “It was always the case where when we would hang out, and he would say, ‘Let me show you what I’ve been working on lately.’ And he’d take out the guitar and he would play something. And I would fall for it because he is a genius.”
A Quiet Celebration Tour Dates
April 4 – New Orleans, LA @ Saenger Theater
April 5 – New Orleans, LA @ Saenger Theater
April 8 – Austin, TX @ Bass Concert Hall
April 10 – Austin, TX @ Bass Concert Hall
April 11 – Austin, TX @ Bass Concert Hall
April 14 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
April 16 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
April 17 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
April 20 – Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theatre
April 22 – Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theatre
April 23 – Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theatre
April 26 – Kansas City, MO @ Midland Theatre
April 28 – St. Louis, MO @ Stifel Theatre
April 29 – St. Louis, MO @ Stifel Theatre
May 7 – Dallas TX @ AT&T Performing Arts Center
May 8 – Dallas TX @ AT&T Performing Arts Center
May 11 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
May 13 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
May 14 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
May 17 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater
May 18 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater
May 21 – Chicago, IL @ Symphony Center
May 23 – Chicago, IL @ Symphony Center
May 24 – Chicago, IL @ Symphony Center
May 27 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
May 29 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
May 30 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
June 6 – Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap
June 7 – Vienna, VA @ Wolf Trap
June 10 – Boston, MA @ Boch Center, Wang Theatre
June 12 – Boston, MA @ Boch Center, Wang Theatre
June 13 – Boston, MA @ Boch Center, Wang Theatre
June 16 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
June 18 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
June 20 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
June 21 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
June 23 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theater
June 26 – Philadelphia, PA @ Academy of Music
June 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ Academy of Music
June 29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Academy of Music
July 7 – Long Beach CA @ Terrace Theater, Long Beach Performing Arts Center
July 9 – Los Angeles, CA @ Disney Hall
July 11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Disney Hall
July 12 – Los Angeles, CA @ Disney Hall
July 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Disney Hall
July 16 – Los Angeles, CA @ Disney Hall
July 19 – San Francisco, CA @ Davies Symphony Hall
July 21 – San Francisco, CA @ Davies Symphony Hall
July 22 – San Francisco, CA @ Davies Symphony Hall
July 25 – Vancouver BC @ The Orpheum
July 26 – Vancouver BC @ The Orpheum
July 28 – Vancouver BC @ The Orpheum
July 31 – Seattle, WA @ Benaroya Hall
Aug. 2 – Seattle, WA @ Benaroya Hall
Aug. 3 – Seattle, WA @ Benaroya Hall
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