Stranger to Stranger

Simon began writing new material shortly after releasing his twelfth studio album, So Beautiful or So What, in April 2011. Simon collaborates with the Italian electronic dance music artist Clap! Clap! on three songs—"The Werewolf", "Street Angel", and "Wristband". Simon was introduced to him by his son, Adrian, who was a fan of his work. The two met up in July 2011 when Simon was touring behind So Beautiful or So What in Milan, Italy. He and Clap! Clap! worked together via email over the course of making the album. Simon also worked with longtime friend Roy Halee, who is listed as co-producer on the album. Halee, who had retired years earlier, was mostly recruited to advise on how to create natural echo. He was unfamiliar with Pro Tools, so Simon helped him with it. "I always liked working with him more than anyone else," Simon noted.

Andy Greene of Rolling Stone dubbed Stranger to Stranger an "experimental album heavy on echo and rhythm that fuses electronic beats with African woodwind instruments, Peruvian drums, a gospel music quartet, horns and synthesizers."{{cite magazine|title=Inside Paul Simon's Genre-Bending New Album Stranger to Stranger|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/inside-paul-simons-genre-bending-new-album-stranger-to-stranger-20160407|author=Andy Greene|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=April 7, 2016|access-date=April 7, 2016}} The album makes use of custom-made instruments, such as the Cloud-Chamber Bowls and the Chromelodeon, which were created by music theorist Harry Partch in the mid-twentieth century. Simon briefly moved the sessions to Montclair State University, where the instruments are stored, in 2013 in order to employ them on the album. "Parch said there were 43 tones to an octave and not 12," Simon remarked in Rolling Stone. "He had a totally different approach to what music is and had to build his own instruments so he could compose on a microtonal scale. That microtonal thinking pervades this album."

"The Werewolf" centers around a werewolf, also an angel of death, who is looking for victims. The song's origins came from Simon and his band experimenting with slowing down the tempo of a recording they made of the Peruvian percussion instrument Cajón, the Indian instrument gopichand, and hand claps. "Wristband" creates a narrative around a rock musician unable to gain entry into his own concert because he lacks the wristband required. "The Riverbank" was inspired by a teacher that Simon personally knew who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December 2012. It also takes root in a visit Simon made to wounded veterans at Walter Reed Hospital. "Proof of Love" and "In the Garden of Edie", meanwhile, stand as tributes to Simon's wife, musician Edie Brickell. The album also has continuity, with characters reappearing in songs. "The idea of finishing one song and having the character appear in another song appeals to me. I don't see why characters shouldn't appear more than once," said Simon. The instrumentals "The Clock" and "In the Garden of Edie" function as interludes, designed to give listeners "space." The two tracks were originally composed for John Patrick Shanley's play Prodigal Son, but went unused.

Stranger to Stranger was first announced when Simon announced his tour dates in February 2016.{{cite magazine|title=Paul Simon Plots Expansive Tour Ahead of New Album Stranger to Stranger|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/paul-simon-plots-expansive-tour-ahead-of-new-album-stranger-to-stranger-20160222|author=Andy Greene|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=February 22, 2016|access-date=April 7, 2016}} It was officially announced with the lead single "Wristband" premiering online on April 7, 2016.{{cite magazine|title=Paul Simon Announces New Album 'Stranger to Stranger;' Hear First Single, 'Wristband'|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/rock/7325487/paul-simon-new-album-stranger-to-stranger-song-wristband-tour|author= Colin Stutz |magazine=Billboard|date=April 7, 2016|access-date=April 7, 2016}}

{{Music ratings

| ADM = 7.9/10{{cite web|title=Stranger To Stranger by Paul Simon reviews|publisher=AnyDecentMusic?|url=http://www.anydecentmusic.com/review/8065/Paul-Simon-Stranger-To-Stranger.aspx|access-date=October 13, 2019}}

| MC = 85/100

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine|title=Stranger to Stranger – Paul Simon|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/stranger-to-stranger-mw0002937012|access-date=June 3, 2016|publisher= AllMusic}}

| rev2 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev2Score = A−

| rev3 = The Guardian

| rev3Score = {{Rating|5|5}}

| rev4 = The Independent

| rev4Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev5 = The Irish Times

| rev5Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite news|last=Breen|first=Joe|date=May 26, 2016|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/album-of-the-week-paul-simon-s-stranger-to-stranger-profound-and-searching-1.2660207|title=Album of the Week: Paul Simon's Stranger to Stranger – profound and searching|newspaper=The Irish Times|access-date=October 9, 2016}}

| rev6 = Pitchfork

| rev6Score = 7.2/10{{cite web|last=Powell|first=Mike|date=June 9, 2016|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/21978-stranger-to-stranger/|title=Paul Simon: Stranger to Stranger|work=Pitchfork|access-date=October 9, 2016}}

| rev7 = Rolling Stone

| rev7Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev8 = Spin

| rev8Score = 6/10{{cite web|last=Weiss|first=Dan|date=June 8, 2016|url=http://www.spin.com/2016/06/review-paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger/|title=Review: Paul Simon Is Still Filling Out a (Corporeal) Form on 'Stranger to Stranger'|work=Spin|access-date=October 9, 2016}}

| rev9 = USA Today

| rev9Score = {{Rating|4|4}}{{cite news|last=Gardner|first=Elysa|title=Review: Paul Simon embraces a troubled world on 'Stranger To Stranger'|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2016/06/03/paul-simon-review-stranger-to-stranger/85243342/|date=June 4, 2016|access-date=June 4, 2016|work=USA Today}}

| rev10 = Vice

| rev10Score = A−{{cite web|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=June 24, 2016|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/robert-christgau-paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger/|title=Believe It or Not, Paul Simon Is Still Making Music: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau|work=Vice|access-date=October 9, 2016}}

}}

Stranger to Stranger received widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 85, based on 25 reviews.{{cite web|title=Reviews for Stranger to Stranger by Paul Simon|publisher=Metacritic|url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/stranger-to-stranger/paul-simon|access-date=June 3, 2016}} In Rolling Stone, Will Hermes said it was "as inviting, immaculately produced, jokey and unsettled a record as any he has ever made",{{cite magazine|title=Stranger to Stranger|last=Hermes|first=Will|author-link=Will Hermes|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger-20160607|date=June 7, 2016|access-date=June 8, 2016|magazine=Rolling Stone}} while The Guardian{{'s}} Jon Dennis found the album "as rewarding as anything" Simon had recorded before, showcasing a "tenacious pursuit of new sounds".{{cite news|title=Paul Simon: Stranger to Stranger review – a five-star tour through new sounds|last=Dennis|first=Jon|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/02/paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger-review|date=June 2, 2016|access-date=June 3, 2016|work=The Guardian}} Jonathan Bernstein of Entertainment Weekly called Stranger to Stranger "one of his very boldest collections to date", an album "brimming with concepts and sounds that push Simon’s musical boundaries further than ever".{{cite magazine|title=Paul Simon's Stranger to Stranger: EW Review|last=Bernstein|first=Jonathan|url=http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/03/paul-simon-stranger-stranger-ew-review|date=June 3, 2016|access-date=June 3, 2016|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160606035434/http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/03/paul-simon-stranger-stranger-ew-review|archive-date=June 6, 2016|url-status=dead}}

Randy Lewis from the Los Angeles Times believed the record was "pop music at its most artful and relevant, a sentiment from a septuagenarian representative of rock’s old guard that's arguably as potent as anything from seemingly more streetwise artists one-third his age".{{cite news|title=Paul Simon returns with the exquisite 'Stranger to Stranger'|last=Lewis|first=Randy|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-paul-simon-review-stranger-to-stranger-20160527-snap-story.html|date=June 1, 2016|access-date=June 3, 2016|work=Los Angeles Times}} The Independent{{'s}} Andy Gill hailed it as Simon's "best in several years",{{cite news|title=Paul Simon – Stranger To Stranger, album review: Ruminations on inequality wrapped in a joyous album|last=Gill|first=Andy|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/music-magazine/album-previews/paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger-album-review-ruminations-on-inequality-wrapped-in-a-joyous-album-a7060021.html|date=June 1, 2016|access-date=June 3, 2016|work=The Independent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160602062222/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/music-magazine/album-previews/paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger-album-review-ruminations-on-inequality-wrapped-in-a-joyous-album-a7060021.html|archive-date=June 2, 2016|url-status=dead}} and Steve Smith of The Boston Globe considered it his "richest, most instantly appealing collection since Graceland (1986)".{{cite news|title=New album is Paul Simon's best since 'Graceland'|last=Smith|first=Steve|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/music/2016/06/01/caffeine-and-creative-wanderlust-produce-paul-simon-best-since-graceland/peEqojIUVdOEAbZTT3r14H/story.html|date=June 2, 2016|access-date=June 3, 2016|work=The Boston Globe}} Dan Weiss was somewhat less impressed in Spin, lamenting the music's "novelty electronics", which he said "make everything feel sillier than it is (not inherently a bad thing), but they also fail to get into a groove (which is)".

The album debuted at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart, selling 19,218 copies in its first week. At the age of 74, Paul Simon was the oldest male solo artist to chart at No. 1 in the UK. It is his first No. 1 studio album since 1990's The Rhythm of the Saints.{{cite web|last1=Jones|first1=Alan|title=Official Charts Analysis: Paul Simon nets seventh No.1 album|url=http://www.musicweek.com/analysis/read/official-charts-analysis-paul-simon-nets-seventh-no-1-album/065033|work=Music Week|access-date=13 June 2016|date=10 June 2016}} In the United States, Stranger to Stranger debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 68,000 units. The album was the overall best-selling album for the week based on pure album sales (67,000 copies). It is Simon's highest charting album in over 29 years, since Graceland (1986).which peaked at No. 3 in 1986{{cite magazine

| url=http://www.billboard.com/

| title=Artist Chart History – Paul Simon

| magazine=Billboard

| access-date=2010-12-13}}{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/7401269/drake-views-billboard-200-paul-simon-stranger-to-stranger|title=Drake's 'Views' Album No. 1 for Sixth Week on Billboard 200, Paul Simon Debuts at No. 3|magazine=Billboard}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Stranger to Stranger {{nobold|– Standard edition}}

| all_writing = Paul Simon

| title1 = The Werewolf

| length1 = 3:25

| title2 = Wristband

| length2 = 3:17

| title3 = The Clock

| length3 = 1:02

| title4 = Street Angel

| length4 = 2:11

| title5 = Stranger to Stranger

| length5 = 4:35

| title6 = In a Parade

| length6 = 2:21

| title7 = Proof of Love

| length7 = 5:44

| title8 = In the Garden of Edie

| length8 = 1:48

| title9 = The Riverbank

| length9 = 4:11

| title10 = Cool Papa Bell

| length10 = 4:02

| title11 = Insomniac's Lullaby

| length11 = 4:33

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Stranger to Stranger {{nobold|– Deluxe edition}}{{cite web |last1=Erlewine |first1=Stephen Thomas |title=Paul Simon: Stranger to Stranger [Deluxe Edition] |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/release/stranger-to-stranger-deluxe-edition-mr0004550070 |website=AllMusic |publisher=RhythmOne group |quote=Release date: June 3, 2016}}

| title12 = Horace and Pete

| length12 = 2:30

| title13 = Duncan

| note13 = live from A Prairie Home Companion February 2016

| length13 = 4:43

| title14 = Wristband

| note14 = live from A Prairie Home Companion

| length14 = 3:28

| title15 = Guitar Piece 3

| length15 = 1:10

| title16 = New York Is My Home

| note16 = with Dion

| writer16 = {{Flatlist |

• Dion DiMucci
• Mike Aquilina
• Scott Kempner

}}

| length16 = 4:30

}}

• Paul Simon – vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, autoharp, baritone guitar, bass harmonica, celeste, chromelodeon, clock, glockenspiel, gopichand, harmonium, mbira, percussion, twelve-string guitar
• Bobby Allende – congas
• David Broome – chromelodeon
• C.J. Camerieri – French horn, trumpet
• Clap! Clap! – electronic drums, programming, synthesizer
• Jack DeJohnette – drums (tracks 9 and 11)
• Dean Drummond – bamboo marimba, zoomoozophone
• Dave Eggar – cello
• Alan Ferber, Wycliffe Gordon – trombone
• Gil Goldstein – string arrangements
• Golden Gate Quartet – backing vocals
• Nelson González – maracas, très
• Jamey Haddad – brushes, hadjira, percussion
• Paul Halley – Hammond organ
• Carlos Henriquez, Bakithi Kumalo – bass guitar
• Katie Kresek – viola
• Steve Marion – slide guitar
• Sergio Martínez – handclaps, percussion
• Bobby McFerrin, Keith Montie – backing vocals
• Nico Muhly – celeste, orchestra bells, horn and flute arrangements
• Vincent Nguini – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
• Jim Oblon – drums, programming, electronic drums, percussion
• Nino de los Reyes – handclaps, percussion
• Oscar de los Reyes – handclaps, percussion
• Marcus Rojas – tuba
• Mick Rossi – glockenspiel, harmonium, piano, Fender Rhodes
• Andy Snitzer – saxophone, backing vocals
• Jared Soldiviero – bamboo marimba, bowed marimba, cloud chamber bowls, harmonic canon
• Alex Sopp – flute
• Mark Stewart – big boing mbira, trombadoo

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{{Certification Table Top}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|artist=Paul Simon|title=Stranger to Stranger|award=Silver|type=album|relyear=2016|certyear=2016|id=14028-3439-2}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true | noshipments=true | streaming=true}}

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{{reflist}}

• {{Official website|http://paulsimon.com/}}

{{Paul Simon}}

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Category:2016 albums

Category:Paul Simon albums

Category:Albums produced by Roy Halee

Category:Albums produced by Paul Simon

Category:Experimental music albums by American artists