The third new studio album of
Paul Simon
's post-
Simon & Garfunkel
career was a musical and lyrical change of pace from his first two,
and
There Goes Rhymin' Simon
. Where
Simon
had taken an eclectic approach before, delving into a variety of musical styles and recording all over the world,
Still Crazy
found him working for the most part with a group of
jazz-pop
New York session players, though he did do a couple of tracks (
"My Little Town"
"Still Crazy After All These Years"
) with the
Muscle Shoals
rhythm section that had appeared on
Rhymin' Simon
and another (
"Gone at Last"
) returned to the
gospel
style of earlier songs like
"Loves Me Like a Rock."
Of course,
also marked a return to working with
Art Garfunkel
, and another Top Ten entry for
S&G
. But the overall feel of
was of a jazzy style subtly augmented with strings and horns. Perhaps more striking, however, was
's lyrical approach. Where
was the work of a confident family man,
came off as a post-divorce album, its songs reeking of smug self-satisfaction and romantic disillusionment. At their best, such sentiments were undercut by humor and made palatable by musical hooks, as on
"50 Ways to Leave Your Lover,"
which became the biggest solo hit of
's career. But elsewhere, as on
"Have a Good Time,"
the singer's cynicism seemed unearned. Still, as out of sorts as
may have been, he was never more in tune with his audience:
topped the charts, spawned four Top 40 hits, and won Grammys for Song of the Year and Best Vocal Performance. ~ William Ruhlmann