Paul Simon took the stage at Magness Arena on Tuesday night in jeans, sneakers, a black baseball cap and a maroon sweater, looking every bit his 64 years. But the legendary musician, who has dipped his feet in everything from folk-rock to zydeco, didn’t quite act it.
His diminutive frame danced, careened and occasionally hopped around the wide stage, clearly becoming more energized as the night progressed. Backed by a multi-instrumentalist septet, he interpreted songs spanning the past 35 years of his storied career.
Light on the Simon & Garfunkel years, mind you, but as diverse as it was generous.
The versatility of the band – which corralled two full drum kits, a squeeze box, washboard, horns and myriad guitars – was proven early. Newer songs such as “Outrageous” didn’t hold a candle to hits like “You Can Call Me Al,” which brought down the house during one of several encores.
But reproducing the magic of a Grammy-winning album is no small feat, and Simon would be forgiven for resting on his laurels.
Fortunately, he’s managed to avoid that for the most part, making courageous if sometimes misguided forays into South African, Brazilian and other world- music genres.
The crowd responded well to the better-known of those songs – especially those from “Graceland” – but it also clearly loved Simon’s smooth ’70s hits.
Of those, “Still Crazy After All These Years” and “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” sounded best, the audience jumping to its feet during the latter, pumping fists and shouting along.
Simon’s adroit acoustic picking and impassioned vocals didn’t hurt either.
“Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover” and “Mrs. Robinson” also balanced the phrasing of the originals with the fact that Simon has probably played them a thousand times.
His distinctively sandy voice hit all the right notes, able to stave off the ravages of constant performing for the time being.
The energy of the largely middle-aged crowd picked up as the night went on, perhaps feeding off Simon’s, perhaps feeding it.
The show proved that regardless of Simon’s missteps and flat-out boring periods, he still knows how to deliver in concert, a kid with his hand in every colorful genre at the candy store.
Staff writer John Wenzel can be reached at 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com.
