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Friday 24th March 2017

5233/18153
Prompted by reading “Homeward Bound”, the new biography of Paul Simon, I decide to track down his 1980 film, “One Trick Pony” to see what it was like. I am surprised I never did this in the late 80s or early 90s when I was most beholden to the tiny tunesmith, but I guess that back then it wasn’t so easy to find a movie, especially one that hadn’t done all that well. I did have the album, though it was probably my least favourite of his overall, though with some stand out tunes - Late in the Evening is pretty good and I loved the line (in another song and this is from memory) “Here’s to all the boys who came along - carrying soft guitars in cardboard cases, all night long - and do you wonder where those boys are gone?
I haven’t really read about it in the book yet, but now I live in a word where you can google a film and download it for free or a minimal fee, I thought I’d have a look at it.
It’s not terrible by any means and I especially liked the opening scene of a plane landing and the band moving through the airport and failing to shake off a religious nutter. This turns out to be the segment that they used for the film’s trailer. 
It’s maybe a bit too slight and ponderous but the characters (especially the guys in the band) are engaging and it has some interesting observations about being on the road and artistic integrity versus success and the elusive nature of fame. Perhaps being in show business and similarly plying my craft into middle age without the success that I might have once dreamed of, that that might mean more to me than others. But for something that clearly has elements of autobiography for Simon it feels slightly strange to me that he decides to write a film about a musician who is a noble failure, rather than one, like him, an incredible success. Perhaps in a sense it’s more dramatically interesting (though the lack of success of the film suggests that people might have preferred to see a story about success), but it sits a bit uneasily for me. Just as Extras was about someone being in a failed and compromised sitcom, written by two people who seemed to only have had success and hadn’t had to dent their own vision, this hugely successful musician, imagining himself as a talented, but hard-done by failure (admittedly partly due to his own wilfulness and self-sabotage) leaves a bit of an odd taste. But I also get  (not through personal experience this time, or at least, not my own) how being a star can make you feel detached from the artistic struggle and romanticise the life on the road of all the boys who came along. 
Whilst seeing why the film wasn’t really a hit, I did get a fair bit out of it and it wasn’t a waste of time, as most films seem to be nowadays. There wasn’t quite enough to it, but it was good to hear those songs again, even if fittingly they are not Simon’s best work. I liked them more than I remembered though. Because, you know, Paul Simon's not best work is still pretty fucking amazing work.
But I think the failures are probably more important than the successes in an artist’s life.  Certainly for artistic growth. And perhaps this film is about how both failure and success are pretty empty over all and the sadness at the heart of both.
This review is coming in a little late (in the evening). If Paul Simon means anything to you, the film is certainly worth a look. And I am pleased to live in a time where you can track down stuff like this for £2.49.


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