He began performing with his schoolfriend Art Garfunkel in 1956; together the two came to prominence in the 1960s as Simon & Garfunkel. The duo's blend of folk and rock music in hits like "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", "America", and "The Boxer" served as a soundtrack to the counterculture movement. Their career together peaked with their last album, Bridge over Troubled Water (1970), at one point the best-selling album of all time. Throughout his subsequent solo career, Simon has continued to explore an eclectic mixture of genres, including gospel, reggae, soul, and more. His celebrated 1970s output—comprising Paul Simon (1972), There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), and Still Crazy After All These Years (1975)—kept him in the public spotlight and saw critical and commercial acclaim, spawning the hits "Mother and Child Reunion", "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard", and "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover".
Across his life, Simon has intermittently reunited with Garfunkel for several tours, including the famed Concert in Central Park. The widely lauded Graceland (1986) became Simon's biggest album of his career, melding his rock sound with worldbeat flavors; its single "You Can Call Me Al" became one of Simon's top hits. A sequel of sorts, The Rhythm of the Saints (1990), preceded his own successful Concert in the Park, attended by a half-million fans. That decade, Simon focused his energies on a Broadway musical The Capeman (1997), which was poorly received. In the first quarter of the next century, Simon continued to record and tour; his later albums, such as You're the One (2000), So Beautiful or So What (2011), and Stranger to Stranger (2016), have introduced him to new generations. He retired from touring in 2018. His most recent work, Seven Psalms, will see release in May 2023.
Simon is among the most acclaimed musicians and songwriters in popular music, and one of the world's best-selling music artists, both for his solo work and with Garfunkel. He is a two-time inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and has been the recipient of sixteen Grammy Awards, including three for Album of the Year. Two of his works, Sounds of Silence and Graceland, have seen induction into National Recording Registry for their cultural significance, and in 2007, the Library of Congress crowned him the inaugural winner of the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. He is a co-founder of the Children's Health Fund, a nonprofit that provides medical care to children.
In an in-depth interview reprinted in American Songwriter, Simon discusses the craft of songwriting with music journalist Tom Moon. In the interview, Simon explains the basic themes in his songwriting: love, family and social commentary (as well as the overarching messages of religion, spirituality and God in his lyrics). Simon explains the process of how he goes about writing songs in the interview: "The music always precedes the words. The words often come from the sound of the music and eventually evolve into coherent thoughts. Or incoherent thoughts. Rhythm plays a crucial part in the lyric-making as well. It's like a puzzle to find the right words to express what the music is saying."
Love
Paul Simon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cool my fever high
Hold me when I cry
I need it so much
Makes you wanna get down and crawl
Like a beggar for its touch
And all the while
It's free as air
Love
Love
Love
We crave it so badly
Makes you want to laugh out loud when you receive it
And gobble it like candy
We think it's easy
Sometimes it's easy
But it's not easy
You're gonna break down and cry
We're not important
We should be grateful
And if you're wondering why
Why
Love
Love
Love
The price that we pay
When evil walks the planet
And love is crushed like clay
The master races, the chosen peoples
The burning temples, the weeping cathedrals
Paul Simon's song "Love" is a reflection on the universal human desire for love and the complexity of this intense emotion. The opening lines "cool me, cool my fever high, hold me when I cry, I need it so much" express the intense longing that love can evoke. The following lines paint a vivid picture of the power of love, likening it to a medicine that is everywhere and free as air. Simon's choice of metaphor is interesting; he could have likened love to a powerful drug that one pays dearly for, but instead he chooses plants, something readily available and that grows all around us.
The chorus of the song is a repetition of the word "love" multiple times, which expresses the overwhelming power and importance of this emotion. Simon comments on how easy it is to crave love and joyfully accept it when received, but acknowledges that it is not always easy to come by. He warns that seeking love may lead to moments of breaking down and crying, but one should be grateful for the opportunity to love and be loved.
In the final verse, Simon takes a different turn and speaks of the price that love may have to pay in a world overshadowed by evil. He refers to the horrors of history when people were persecuted, wars raged, and temples burned. Simon's message here may be that love is a fragile thing in a world full of hatred and pain.
Overall, Simon's lyrics effectively capture both the ecstasy and the pain that love can evoke.
Line by Line Meaning
Cool me
I need someone to calm me down
Cool my fever high
I need someone to soothe my intense emotions
Hold me when I cry
I need someone to comfort me when I'm emotional
I need it so much
I am desperate for this kind of emotional support
Makes you wanna get down and crawl
The need for love can be overwhelming and make you feel small
Like a beggar for its touch
The need for love can be intense, like a beggar seeking anything to survive
And all the while
Despite the intensity, it is always present
It's free as air
Love is something that is always accessible - like the air we breathe
Like plants, the medicine is everywhere
Just as natural remedies can be found everywhere, so can love
Love
Love
Love
Repeatedly emphasizing the importance of love
We crave it so badly
As humans, we have an intense desire for love
Makes you want to laugh out loud when you receive it
The joy of receiving love can be overwhelming
And gobble it like candy
We can never get enough of it
We think it's easy
We often underestimate the complexity of love
Sometimes it's easy
Occasionally love feels effortless
But it's not easy
More often than not, love is difficult
You're gonna break down and cry
The emotional turmoil of love can be overwhelming
We're not important
In the grand scheme of things, our individual problems don't matter
We should be grateful
We should appreciate the love we receive
And if you're wondering why
Asking the listener to consider why they might not appreciate the love in their life
Why
Love
Love
Love
Love is always the answer
The price that we pay
There are consequences to the lack of love in the world
When evil walks the planet
In a world where evil exists, love is especially important
And love is crushed like clay
When love is absent, society suffers
The master races, the chosen peoples
People have used hate to divide society, leading to the absence of love
The burning temples, the weeping cathedrals
Even places of worship can be destroyed by the absence of love
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Paul Simon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind