25 Songs for 25 Years, no. 15

Paul Simon's "Graceland" came out in the summer of 1986, while we were expecting Ashley, our firstborn. It quickly became a favorite, and we also liked Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Clifton Chenier and a few other artists who guested on the album. Over the next few years, we played it a lot, and it was always a fun thing to listen to.

The most fun track Is "You Can Call Me Al," which also had a pretty silly video to go with it, in which Chevy Chase does a lot of mugging.

The song refers to an awkward party that Paul Simon and his first wife, Peggy, attended. The host got their names wrong and called them Betty and Al all evening. I like the clever lyrics, like "Why am I soft in the middle when the rest of my life is so hard?"

You Can Call Me Al