Paul Simon: 2/7/1991

This show was part of Paul Simon’s “Born at the Right Time” tour. I was pretty psyched to see him, since his songs were definitely a part of the soundtrack of my early years. I even had “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard” on 45 back in the day.

I went with my then girlfriend, and we had decent seats, even though they were upper level. The Miami Arena was not huge, which was probably why the Heat abandoned it and built a bigger arena, which resulted in the venue being demolished in 2008.

Anyway, back to the concert. Paul Simon was amazing. He sounded great and had a solid backing band comprised of really cool world musicians. He played a nice long show… but I had one complaint. He played “You Can Call Me Al” TWICE, one right after the other. So he played the song, everyone was dancing and singing along, and when they finished, Paul said “Wow! That was great! Let’s do it again.” And they did. OK, they played a shortened version, but still, I felt ever so slightly rooked. I mean, Paul Simon has a ton of great songs, a lot of which he did not play. He could have tossed in “Mrs. Robinson” or “Scarborough Fair” or “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” instead. Just sayin’.

Besides the repeat, it was a great show. Here’s the setlist. Rock on.

Setlist:

• The Obvious Child
• The Boy in the Bubble
• She Moves On
• Kodachrome
• Born at the Right Time
• Negotiations and Love Songs
• Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard
• Proof
• I Know What I Know
• Bridge Over Troubled Water
• The Cool, Cool River
• Further to Fly
• Cecilia
• Graceland
• You Can Call Me Al
• You Can Call Me Al
• Still Crazy After All These Years
• Late in the Evening
• Hearts and Bones
• Loves Me Like a Rock
• Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
• American Tune
• The Boxer
• The Sound of Silence

Bob Dylan and Paul Simon: 9/2/1999

I had seen both of these musical icons before this show, but it was impossible for a music fanatic like me to pass up the opportunity to see them both together.

I got tickets for my wife and I to go to the show, and we made the long drive from Miami up to Coral Sky Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach. We had lawn “seats,” so we were pretty far back. But that was fine. Like I said, I’d seen them both before and didn’t feel the need to be up close.

The details of this show are a little hazy. I have impressions of each of them performing, and I vividly remember the two of them performing together at during Dylan’s encore. I’m pretty sure that Paul Simon played first. Since the two played together during Dylan’s encore, it seems to support my recollection. Also, my wife agrees that she remembers Paul Simon playing first. I know for certain that I enjoyed the show, and thought that both artists played well.

Here are each of their setlists.

Paul Simon Setlist:

• Bridge Over Troubled Water
• Can’t Run But
• The Boy in the Bubble
• The Coast
• Trailways Bus
• Mrs. Robinson
• Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard
• Further to Fly
• Graceland
• The Cool, Cool River
• Slip Slidin’ Away
• Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes
• You Can Call Me Al

Encore:

• Late in the Evening
• Still Crazy After All These Years

Encore 2:

• Proof
• The Sound of Silence

Bob Dylan Setlist:

• Somebody Touched Me
• My Back Pages
• Masters of War
• Love Minus Zero/No Limit
• Tangled Up in Blue
• All Along the Watchtower
• Just Like a Woman
• Silvio
• The Heart That You Own
• Highway 61 Revisited

Encore:

• Like a Rolling Stone
• It Ain’t Me, Babe
• The Boxer (with Paul Simon)
• That’ll Be the Day / The Wanderer (with Paul Simon)
• Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (with Paul Simon)