Paul Simon performs Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (from the album Graceland) (1987)
Title
Paul Simon performs Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (from the album Graceland) (1987)
Subject
Music videos
URL
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Description
Content description from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamonds_on_the_Soles_of_Her_Shoes) :
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the fourth single from his seventh studio album, Graceland (1986), released on Warner Bros. Records. The song features guest vocals from the South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" was written when Simon went to South Africa. While he was there, he gathered various music from locals. Upon returning to New York, Simon finished the album with the artists he brought back from South Africa. According to Simon's account in the Classic Albums documentary on the making of Graceland, with all the album's musicians with him in New York, he performed the song live on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 1986. During the performance, Simon sang live to the backing instrumental track featured on the album while Ladysmith Black Mombazo mimed their parts. Ladysmith Black Mambazo sing in Zulu on this track. Their refrain roughly translates to: "It's not usual but in our days we see those things happen. They are women, they can take care of themselves." Simon recalled that Diamonds wasn't originally planned for inclusion on Graceland. After the Saturday Night Live show, his label, Warner Bros., decided to release the album in the fall instead of the original planned release that July. Simon and engineer Roy Halee then decided to include it on the album.
Ephemera: none available
Limitations: This page displays video content associated with a videotape in the CCDR Collections audiovisual library recorded by Joann W. Kealiinohomoku. Please be advised that, because this videotape has not yet been digitized for direct access, we cannot guarantee that the video content on this page is an exact match with the content originally recorded by Dr. Kealiinohomoku. We also cannot guarantee function or access for re-hosted video content.
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the fourth single from his seventh studio album, Graceland (1986), released on Warner Bros. Records. The song features guest vocals from the South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" was written when Simon went to South Africa. While he was there, he gathered various music from locals. Upon returning to New York, Simon finished the album with the artists he brought back from South Africa. According to Simon's account in the Classic Albums documentary on the making of Graceland, with all the album's musicians with him in New York, he performed the song live on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 1986. During the performance, Simon sang live to the backing instrumental track featured on the album while Ladysmith Black Mombazo mimed their parts. Ladysmith Black Mambazo sing in Zulu on this track. Their refrain roughly translates to: "It's not usual but in our days we see those things happen. They are women, they can take care of themselves." Simon recalled that Diamonds wasn't originally planned for inclusion on Graceland. After the Saturday Night Live show, his label, Warner Bros., decided to release the album in the fall instead of the original planned release that July. Simon and engineer Roy Halee then decided to include it on the album.
Ephemera: none available
Limitations: This page displays video content associated with a videotape in the CCDR Collections audiovisual library recorded by Joann W. Kealiinohomoku. Please be advised that, because this videotape has not yet been digitized for direct access, we cannot guarantee that the video content on this page is an exact match with the content originally recorded by Dr. Kealiinohomoku. We also cannot guarantee function or access for re-hosted video content.
Original Format
TV broadcast recorded off air by JWK: Betamax tape
Creator
Paul Simon (performer)
Publisher
Warner Bros. Records
Date
1987 April
Citation
“Paul Simon performs Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes (from the album Graceland) (1987),” Cross-Cultural Dance Resources Collections, accessed June 5, 2023, https://ccdrcollections.omeka.net/items/show/568.