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Seven Psalms

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Seven Psalms
A painting of two owls on a tree branch in an early-morning scene, with the artist name and title superimposed in purple text
Studio album by
Paul Simon
ReleasedMay 19, 2023
GenreAcoustic[1]
Length33:02
Label
Producer
Paul Simon chronology
In the Blue Light
(2018) 		Seven Psalms
(2023)

Seven Psalms is the fifteenth solo studio album by American musician Paul Simon. It was released on May 19, 2023, through Owl Records and Legacy Recordings.[2] The album was conceived as a seven-part piece meant to be listened to in its entirety, and is a completely acoustic performance.[1]

The album is Simon's first since In the Blue Light (2018) and his first of new material since Stranger to Stranger (2016). Guests on the album include Voces8 and Simon's wife Edie Brickell.[3]

Background

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Simon has said the idea for the album came to him in a dream, and that he would wake up between 3:30 and 5:00 A.M. two to three nights a week to write lyrics for the project.[4] The main inspiration for the album was the Book of Psalms.[5] The album's cover art was taken from Thomas Moran's Two Owls.[5] The album is not broken into individual songs, but instead is intended to be listened to as one long piece.[6] Its digital incarnations keep this sequencing intact, and CD copies are not indexed individually.[7]

On April 12, 2023, Simon posted a "trailer" video to YouTube announcing the album and explaining its background.[8]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
The Daily Telegraph[9]
Pitchfork7.5/10[10]

Seven Psalms received positive reviews from music critics. Jon Pareles at The New York Times designated it a Critic's Pick, extolling it as "observant, elliptical, perpetually questioning and quietly encompassing."[11] Chris Willman at Variety called it "a testament to how inquisitive and engaged an artist can be this late in a career [...] Seven Psalms is unlike any other Simon album in almost too many ways to list."[6] Michaelangelo Matos, reviewing for Rolling Stone, interpreted it as iconic of the spirituality at the center of his discography.[12] Poppie Platt at The Telegraph dubbed the effort "a half-shuttered window into the world of the man behind some of the world's most famous songs. If only Simon were to pry open said window slightly wider, one would feel more fulfilled."[9] Stephen Thomas Erlewine at AllMusic found it continually revealing: "At first, the record can seem like a tone poem, a meditation of mortality and spirituality, yet each subsequent listen reveals a moment of grace or insight that helps pull the entirety of the project into relief."[7]

The album has been compared to David Bowie's Blackstar and Leonard Cohen's You Want It Darker, the artists’ final albums released in 2016.[6][11]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Paul Simon

Seven Psalms track listing
No.TitleLength
1."The Lord"
"Love Is Like a Braid"
"My Professional Opinion"
"Your Forgiveness"
"Trail of Volcanoes"
"The Sacred Harp"
"Wait"		33:02

Charts

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Chart performance for Seven Psalms
Chart (2023) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[13] 25
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[14] 75
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] 31
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[16] 69
Irish Albums (IRMA)[17] 67
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[18] 47
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[19] 64
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[20] 27
Scottish Albums (OCC)[21] 7
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[22] 38
UK Albums (OCC)[23] 28
US Billboard 200[24] 153
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[25] 25

References

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  1. ^ a b Kaufman, Gil (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon Releasing 33-Minute Continuous Composition 'Seven Psalms'". Billboard. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  2. ^ Minsker, Evan (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon Announces New Album Seven Psalms". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  3. ^ Grow, Kory (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon Plumbs His Dreams for New 'Seven Psalms' Composition". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  4. ^ Sacher, Andrew (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon announces new album Seven Psalms, shares trailer with studio footage, new music & more". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  5. ^ a b Brodsky, Rachel (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon Announces New Not-An-Album Seven Psalms". Stereogum. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Willman, Chris (May 19, 2023). "Paul Simon Considers God, Man and for Whom the Bell Tolls in Quietly Stunning 'Seven Psalms': Album Review". Variety. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  7. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (May 19, 2023). "Paul Simon - Seven Psalms Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  8. ^ Simon, Paul (April 12, 2023). "Paul Simon – Seven Psalms trailer". Retrieved April 13, 2023 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ a b Hall, James (May 19, 2023). "Lewis Capaldi is weepier than ever, Paul Simon goes to church – the week's best albums". The Telegraph. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  10. ^ Sodomsky, Sam (May 25, 2023). "Paul Simon: Seven Psalms Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 25, 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Paul Simon Confronts Death, Profoundly, on 'Seven Psalms'". The New York Times. May 18, 2023. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  12. ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (May 17, 2023). "Paul Simon Dreams of the Eternal on 'Seven Psalms'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 19, 2023.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
  14. ^ "Ultratop.be – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
  15. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  16. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  17. ^ "Irish Albums Chart: 26 May 2023". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
  18. ^ "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 2023-07-03/p/5" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  19. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of June 28, 2023". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  20. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 2, 2023.
  21. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  22. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Paul Simon – Seven Psalms". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
  23. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  24. ^ "Paul Simon Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2023.
  25. ^ "Paul Simon Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
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