Paul Simon opens up about hearing loss affecting his future performances

Paul Simon has revealed that his live performances may be impacted due to hearing loss in his left ear. The artist, who makes up half of American folk duo Simon & Garfunkel, opened up about the loss of his hearing in an interview with the UK Times.

Detailing the loss, Simon explained that it occurred while he was working on music for his new album, Seven Psalms.

“Quite suddenly, I lost most of the hearing in my left ear, and nobody has an explanation for it,” he said. “So everything became more difficult.”

The singer-songwriter opened up about his initial emotions of “frustration and annoyance,” explaining how he believed the condition would eventually “repair itself.” When he came to the realisation that it would not, the 81-year-old discussed reframing his mindset when it came to his ability to perform live in the future.

“The songs of mine that I don’t want to sing live, I don’t sing them. Sometimes there are songs that I like and then at a certain point in a tour, I’ll say, ‘What the fuck are you doing, Paul?’” he said.

“Quite often that would come during ‘You Can Call Me Al.’ I’d think, ‘What are you doing? You’re like a Paul Simon cover band. You should get off the road, go home.’”

Stream Seven Psalms below.