Paul Simon Was Afraid Hearing Loss Would Stop Him From Playing Live Music Again
Singer-songwriter Paul Simon stopped by CBS Mornings to discuss the hearing loss he’s experienced in recent years. Simon admitted that he now struggles to hear his own music onstage, as he has only about 66% of his hearing in his left ear.
He admitted, “I guess what I’m most apprehensive about would be if I can’t hear well enough to really enjoy the act of making music.” Simon has had to make some changes while performing including moving speakers around, which has taken a while to work out correctly.
He has also had to change the type of songs he performs, opting for quieter, easier-to-perform acoustic versions. More upbeat songs like “You Can Call Me Al” have been dropped from his setlist due to his hearing loss, which Simon admitted is very frustrating and hard to deal with emotionally.
Warner Brothers/Everett Collection
When he first started experiencing hearing loss, Simon said that he felt very angry, especially when doctors told him at first there was nothing they could do. However, he found a project in Palo Alto that uses new technology to focus on a cure for hearing loss. Scientists at the Stanford Initiative are studying how some animals are able to correct their own hearing loss and how that could translate over to humans without any negative effects.
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They are currently working on an FDA-approved drug that will hopefully be able to be used on humans one day to correct hearing loss. Simon said that his visits to the Stanford Initiative helped him to feel hope that there could be some significant improvement on the horizon.
Although he still struggles with his hearing loss, he shared that he doesn’t believe any disability should ever stop creativity. Sounds like he will keep going, touring and making music, for as long as he can!
You can watch the whole interview below.
Legendary singer-songwriter @PaulSimonMusic is one of the 1.5 billion people worldwide whose life is impacted by hearing loss.
At first, doctors told Simon that there was nothing they could do. Then, Simon heard about a project at the @HearingLossCure. @anthonymasoncbs saw how a … pic.twitter.com/7pZZaSYr69
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) November 20, 2024
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Pop Music Legends
August 2017
Dedicated to the sights, sounds and stories of the golden age of pop.
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