Hayes journeys from Miltown to Graceland

LEGENDARY Clare fiddle player Martin Hayes had a busy week recently. After playing a part in Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy in Miltown Malbay for a week, he took to the stage in the O2, Dublin in front of more than 14,000 people on Friday, July 13 to join Paul Simon on the second night of his Graceland 25th Anniversary Tour.
It is 25 years since Simon released his groundbreaking world-pop masterwork with worldwide sales of 14 million, coupled with two Grammy awards. The hit album catapulted the little-known Ladysmith Black Mambazo, together with Hugh Maskela and Miriam Makeba, to international attention.
When Graceland originally came out, it caused some degree of controversy as Simon had breached an international cultural boycott of Apartheid South Africa. Most people who understood his rationale knew he was not in South Africa to do a ‘Sun City’ show.
Others had done so, including Queen and Elton John, and had gained significantly in financial terms as a result. When apartheid ended, Paul Simon was the first artist whom a freed Nelson Mandela invited to perform in South Africa.
Mr Simon noted in a recent interview, “I’m not capable of telling a South African story, nor did I have the right to and I’m not particularly good at writing a song like Biko (Peter Gabriel’s tune about South African activist Steve Biko). Graceland basically says that life is always going on, even under oppression.”
Martin Hayes played with Paul Simon’s eight-piece touring band in the opening half of the show and with the original Graceland band in the second half of the show. Both bands played the final segment of the show. One of the highlights was Martin’s performance with Paul Simon of The Boxer, which brought the house down and many stayed on their feet for the remainder of the show. Mr Simon, now aged 70, demonstrated his voice has still the power and emotion to move a 14,000 plus audience. As for Martin, he was up early the next morning to return to Miltown Malbay no less.