Paul Simon gave a rare performance at the SNL50: The Anniversary Special on Sunday night. He and pop star Sabrina Carpenter offered a rendition of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Homeward Bound.”
“I sang this song with George Harrison on SNL in 1976,” Simon said before they began. “I was not born then,” Carpenter playfully added, “and neither were my parents.”
You can watch the performance below.
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Simon, who announced his retirement from touring back in 2018, does not perform live often. He has struggled with hearing loss in recent years, a change that affected his ability to play live, but helped him discover new ways to make music. He released his 15th solo album in 2023, Seven Psalms.
“It was scary, frustrating,” he said last year. “You’re in denial and then you’re overwhelmed by this change in your life because you now have a disability. But even though it wasn’t pleasurable any more, I started to think that this was some new information that I needed to absorb into the piece. I started to focus on sounds, not from computers or synthesizers, but acoustic instruments used in unusual ways.”
Other Rock Acts at ‘SNL50’
Simon was not the only rock artist to appear at SNL50. Paul McCartney performed the famous medley of “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight” and “The End,” which you can also watch below.
Watch Paul Simon and Sabrina Carpenter Perform ‘Homeward Bound’ on ‘SNL50’
Watch Paul McCartney Perform on ‘SNL50’
Paul Simon and Simon & Garfunkel Albums Ranked
He was always an uneasy folksinger, a role his record company tried to push him into starting with Simon & Garfunkel’s debut.
Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci
Rock Feuds: Simon vs. Garfunkel
