Paul Simon is now “comfortable” singing and playing instruments as hearing in his left ear has returned.
Paul Simon is now ‘comfortable’ singing and playing instruments as hearing in his left ear has returned
‘The Sound of Silence’ singer, first revealed he was suffering hearing loss in May 2023 during an interview with The Times, but has now said it has come back to the “degree” he can now enjoy making music.
He said during an appearance at the New York City premiere of his MGM+ docuseries ‘In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon’, in a question-and-answer session hosted by Stephen Colbert, 59: “(My hearing has) come back to enough of a degree that I'm comfortable singing and playing guitar and playing a few other instruments.
“That’s good. I can hear my voice the way I want it in the context of the music.”
But Paul added to Stephen – who is deaf in his right ear – if there’s an instrument that’s too noisy he struggles to perform.
He said: “If there's a drum or an electric guitar, it’s too loud and I can’t hear my voice.
“But when I first lost the hearing, I couldn’t get… it threw me off.
“Everything was coming from this side. But you know what I’m talking (about.)”
Simon and Garfunkel co-founder Paul told The Times about his hearing loss:
“Quite suddenly I lost most of the hearing in my left ear, and nobody has an explanation for it.
“So everything became more difficult. My reaction to that was frustration and annoyance; not quite anger yet, because I thought it would pass, it would repair itself.”
Paul added he lost his hearing while working on his most recent album ‘Seven Psalms’, which came out in May 2023.
That September, the singer said that he was “beginning to” come to terms with his hearing loss at the world premiere of his docuseries, which was directed by Alex Gibney, 70, at the Toronto International Film Festival.
He told an audience at the question-and-answer session at the event: “I haven’t accepted it entirely, but I’m beginning to.
“I play the guitar every day. It’s the instrument that allows me to express myself creatively. But it’s also where I go for solace, if I’m feeling … ‘whatever’.
“So it’s a very crucial thing to me. You know, something happens to you when you have some sort of disability that changes your awareness or changes how you interact with life.”
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