So Beautiful or So What [Collector's Edition CD/DVD] [Digipak]

Rating

Album: So Beautiful or So What [Collector's Edition CD/DVD] [Digipak]
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Getting Ready for Christmas Day
2)	Afterlife, The
3)	Dazzling Blue
4)	Rewrite
5)	Love and Hard Times
6)	Love Is Eternal Sacred Light
7)	Amulet
8)	Questions for the Angels
9)	Love & Blessings
10)	So Beautiful or So What
1)	So Beautiful or So What - (live)
2)	Dazzling Blue - (live)
3)	Afterlife, The - (live)
4)	Mother and Child Reunion - (live)
5)	Slip Slidin' Away - (live)

Album: So Beautiful or So What [Collector's Edition CD/DVD] [Digipak]
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Getting Ready for Christmas Day
2)	Afterlife, The
3)	Dazzling Blue
4)	Rewrite
5)	Love and Hard Times
6)	Love Is Eternal Sacred Light
7)	Amulet
8)	Questions for the Angels
9)	Love & Blessings
10)	So Beautiful or So What
1)	So Beautiful or So What - (live)
2)	Dazzling Blue - (live)
3)	Afterlife, The - (live)
4)	Mother and Child Reunion - (live)
5)	Slip Slidin' Away - (live)

Performer Notes

Audio Mixer: Phil Ramone.
Liner Note Author: Elvis Costello.
Recording information: Webster Hall, New York, NY (06/06/2011); Webster Hall, New York, NY (10/1941).
Director: Martyn Atkins.
Photographers: Mark Seliger; Kevin Mazur; Mary Ellen Matthews.
Produced by longtime collaborator Phil Ramone, Paul Simon's So Beautiful or So What features guitarist Vincent Nguini, percussionist Steve Shehan, backing vocals from Simon's wife, Edie Brickell, and his daughter, Lulu, and a generous helping of the bluegrass group Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver.

Professional Reviews

Rolling Stone (p.71) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[F]ull of heavy business: life's meaning, beauty, brutality and brevity....It's his best album since 1990's THE RHYTHM OF THE SAINTS, and it also sums up much of what makes Simon great."

Rolling Stone (p.68) - Ranked #3 in Rolling Stone's '50 Best Albums Of 2011' -- "[Simon's] best album in more than 20 years..."

Entertainment Weekly (p.86) - "[T]he GRACELAND-ic guitar figures still emphasize rhythm above all....Spirited spirituality is his goal these days.' -- Grade: B+

Billboard (p.32) - "The album's songwriting and sound are deceptively complex, gradually revealing their intricacy with each listen. It's natural and earthy, with acoustic instrumentation and percussion to the fore."

Uncut (magazine) (p.32) - Ranked #29 in Uncut's '50 Best Albums Of 2011' -- "[A]n impeccably crafted, erudite and rueful collection of songs that tackled spirituality with both sureness and lightness of touch."