Misplaced Pages

"Kodachrome"
Single by Paul Simon
from the album There Goes Rhymin' Simon
B-side	"Tenderness"
Released	May 19, 1973
Genre	Pop
Length	3:32
Label	Columbia
Songwriter(s)	Paul Simon
Producer(s)	Paul Simon Phil Ramone
Paul Simon singles chronology
"Duncan" (1972) "Kodachrome" (1973) "Loves Me Like a Rock" (1973)

"Kodachrome" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the lead single from his third studio album, There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973), released on Columbia Records. The song is named after Kodak's now-discontinued reversal film brand, Kodachrome.

Description

After a review in Billboard's May 12 issue praising its "cheerfully antisocial lyrics", the song debuted at No. 82 in the Hot 100 on the week-ending May 19, 1973. The lyrics of the song on There Goes Rhymin' Simon differed from those on The Concert in Central Park (1982) and Paul Simon's Concert in the Park, August 15, 1991 albums. The lyrics of the original album version were, "everything looks worse in black and white" but, on the live albums, Simon sang "everything looks better in black and white". Simon said, "I can't remember which way I originally wrote it – 'better' or 'worse' – but I always change it.... 'Kodachrome' was a song that was originally called 'Goin' Home.'"

Record World called it "another Simon masterpiece" and said that "perfect fare for springtime-summer radio will be hummed and whistled by millions".

Development

In an interview conducted in November 2008, Simon said that what he had in mind when writing the song was to call it "Going Home". However, finding that would have been "too conventional", he came up with "Kodachrome", because of its similar sound and larger innovative potential. He also referred to its first line as the "most interesting" part of the song. That first line is: "When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school/It's a wonder I can think at all".

Chart performance

Four weeks after its debut on the Hot 100, the song moved to No. 9, sandwiched ahead of "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" by Dawn featuring Tony Orlando, and behind May 19, 1973, Hot 100 top debut (No. 59) "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" by George Harrison.

Two weeks later, "Kodachrome" peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, behind "Will It Go Round in Circles" by Billy Preston. It peaked at No. 2 the Billboard adult contemporary chart as well. In the United Kingdom, the song was marketed as the B-side to "Take Me to the Mardi Gras" (CBS 1578). The song was banned by both the BBC and the Federation of Australian Radio Broadcasters, due to its trademarked title.

Personnel

The musicians on this session were the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section.

• Paul Simon – vocals, acoustic guitar
• Pete Carr – acoustic guitar
• Jimmy Johnson – electric guitars
• David Hood – bass guitar
• Roger Hawkins – double-tracked drums
• Barry Beckett – Wurlitzer electronic piano, Hammond organ, tack piano
• Uncredited – horns

Notes

References

1. Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "Dancing in the Moonlight: Seventies Pop". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 39. ISBN 031214704X.
2. "Radio Action & Pick Singles" (PDF). Billboard. May 12, 1973. p. 56. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
3. "Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 38. May 19, 1973. p. 68. ISSN 0006-2510.
4. "Still Creative After All These Years", interview with Daniel J. Levitin, Grammy magazine, Winter, 1997.
5. "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. May 19, 1973. p. 1. Retrieved March 23, 2023.
6. "Interviews".
7. "Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Vol. 85, no. 42. June 16, 1973. p. 88. ISSN 0006-2510.
8. Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)
9. "Top 100 Songs – Billboard Hot 100 Chart". Billboard.
10. Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
11. See label photos at 45cat.com
12. "30 songs banned by the BBC". The Telegraph. December 17, 2015. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
13. Billboard (Billboard Publications), July 7, 1973, page 53.
14. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
15. "RPM100: Singles" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 19, no. 23. July 21, 1973. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
16. "The Programmers' Adult Contemporary Playlist" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 19, no. 23. July 21, 1973. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
17. "Paul Simon – Kodachrome" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
18. "Paul Simon – Kodachrome" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
20. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
21. "Paul Simon – Chart history". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 2, 2011. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
22. "Paul Simon Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
23. "Cash Box Top 100 7/14/73". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2015. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
24. "Top 100 Singles of '73" (PDF). RPM. December 29, 1973. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
25. "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". www.musicoutfitters.com.
26. "Cash Box YE Pop Singles – 1973". tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
27. "Paul Simon Greatest Hits". aln2.albumlinernotes. Archived from the original on March 27, 2010.

Sources

• Bennighof, James (2007). The Words and Music of Paul Simon. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-99163-0.
• Eliot, Marc (2010). Paul Simon: A Life. John Wiley and Sons. ISBN 978-0-470-43363-8.

External links

• Paul Simon - Kodachrome on YouTube

• 1973 songs
• 1973 singles
• Paul Simon songs
• Songs written by Paul Simon
• Song recordings produced by Phil Ramone
• Song recordings produced by Paul Simon
• Columbia Records singles
• Kodak
• Censorship of music