Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes

"Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes"
Single by Paul Simon
from the album Graceland
B-side	"I Know What I Know"
Released	April 1987
Format	7" 12"
Genre	Worldbeat
Length	5:45
Label	Warner Bros.
Writer(s)	Paul Simon Joseph Shabalala
Producer(s)	Paul Simon
Paul Simon singles chronology
"The Boy in the Bubble" (1987) "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" (1987) "Under African Skies" (1987)

"Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Paul Simon. It was the fourth single from his seventh studio album, Graceland (1986), released on Warner Bros. Records. The song features guest vocals from the South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Background

"Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" was written when Simon went to South Africa. While he was there, he gathered various music from locals, and risked possible imprisonment due to the apartheid regime. Upon returning to New York, Simon finished the album with the artists he brought back from South Africa, and performed live on Saturday Night Live on May 10, 1986.^[1] During the performance, Simon sung live to the backing instrumental track featured on the album while Ladysmith Black Mombazo mimed their parts.^[2] Ladysmith Black Mambazo sing in Zulu on this track. Their refrain roughly translates to: "It's not usual but in our days we see those things happen. They are women, they can take care of themselves."^[1]

Personnel

• Paul Simon—lead vocals, guitar
• Ray Phiri—guitar
• Bakithi Kumalo—bass
• Isaac Mtshali—drums
• Youssou N'Dour, Babacar Faye, Assane Thaim, James Guyatt— percussion
• Lenny Pickett—tenor saxophone
• Earl Gardner—trumpet
• Alex Foster—alto saxophone
• Ladysmith Black Mambazo—vocals

Covers

The song has been covered by the Soweto String Quartet and features on their greatest hits collection.^[3] English singer MIKA performed a live piano cover of the song on his BBC Radio 2 show The Art of Song in March 2016. ^[4]

Charts

Chart (1987)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[5]	69
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[6]	2
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[7]	28
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[8]	85
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[9]	77

Notes

References

1. "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes by Paul Simon Songfacts".
2. http://vk.com/video-2009067_33437153
3. "Soweto String Quartet - Collections - MUSIC - Musica".
4. "MIKA: The Art of Song".
5. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
6. "RPM: Adult Contemporary" (PDF). RPM. Ottawa: Library and Archives Canada. 47 (3). October 24, 1987. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
7. "Ultratop.be – Paul Simon – Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
8. "Dutchcharts.nl – Paul Simon – Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
9. "Archive Chart: 1987-02-21" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved November 11, 2015.

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

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics