Paul Simon Refreshes “One Man’s Ceiling is Another Man’s Floor” for In the Blue Light

In February, Paul Simon announced his retirement from touring, but before he says farewell, he’ll be releasing an album featuring new versions of ten songs from his discography. Reimagining personal favorites on his 14th studio album, In the Blue Light, out Sept. 7, Simon’s first release from this record is “One Man’s Ceiling is Another Man’s Floor,” which originally appeared on his 1973 album There Goes Rhymin’ Simon. In the Blue Light follows the 2016 release of Stranger To Stranger.

Simon described the song reworks as refreshed versions of the old ones, “like a new coat of paint on the walls of an old family home.” For the new version of “One Man’s Ceiling is Another Man’s Floor,” Simon slowed down the bouncy rhythm to reach a more soulful, crooning sound as he sings about apartment life. The piano is moved further towards center stage and adds a jazzy flair to the song.

Simon said In the Blue Light was also an opportunity to adjust songs that did not originally fully meet his intent:

This album consists of songs that I thought were almost right, or were odd enough to be overlooked the first time around. Re-doing arrangements, harmonic structures, and lyrics that didn’t make their meaning clear, gave me time to clarify in my own head what I wanted to say, or realize what I was thinking and make it more easily understood.

You can preorder In the Blue Light here.

Simon’s farewell tour ends this September, and he will play his final show in Queens at Flushing Meadows Corona Park—a spot to which Simon said he could have ridden on his bike from his childhood home in 20 minutes.

Compare the two versions of “One Man’s Ceiling is Another Man’s Floor” below, check out a recording of Simon from Madison Square Garden in 1979 beneath that—a performance that will turn 39 years old just one day after Simon’s farewell show in Queens—and find the tracklist for In the Blue Light and Simon’s remaining tour dates further down.

In the Blue Light Tracklist:
01. One Man’s Ceiling Is Another Man’s Floor
02. Love
03. Can’t Run But
04. How The Heart Approaches What It Yearns
05. Pigs, Sheep and Wolves
06. René and Georgette Magritte With Their Dog After the War
07. The Teacher
08. Darling Lorraine
09. Some Folks’ Lives Roll Easy
10.Questions For The Angels

Paul Simon Tour Dates:

September
05 – New Orleans, La. @ Smoothie King Center
07 – Tampa, Fla. @ Amalie Center
08 – Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. @ BB&T Center
11 – Orlando, Fla. @ Amway Center
12 – Atlanta, Ga. @ Cellairis Amphitheatre at Lakewood
14 – Washington, D.C. @ Capital One Arena
15 – Newark, N.J. @ Prudential Center
17 – Pittsburgh, Pa. @ PPG Paints Arena
20 – New York, N.Y. @ Madison Square Garden
21 – New York, N.Y. @ Madison Square Garden
22 – Queens, N.Y. @ Flushing Meadows Corona Park