I also had a similar experience. My parents liked his Simon & Garfunkel albums, and I picked up on them because I liked the singer-songwriter and folksy tendenc

I also had a similar experience. My parents liked his Simon & Garfunkel albums, and I picked up on them because I liked the singer-songwriter and folksy tendencies. It was a bit of an anti-mainstream and old school reaction to the stadium-rock that was popular in the 80's (plus the Central Park concert was bigger than any rock concert ever, so there). Then he had a hit on MTV with Chevy Chase, but never caught on in the same way that someone similar such as Peter Gabriel ever did (it's strange that I never realized the similarities between them until now). My Def Leppard loving friends still thought his music and especially the African vocals were weird and uncool. I later gravitated more towards electronic music and alternative, but kept buying his new albums through college. I still like his music, and my daughter now loves the Graceland album as well, so Paul Simon was cool-dad music for 2 generations. I think I get credit for playing sound of silence for her before it got popular again. But to me his music hasn't aged well. I guess I still remember it as singer-songwriter and folksy, but now when I listen, it's mostly pop. Despite being more complex than the 3- and 4-chord melodies he was trying to outdo, the melodies seem catchy but not moving, the lyrics a bit trite--it all sounds better when explained by a critic. The backstory about the personality and disputes is mostly new to me--I had only heard about his falling out with Garfunkel. But growing up I didn't know much about any musicians, who was in which band, nor really care. With all the mini biographies on Wikipedia, I now learn a lot more about the music I listened to, and often find myself realizing the connection between some bands, for example having the same producer. But I never idolized Simon or any other musician, so the stories don't change my experience of the music, though I do feel for the other artists. Someone mentioned the quality of the Simon and Garfunkel duo, and I agree. Wednesday morning 3am is the least pop of their albums, with the best harmonies. The other folk group I liked with harmonies was Peter, Paul, and Mary--another hand-me-down from my parents and also to my own kid.