Top 150 Paul Simon Quotes (2024 Update)

1. “Listen to the sound of silence.”

— Paul Simon

Featured in: Quotes About Listening

2. “The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenements halls and whispered in the sounds of silence.”

— Paul Simon

3. “All lies and jests, still a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.”

— Paul Simon

4. “One man’s ceiling is another man’s floor.”

— Paul Simon

5. “I’ve got nothing to do today but smile.”

— Paul Simon

6. “Why am I so soft in the middle when the rest of my life is so hard?”

— Paul Simon

7. “Mama, don’t take my Kodachrome away.”

— Paul Simon

8. “These are the days of miracle and wonder.”

— Paul Simon

9. “I have my books And my poetry to protect me; I am shielded in my armor, Hiding in my room, safe within my womb. I touch no one and no one touches me. I am a rock, I am an island.”

— Paul Simon

10. “Much of songwriting is simply a mystery.”

— Paul Simon

11. “And a rock feels no pain; And an island never cries.”

— Paul Simon

12. “Losing love is like a window in your heart...”

— Paul Simon

13. “Life I love you, all is groovy.”

— Paul Simon

14. “There must be 50 ways to leave your lover.”

— Paul Simon

15. “Blessed are the sat upon, spat upon, ratted on.”

— Paul Simon

16. “Music is forever; music should grow and mature with you, following you right on up until you die.”

— Paul Simon

17. “All God requires from us is to enjoy life and love. That’s the whole point.”

— Paul Simon

18. “The thought that life could be better is woven indelibly into our hearts and our brains.”

— Paul Simon

19. “I would not be convicted by a jury of my peers, still crazy after all these years.”

— Paul Simon

20. “When I look back at all the crap I learned in high school, it’s a wonder I can think at all.”

— Paul Simon

21. “So I’ll continue to continue to pretend my life will never end, and flowers never bend with the rainfall.”

— Paul Simon

22. “Who am I to blow against the wind?”

— Paul Simon

23. “It was the year of the Beatles, it was the year of the Stones, it was 1964.”

— Paul Simon

24. “Just slip out the back, Jack, make a new plan, Stan, you don’t need to be coy, Roy, just get yourself free. Hop on the bus, Gus, you don’t need to discuss much, just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free.”

— Paul Simon

25. “Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”

— Paul Simon

26. “I don’t know what I’m going to write when I begin to write. It feels like you are walking down a path, but you can’t see around the bend and you don’t know where you are going to go, which is fun.”

— Paul Simon

27. “Don’t want to end up a cartoon in a cartoon grave yard.”

— Paul Simon

28. “There is a moment, a chip in time, when leaving home is the lesser crime.”

— Paul Simon

29. “I get the news I need on the weather report And I have nothing to do today but smile.”

— Paul Simon

30. “There’s something about the sound of a train that’s very romantic and nostalgic and hopeful.”

— Paul Simon

31. “Nor is it strange That after changes upon changes, we are more or less the same.”

— Paul Simon

32. “Time it was And what a time it was, it was A time of innocence A time of confidences Long ago it must be I have a photograph Preserve your memories They’re all that’s left you.”

— Paul Simon

33. “The leaves that are green turn to brown. And they wither with the wind. And they crumble in your hand.”

— Paul Simon

34. “I think Bridge Over Troubled Water was a very good song. Artie sang it beautifully. The Boxer was a really nice record. But I don’t think I’ve written any great songs.”

— Paul Simon

35. “She said a good day ain’t got no rain She said a bad day is when I lie in the bed And I think of things that might have been.”

— Paul Simon

36. “Improvisation is too good to leave to chance.”

— Paul Simon

37. “The degree of customization possible through your Preferences screens is awesome.”

— Paul Simon

38. “We work our jobs, collect our pay, believe were gliding down the highway, when in fact we’re slip sliding away.”

— Paul Simon

39. “Two times two is twenty-two, four times four is forty-four. When numbers get serious, they leave a mark on your door.”

— Paul Simon

40. “I have my books and my poetry to protect me.”

— Paul Simon

41. “Believing I had supernatural powers, I slammed into a brick wall.”

— Paul Simon

42. “I like working with sound; sound and rhythm. I like the abstract more than “What does that mean?” Nobody ever says to you, “Why did you use a harmonium?” Or “What is that ringing sound that occurs here?” The questions are always “What does that song mean?” or “What were you trying to say here?””

— Paul Simon

43. “Lord, I am a surgeon and music is my knife. It cuts away my sorrow and purifies my life.”

— Paul Simon

44. “I’ve got a reason to believe we all be received in Graceland, Graceland, Memphis Tennessee.”

— Paul Simon

45. “And you read your emily dickinson, And I my robert frost. And we note our place with bookmarkers That measure what weve lost.”

— Paul Simon

46. “Breakdowns come, and breakdowns go.”

— Paul Simon

47. “And I must be what I must be and face tomorrow.”

— Paul Simon

48. “I don’t believe what the papers are saying They’re just out to capture my dime, Exaggerating this, exaggerating that.”

— Paul Simon

49. “I don’t like fashion. It’s very heartless.”

— Paul Simon

50. “Maybe I think too much for my own good.”

— Paul Simon