Graceland

Paul Simon's 1986 masterpiece, Graceland, took home that year's Album of the Year Grammy on the strength of a collection that included "The Boy In The Bubble," "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes," "You Can Call Me Al," and a title song that won the Record of the Year Grammy. The CD's bonuses include a demo version of "Homeless," an alternate version of "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes," and an early version of "All Around the World or the Myth of Fingerprints." Graceland has sold more than 14 million copies worldwide.

The melding of South African styles and Simon's trademark sensibility made for one of the most intriguing albums--not to mention commercial hits--of the '80s. At once lively, thoughtful, gorgeous, and tough, Graceland acknowledges splits both in South Africa's social fabric and in Simon's personal life (the title track is a clear descendant of the earlier "Hearts and Bones," a song about the singer-songwriter's brief marriage to Carrie Fisher). Humor is hardly absent from the mix, though; witness the addled "I Know What I Know" and the fable-like "You Can Call Me Al." --Rickey Wright