I bought that album when it came out and sang along with that tune many many times (my taste has since improved). But the lyrics sure do have more meaning to me than they did back then, particularly the third verse.
My Little Town
Paul Simon
In my little town
I grew up believing
God keeps his eye on us all
And he used to lean upon me
As I pledged allegiance to the wall
Lord I recall my little town
Coming home after school
Riding my bike past the gates of the factories
My mom doing the laundry
Hanging out shirts in the dirty breeze
And after it rains there’s a rainbow
And all of the colors are black
It’s not that the colors aren’t there
It’s just imagination they lack
Everything’s the same back in my little town
In my little town I never meant nothing
I was just my father’s son
Saving my money
Dreamin of glory
Twitching like a finger on a trigger of a gun
Nothing but the dead and dying back in my little town
Nothing but the dead and dying back in my little town
Nothing but the dead and dying back in my little town
Written by Paul Simon • Copyright © Universal Music Publishing Group