<P> Synthesizer player Rob Mounsey arranged and conducted the horn section, and contributed heavily to the track's arrangement and groove . The song features a bass run performed by Bakithi Kumalo; the solo is palindromic as only the first half was recorded, and was then played backwards for the second half . The decision to reverse the recording was made by Halee, who noted in a later interview that this type of experimentation was common in order to make the songs more interesting . The penny whistle solo was performed by jazz musician Morris Goldberg . </P> <P> Paul Simon did not like the original music video that was made, which was a performance of the song Simon gave during the monologue when he hosted Saturday Night Live in the perspective of a video monitor . A replacement video was conceived partly by Lorne Michaels and directed by Gary Weis, wherein Chevy Chase lip - synced Simon's vocals, with gestures punctuating the lyrics . </P> <P> "You Can Call Me Al" became Simon's biggest hit single as a solo act . In the United States, however, it initially fared poorly, reaching number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100 in September 1986 . As sales and acclaim for Graceland grew, culminating in a win for Album of the Year at the 29th Annual Grammy Awards in February 1987, the single began to re-enter the charts . After making a second entry in March, the song rose to a peak of number 23 in May 1987 . </P> <Ul> <Li> Paul Simon--lead vocals, six - string electric bass, background vocals </Li> <Li> Ray Phiri--guitar </Li> <Li> Adrian Belew--guitar synthesizer </Li> <Li> Bakithi Kumalo--bass </Li> <Li> Isaac Mtshali--drums </Li> <Li> Ralph MacDonald--percussion </Li> <Li> James Guyatt--percussion </Li> <Li> Rob Mounsey--synthesizer, horn arrangement (uncredited on album) </Li> <Li> Ronnie Cuber--bass and baritone saxophone </Li> <Li> Jon Faddis--trumpet </Li> <Li> Randy Brecker--trumpet </Li> <Li> Lew Soloff--trumpet </Li> <Li> Alan Rubin--trumpet </Li> <Li> Dave Bargeron--trombone </Li> <Li> Kim Allan Cissel--trombone </Li> <Li> Morris Goldberg--penny whistle </Li> <Li> Ladysmith Black Mambazo--background vocals (uncredited) </Li> </Ul>

You can call me al in a film