Q&A: Former Times critic Robert Hilburn on writing about Paul Simon and the struggle to protect artistry

Pop music writer Randy Lewis and pop music critic Robert Hilburn worked together at The Times for a quarter-century before Hilburn retired in 2006.

The pair sat down recently to talk about Hilburn's latest book, "Paul Simon - The Life," published by Simon & Schuster Tuesday, just ahead of Simon's farewell tour concerts at the Hollywood Bowl on May 22, 23 and 28.

This is Hilburn's third book since leaving The Times and follows "Johnny Cash - The Life" (Little, Brown & Co., 2013).

Q: You chose Johnny Cash as the subject of your first biography. Why Paul Simon?

A: When I first went to the L.A. Times in 1970, the question I had was "Who should I write about?" When I began to interview people from the '60s, my first question was always "What was your favorite record?" They would always say Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and maybe somebody else.

Then when I started interviewing people from the '70s generation and asked, "What was your first record - who influenced you?" it was always the Beatles, the Stones, Bob Dylan, maybe